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The well-established poor electrochemical cycling performance of the LiMn2O4 (LMO) spinel cathode material for lithium-ion batteries at elevated temperature stems from the instability of the Mn(3+) concentration. In this work, a microwave-assisted solid-state reaction has been used to dope LMO with a very low amount of nickel (i.e., LiNi0.2Mn1.8O4, herein abbreviated as LMNO) for lithium-ion batteries from Mn3O4 which is prepared from electrolytic manganese oxide (EMD, γ-MnO2). To establish the impact of microwave irradiation on the electrochemical cycling performance at an elevated temperature (60 °C), the Mn(3+) concentration in the pristine and microwave-treated LMNO samples was independently confirmed by XRD, XPS, (6)LiMAS-NMR and electrochemical studies including electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The microwave-treated sample (LMNOmic) allowed for the clear exposure of the {111} facets of the spinel, optimized the Mn(3+) content, promoting structural and cycle stability at elevated temperature. At room temperature, both the pristine (LMNO) and microwave-treated (LMNOmic) samples gave comparable cycling performance (>96% capacity retention and ca. 100% coulombic efficiency after 100 consecutive cycling). However, at an elevated temperature (60 °C), the LMNOmic gave an improved cycling stability (>80% capacity retention and ca. 90% coulombic efficiency after 100 consecutive cycling) compared to the LMNO. For the first time, the impact of microwave irradiation on tuning the average manganese redox state of the spinel material to enhance the cycling performance of the LiNi0.2Mn1.8O4 at elevated temperature and lithium-ion diffusion kinetics has been clearly demonstrated.

Recently, cobalt redox electrolyte mediators have emerged as a promising alternative to the commonly used iodide/triiodide redox shuttle in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs). Here, we report the successful use of a new quasi-liquid, polymer-based electrolyte containing the Co(3+)/Co(2+) redox mediator in 3-methoxy propionitrile solvent in order to overcome the limitations of high cell resistance, low diffusion coefficient and rapid recombination losses. The performance of the solar cells containing the polymer based electrolytes increased by a factor of 1.2 with respect to an analogous electrolyte without the polymer. The performances of the fabricated DSCs have been investigated in detail by photovoltaic, transient electron measurements, EIS, Raman and UV-vis spectroscopy. This approach offers an effective way to make high-performance and long-lasting DSCs.

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