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For efficient use of metal oxides, such as MnO 2 and RuO 2 , in pseudocapacitors and other electrochemical applications, the poor conductivity of the metal oxide is a major problem. To tackle the problem, we have designed a ternary nanocomposite film composed of metal oxide (MnO 2 ), carbon nanotube (CNT), and conducting polymer (CP). Each component in the MnO 2 /CNT/CP film provides unique and critical function to achieve optimized electrochemical properties. The electrochemical performance of the film is evaluated by cyclic voltammetry, and constant-current charge/discharge cycling techniques. Specific capacitance (SC) of the ternary composite electrode can reach 427 F/g. Even at high mass loading and high concentration of MnO 2 (60%), the film still showed SC value as high as 200 F/g. The electrode also exhibited excellent charge/discharge rate and good cycling stability, retaining over 99% of its initial charge after 1000 cycles. The results demonstrated that MnO 2 is effectively utilized with assistance of other components (fFWNTs and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-poly(styrenesulfonate) in the electrode. Such ternary composite is very promising for the next generation high performance electrochemical supercapacitors. KEYWORDS MnO 2; fFWNTs, PEDOT-PSS, supercapacitor, effective utilization.A s the limited availability of fossil fuel and the environmental impacts of a society based on such energy sources becoming more obvious, the need for renewable energy sources has attracted attentions of the world. Systems for electrochemical energy storage and conversion include batteries, fuel cells, and supercapacitors. Among them, supercapacitors, also known as electrical double layer capacitor, ultracapacitor, or electrochemical capacitor (EC), have attracted much attention because of their high power density, long cycle life (>100 000 cycles), and rapid charging-discharging rates.1 They can be applied in a large variety of applications, including consumer electronics, memory back-up systems, industrial power, energy management, public transportation, and military devices. More importantly, supercapacitors are critical components in the next generation all-electric cars and cars based on fuel cells that use hydrogen or alcohol as clean and renewable energy media.Various materials have been investigated as the electrodes in ECs, including carboneous materials, 2-4 conducting polymers 5,6 and transition-metal oxides. 7,8 MnO 2 is generally considered to be the most promising transition metal oxides for the next generation of supercapacitors because of its high-energy density, low cost, environmental friendliness, and natural abundance. 9,10The published results thus far established that the electrochemical performance of MnO 2 depended on their morphology, porosity, specific surface area, electrical conductivity and ionic transport within the pores. 11,12 In this context, layered mesoporous birnessite-type manganese oxide materials are attracting great interest due to their high surface area, low density, a...

Flexible and lightweight energy storage systems have received tremendous interest recently due to their potential applications in wearable electronics, roll-up displays, and other devices. To manufacture such systems, flexible electrodes with desired mechanical and electrochemical properties are critical. Herein we present a novel method to fabricate conductive, highly flexible, and robust film supercapacitor electrodes based on graphene/MnO(2)/CNTs nanocomposites. The synergistic effects from graphene, CNTs, and MnO(2) deliver outstanding mechanical properties (tensile strength of 48 MPa) and superior electrochemical activity that were not achieved by any of these components alone. These flexible electrodes allow highly active material loading (71 wt % MnO(2)), areal density (8.80 mg/cm(2)), and high specific capacitance (372 F/g) with excellent rate capability for supercapacitors without the need of current collectors and binders. The film can also be wound around 0.5 mm diameter rods for fabricating full cells with high performance, showing significant potential in flexible energy storage devices.

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Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are increasingly used as antimicrobial additives in consumer products and may have adverse impacts on organisms when they inadvertently enter ecosystems. This study investigated the uptake and toxicity of AgNPs to the common grass, Lolium multiflorum. We found that root and shoot Ag content increased with increasing AgNP exposures. AgNPs inhibited seedling growth. While exposed to 40 mg L(-1) GA-coated AgNPs, seedlings failed to develop root hairs, had highly vacuolated and collapsed cortical cells and broken epidermis and rootcap. In contrast, seedlings exposed to identical concentrations of AgNO(3) or supernatants of ultracentrifuged AgNP solutions showed no such abnormalities. AgNP toxicity was influenced by total NP surface area with smaller AgNPs (6 nm) more strongly affecting growth than did similar concentrations of larger (25 nm) NPs for a given mass. Cysteine (which binds Ag(+)) mitigated the effects of AgNO(3) but did not reduce the toxicity of AgNP treatments. X-ray spectro-microscopy documented silver speciation within exposed roots and suggested that silver is oxidized within plant tissues. Collectively, this study suggests that growth inhibition and cell damage can be directly attributed either to the nanoparticles themselves or to the ability of AgNPs to deliver dissolved Ag to critical biotic receptors.

The solubility of Ag NPs can affect their toxicity and persistence in the environment. We measured the solubility of organic-coated silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) having particle diameters ranging from 5 to 80 nm that were synthesized using various methods, and with different organic polymer coatings including poly(vinylpyrrolidone) and gum arabic. The size and morphology of Ag NPs were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) spectroscopy and synchrotron-based total X-ray scattering and pair distribution function (PDF) analysis were used to determine the local structure around Ag and evaluate changes in crystal lattice parameters and structure as a function of NP size. Ag NP solubility dispersed in 1 mM NaHCO(3) at pH 8 was found to be well correlated with particle size based on the distribution of measured TEM sizes as predicted by the modified Kelvin equation. Solubility of Ag NPs was not affected by the synthesis method and coating as much as by their size. Based on the modified Kelvin equation, the surface tension of Ag NPs was found to be ∼1 J/m(2), which is expected for bulk fcc (face centered cubic) silver. Analysis of XAFS, X-ray scattering, and PDFs confirm that the lattice parameter, a, of the fcc crystal structure of Ag NPs did not change with particle size for Ag NPs as small as 6 nm, indicating the absence of lattice strain. These results are consistent with the finding that Ag NP solubility can be estimated based on TEM-derived particle size using the modified Kelvin equation for particles in the size range of 5-40 nm in diameter.

Long-term instability of Li-S batteries is one of their major disadvantages compare to other secondary batteries. The reasons for the instability include dissolution of polysulfide intermediates and mechanical instability of the electrode film caused by volume changes during charging/discharging cycles. In this paper, we report a novel graphene-sulfur-carbon nanofibers (G-S-CNFs) multilayer and coaxial nanocomposite for the cathode of Li-S batteries with increased capacity and significantly improved long-cycle stability. Electrodes made with such nanocomposites were able to deliver a reversible capacity of 694 mA h g(-1) at 0.1C and 313 mA h g(-1) at 2C, which are both substantially higher than electrodes assembled without graphene wrapping. More importantly, the long-cycle stability was significantly improved by graphene wrapping. The cathode made with G-S-CNFs with a initial capacity of 745 mA h g(-1) was able to maintain ~273 mA h g(-1) even after 1500 charge-discharge cycles at a high rate of 1C, representing an extremely low decay rate (0.043% per cycle after 1500 cycles). In contrast, the capacity of an electrode assembled without graphene wrapping decayed dramatically with a 10 times high rate (~0.40% per cycle after 200 cycles). These results demonstrate that the coaxial nanocomposites are of great potential as the cathode for high-rate rechargeable Li-S batteries. Such improved rate capability and cycle stability could be attributed to the unique coaxial architecture of the nanocomposite, in which the contributions from graphene and CNFs enable electrodes with improved electrical conductivity, better ability to trap soluble the polysulfides intermediate and accommodate volume expansion/shrinkage of sulfur during repeated charge/discharge cycles.

This work describes the synthesis of Chevrel phase Mo6S8 nanocubes and its application as the anode material for rechargeable Zn-ion batteries. Mo6S8 can host Zn(2+) ions reversibly in both aqueous and nonaqueous electrolytes with specific capacities around 90 mAh/g, and exhibited remarkable intercalation kinetics and cyclic stability. In addition, we assembled full cells by integrating Mo6S8 anodes with zinc-polyiodide (I(-)/I3(-))-based catholytes, and demonstrated that such full cells were also able to deliver outstanding rate performance and cyclic stability. This first demonstration of a zinc-intercalating anode could inspire the design of advanced Zn-ion batteries.