Controlling the morphology and size of titanium dioxide (TiO(2)) nanostructures is crucial to obtain superior photocatalytic, photovoltaic, and electrochemical properties. However, the synthetic techniques for preparing such structures, especially those with complex configurations, still remain a challenge because of the rapid hydrolysis of Ti-containing polymer precursors in aqueous solution. Herein, we report a completely novel approach-three-dimensional (3D) TiO(2) nanostructures with favorable dendritic architectures-through a simple hydrothermal synthesis. The size of the 3D TiO(2) dendrites and the morphology of the constituent nano-units, in the form of nanorods, nanoribbons, and nanowires, are controlled by adjusting the precursor hydrolysis rate and the surfactant aggregation. These novel configurations of TiO(2) nanostructures possess higher surface area and superior electrochemical properties compared to nanoparticles with smooth surfaces. Our findings provide an effective solution for the synthesis of complex TiO(2) nano-architectures, which can pave the way to further improve the energy storage and energy conversion efficiency of TiO(2)-based devices.
Flexible silicon/single-walled carbon nanotube (Si/SWCNT) composite paper was prepared using the pulsed laser deposition (PLD) method to deposit Si onto SWCNT paper. In the composite, Si mainly shows nanowormlike morphology. Increasing deposition time results in an increased amount of Si microspheres. Electrochemical measurements show that the capacity of the composite paper is improved by the presence of Si. The Si/ SWCNT composite with only 2.2% Si shows a capacity of 163 mA h g -1 at a current density of 25 mA g -1 up to 50 cycles, which is more than 60% improvement of the capacity of pristine CNT paper. The Si contribution in the 2.2%-Si/SWCNT sample is calculated to be higher than 3000 mA h g -1 .
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.