Non-Halogenated-Solvent Processed and Additive-Free Tandem Organic Solar Cell with Efficiency Reaching 16.67%

Organic solar cells (OSCs) have recently reached a remarkably high efficiency and become a promising technology for commercial application. However, OSCs with top efficiency are mostly processed by halogenated solvents and with additives that are not environmentally friendly, which hinders large-scale manufacture. In this study, high-performance tandem OSCs, based on polymer donors and two small-molecule acceptors with different bandgaps, are fabricated by solution processing with non-halogenated solvents without additive. Importantly, the two active layers developed from non-halogenated solvents show better phase segregation and charge transport properties, leading to superior performance than halogenated ones. As a result, a tandem OSC with high efficiency of up to 16.67% is obtained, showing unique advantages in future massive production.     

Toward nanograined gadolinia doped ceria via two-step sintering at ultralow temperature and its electrical conductivity

Highly dense (>98%) and nanograined (∼60 nm) gadolinia doped ceria are obtained from ultrafine powders by adopting two-step sintering (TSS) procedure at an ultralow temperature of 750 °C with a dwell time of 20 h, which is the lowest sintering temperature for ceria family without sintering aids up to now. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy investigations suggest that the electrical conductivities of densified electrolytes are closely related to sintering temperature and grain size, and GDC900-750 exhibits the highest total electrical conductivity of 3.640 S m⁻¹ at 700 °C in air. Fitting calculation indicates partial grain-size dependence of oxygen vacancy association enthalpy and grain-size independence of oxygen ion migration enthalpy. Grain boundary maturity influences on grain boundary conductivity to some extent, and younger grain boundary endues the densified electrolytes with higher grain boundary conductivity.     

Glass-ceramics with internally crystallized pyrochlore for the immobilization of uranium wastes

In this work, pyrochlore glass-ceramics (GCs)for uranium immobilization were synthesized by a pretreatment and melting-heat treatment method. The effects of different uranium contents on the phase composition, microstructure, uranium valence and chemical durability of the glass-ceramics were systematically investigated. With increasing uranium content, pyrochlore was always the dominant phase internally crystallized in the glass. CaAl₂Si₂O₈, UTi₂O₆ and U₃O₈were gradually observed as minor phases in the glass-ceramics. The growth of pyrochlore enriched with uranium at different uranium contents and the overall distribution of uranium in the glass-ceramics were revealed by SEM. The uranium valence states in the samples were confirmed by XPS to be a mixture of tetravalent and hexavalent states. In addition, the GC3 sample with a high uranium waste content of 16.96 wt% exhibited a low uranium leaching rate.     

Fabrication of abrasion-resistant micro-nano hierarchical structure on glass surface by a hydrothermal corrosion method

When applying an additional coating method to fabricate micro-nano hierarchical structure required for superhydrophobic function on glass surface, the hierarchical structure does generally not have good abrasion resistance, due to the weak adhesion between coating and glass surface. However, glass itself is a material with good abrasion resistance. A micro-nano hierarchical structure with honeycomb-shaped micro-armor protection on glass surface by a two-step hydrothermal corrosion method has been constructed: the first step of hydrothermal corrosion in water to construct micro-armor structure, and the second step of hydrothermal corrosion in sodium citrate aqueous solution to fabricate micro-nano hierarchical structure. The advantages of this new method are: the treatment process is simple, and there is no need to apply additional coatings. The micro-nano hierarchical structure constructed on glass surface by this method has a great abrasion resistance. After 1,000 cycles of abrasion under harsh conditions, the nano-structure on glass surface can still be remained intact. It provides a new method for fabricating abrasion-resistant micro-nano hierarchical structure on glass surface, as well as a new approach to the preparation of abrasion-resistant superhydrophobic glass.     

CO2 reduction in a solid oxide electrolysis cell with a ceramic composite cathode: Effect of load and thermal cycling

A solid oxide electrolysis cell (SOEC) powered by a renewable source can convert CO₂ into carbon monoxide, which is a valuable feedstock for a range of fuels and chemical processes. The cathode material of the SOEC is required to possess sufficient catalytic activity for CO₂ reduction, and also sustain the thermal and electrical load cycling to which the SOEC would be subjected when coupled with an intermittent renewable source without an auxiliary electricity or thermal storage system. The operating conditions can become even more challenging if solar or waste heat from exothermic downstream industrial processes is to be embedded in the process. In this study, we evaluated a mixed ionic–electronic conducting composite (La_0·80Sr_0.20Sc_0.05Mn_0·95O_3-δ–Gd_0.20Ce_0·80O_1.95) material as an SOEC cathode. Along with initial electrochemical performance, we investigated the cell's response to accelerated ageing tests, including electrical load cycling and extreme thermal cycling. Factors leading to performance degradation were studied by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and structural characterisation of the cathode before and after the test. Thermal cycling resulted in more pronounced effect on the cell degradation rate as compared to electrical load cycling.     

Industrializing metal–organic frameworks: Scalable synthetic means and their transformation into functional materials

For over two decades, metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) have drawn huge attention in the scientific community, with the promise to solve a wide variety of real-world problems. Despite overwhelming interests for this unique class of porous materials, the progress towards actual utilization falls short of the expectation due to the challenging transition from academia to industry. In this review, an up-to-date summary of the progress for MOF industrialization is presented. The latest developments in scalable production of MOFs and MOF processing from their powdered form are discussed to give a broad overview of the route to MOF commercialization. Their industrial utilization potentials are evaluated as well to provide useful insights for the future development in this field. This review aims to serve as an introduction for multidisciplinary research teams who are interested in developing a commercial market for MOF products.