Crystallite size effects can influence the performance of battery materials by making the structural chemistry deviate from what is predicted by the equilibrium phase diagram. The implications of this are profound: the properties of many battery materials should be reassessed. Sodium ion battery anodes made from nanocrystalline bismuth form different phases during electrochemical cycling compared to anodes with larger crystallites. This is due to the formation of a metastable cubic polymorph of Na 3 Bi on the crystallite surfaces. The structural differences (weaker Na−Bi bonds, different coordination of Na to Bi) between the metastable cubic Na 3 Bi phase found in the nanocrystals and the hexagonal equilibrium polymorph which dominates the larger crystallites offer an explanation for the improvements in cycling behavior observed for the nanostructured anode.

No abstract

No abstract

Microplastic fibers, also known as microfibers, are the most abundant microplastic forms found in the environment. Microfibers are released in massive numbers from textile garments during home laundering via sewage effluents and/or sludge. This review presents and discusses the importance of synthetic textile-based microfibers as a source of microplastics. Studies focused on their release during laundering were reviewed, and factors affecting microfiber release from textiles and the putative role of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) as a pathway of their release in the environment were examined and discussed. Moreover, potential adverse effects of microfibers on marine and aquatic biota and human health were briefly reviewed. Studies show that thousands of microfibers are released from textile garments during laundering. Different factors, such as fabric type and detergent, impact the release of microfibers. However, a relatively smaller number of available studies and often conflicting findings among studies make it harder to establish definitive trends related to important factors contributing to the release of microfibers. Even though current WWTPs are highly effective in capturing microfibers, due to the presence of a massive number of microfibers in the influent, up to billions of fibers per day are released through effluent into the environment. There is a need to establish standardized protocols and procedures that can allow meaningful comparisons among studies to be performed.

Cation-disordered rocksalt (DRS) materials have shown good initial reversibility and facile Li+ insertion and extraction in the structure at high rates. However, all of the Li-rich oxyfluorides introduced so far suffer from short cycle lifetimes and severe capacity fading. In the current study, we combine the strategy of using high-valent cations with partial substitution of oxygen anions by fluorine ions to achieve the optimal Mn4+/Mn2+ double redox reaction in the composition system Li2Mn1–x Ti x O2F (0 ≤ x ≤ 2/3). While Ti-rich compositions correlate to an O-oxidation plateau and a partial Mn3+–Mn4+ redox process at high voltages, owing to the presence of Ti3+ in the structure, a new composition Li2Mn2/3Ti1/3O2F with a lower amount of Ti shows better electrochemical performance with an initial high discharge capacity of 227 mAh g–1 (1.5–4.3 V window) and a Coulombic efficiency of 82% after 200 cycles with a capacity of 136 mAh g–1 (>462 Wh kg–1). The structural characteristics, oxidation states, and charge-transfer mechanism have been examined as a function of composition and state of charge. The results indicate a double redox mechanism of Mn4+/Mn2+ in agreement with Mn–Ti structural charge compensation. The findings point to a way for designing high-capacity DRS materials with multi-electron redox reactions.