Liquid‐phase sintering of highly Na+ ion conducting Na3Zr2Si2PO12 ceramics using Na3BO3 additive

Na₃Zr₂Si₂PO₁₂ (NASICON) is a promising material as a solid electrolyte for all‐solid‐state sodium batteries. Nevertheless, one challenge for the application of NASICON in batteries is their high sintering temperature above 1200°C, which can lead to volatilization of light elements and undesirable side reactions with electrode materials at such high temperatures. In this study, liquid‐phase sintering of NASICON with a Na₃BO₃ (NBO) additive was performed for the first time to lower the NASICON sintering temperature. A dense NASICON‐based ceramic was successfully obtained by sintering at 900°C with 4.8 wt% NBO. This liquid‐phase sintered NASICON ceramic exhibited high total conductivity of ~1 × 10^?3 S cm^?1 at room temperature and low conduction activation energy of 28 kJ mol^?1. Since the room‐temperature conductivity is identical to that of conventional high‐temperature‐sintered NASICON, NBO was demonstrated as a good liquid‐phase sintering additive for NASICON solid electrolyte. In the NASICON with 4.8 wt% NBO ceramic, most of the NASICON grains directly bonded with each other and some submicron sodium borates segregated in particulate form without full penetration to NASICON grain boundaries. This characteristic composite microstructure contributed to the high conductivity of the liquid‐phase sintered NASICON.     

细菌纤维素制备及吸附金属离子的研究进展

细菌纤维素（BC）是一种由微生物发酵制备的纤维素,具有独特的结构和物理化学性质。BC分子存在大量的羟基,具有超细网状纳米纤维结构,比表面积高,对溶液中金属离子有良好的吸附性能。本文对细菌纤维素制备条件（菌种、常用碳源及助剂）、细菌纤维素吸附重金属离子及机理的研究进展进行了总结及展望。     

A model of splats deposition state and wear resistance of WC-10Co4Cr coating

In this research both low temperature high velocity oxygen-fuel flame (LT-HVOF) and high velocity oxygen-fuel flame (HVOF) techniques were employed to prepare WC-10Co4Cr splats and coatings. In situ cutting of WC-10Co-4Cr splats was carried out with focused ion beam (FIB), and a model was proposed to describe how the wear resistance of WC-10Co4Cr coatings was correlated with its residual stress state and the splats deposition state. It was observed that in LT-HVOF spraying process, WC-10Co4Cr splats were slightly melted showing "hill" shape, while in HVOF spraying process, the splats were half melted having the appearance of "concavity". The residual stress of WC-10Co4Cr coatings is determined by the size, melting state, flight speed and temperature gradient of splats. In this paper, the quantitative function formula involving heating temperature and the flight speed of the powder is put forward for the first time to predict the wear resistance of the WC-10Co4Cr coatings. This will provide a theoretical basis for engineering practice and an effective way to save costs.     

Reviewing Rare Earth Succinate Frameworks from the Reticular Chemistry Point of View: Structures,Nets, Catalytic and Photoluminescence Applications

The intense development that Metal-Organic Frameworks have experienced along the last two decades, reflects the interest on these compounds as a new generation of multifunctional materials with diverse applications. The first works of Prof. Omar Yaghi devoted to obtain open frameworks by combining rigid aromatic linkers and a variety of metal centers, encouraged the creativity of the scientific community to designcoordination polymers employing aliphatic ligands as multitopic building blocks . Here, a revision of the literature dedicated to rare earth coordination networks mainly based in succinate ligand and derivatives is performed. A structural analysis of 2D and 3D frameworks based on rare earth elements and succinate, was carried out considering their inner connectivities and topologies with focus on those compounds with potential photoluminescent and catalytic technological applications. Thus, a variety of optical behaviours regarding the emission mechanisms, colours, lifetimes, quantum yields as well as chemical/thermal sensing properties are presented and compared with related phases found in literature. The catalytic performance of several rare earth-succinates in three important reactions is discussed in terms of their acidity, dimensionality and available active centers towards the formation of the desired products analysing parameters such as selectivity, yields and TOFs.     

Preparation and properties of Eu and Dy co-doped strontium aluminate long afterglow nanomaterials

The long afterglow nanomaterials of strontium aluminate co-doped by Eu and Dy have been synthesized by co-precipitation combined hydrothermal method. The effects of hydrothermal time, calcination time, pH value, the amount of aluminum nitrate, activator, co-activator and flux H₃BO₃ on the fluorescence properties of the product were investigated by means of single factor optimization experiment. Then the orthogonal experiment was employed to obtain the optimal synthesis conditions that are as follows: n_Dy/n_Eu = 2.5, t_c = 2.5?h, n_Eu/n_Sr = 0.02, t_h = 8?h. Subsequently, the optimal synthesis conditions were verified by three repeated experiments, and the obtained products were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and fluorescence spectrometer. The results showed that the synthesized target products all were the mixed crystal phase of SrAl₂O₄ and Sr₄Al_l4O₂₅. The particles presented regular spherical-like with size ~ 100?nm. The dopants Eu and Dy were confirmed existed in the SrAl₂O₄ powders. The fluorescence and afterglow data of the target products were better than that in the orthogonal experiment scheme. The primary emission spectra band was in the range of 400–600?nm with characteristic peak located at ~ 460?nm corresponding to the transitions of Eu²⁺ ions from 4f⁶5d→4f⁷, and the blue light can be observed by naked eyes. The similar fast-decaying and slow-decaying processes were displayed in all the afterglow curves, and the initial afterglow brightness of the target product is apparently higher than that of products synthesized by the orthogonal experiment. The synthesized target products, which show excellent long afterglow performance, present a great application prospects in the aspects of ceramics, plastics, arts and crafts, ink and coating.     

Possible origin of ferromagnetism in antiferromagnetic orthorhombic-YFeO3: A first-principles study

Rare-earth orthoferrites (RFeO₃) are well-known for the antiferromagnetic ground state. However, some of the recent experimental results suggest that the few members of RFeO₃ family possess ferromagnetism. In the present investigation we report the possible origin of ferromagnetism in antiferromagnetic YFeO₃ using density functional theory. For this purpose, we have considered pure as well as self-doping in YFeO₃ i.e. by considering the point defect at Y, Fe and O sites. Our finding suggests that the point defects in YFeO₃ results in the mixed-valence state of Fe, which may result in ferromagnetism through Zener double exchange mechanism.     

Tailoring the electron-blocking layer by addition of YSZ to Ba-containing anode for improvement of ceria-based solid oxide fuel cell

The in-situ fabrication of an electron-blocking layer between the Ba-containing anode and the ceria-based electrolyte is an effective approach in suppressing the internal electronic leakage in ceria-based solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC). To improve the thickness of the electron-blocking layer and to research the effect of the layer thickness on the improvement of SOFC, a Ba-containing compound (0.6NiO-0.4BaZr_0.1Ce_0.7Y_0.2O_3-δ) modified by Y stabilized zirconia (YSZ) was employed as a composite anode in this research. SEM analyses demonstrated that the thickness of the interlayer can be simply controlled by regulating the proportion of YSZ at anode. The in-situ formed interlayer in the cell with the anode modified by 20?mol% YSZ possesses a thickness of 0.9?µm which is more suitable for the cell achieving an enhanced performance.     

Enhancement of thermal,mechanical, ignition and damping response of magnesium using nano-ceria particles

Magnesium (Mg)-based nanocomposites owing to their low density and biocompatibility are being targeted for transportation and biomedical sectors. In order to support a sustainable environment, the prime aim of this study was to develop non-toxic magnesium-based nanocomposites for a wide spectrum of applications. To support this objective, cerium oxide nanoparticles (0.5?vol%, 1?vol%, and 1.5?vol%) reinforced Mg composites are developed in this study using blend-press-sinter powder metallurgy technique. The microstructural studies exhibited limited amounts of porosity in Mg and Mg-CeO₂ samples (< 1%). Increasing presence of CeO₂ nanoparticles (up to 1.5?vol%) led to a progressive increase in microhardness, dimensional stability, damping capacity and ignition resistance of magnesium. The compressive strengths increased with the increasing addition of the nanoparticles with a significant enhancement in the fracture strain (up to ~48%). Superior energy absorption was observed for all the composite samples prior to compressive fracture. Further, enhancement in thermal, mechanical and damping characteristics of pure Mg is correlated with microstructural changes due to the presence of the CeO₂ nanoparticles.     

Synthesis of highly efficient,structurally improved Li4SiO4 sorbents for high-temperature CO2 capture

Li₄SiO₄ sorbents for high-temperature CO₂ removal have drawn extensive attention owing to their potential application in carbon capture and storage (CCS). The major challenge in the application lies in the poor CO₂ capture performance under realistic conditions of low CO₂ concentrations, owing to the dense structure and poor porosity. In this work, Li₄SiO₄ sorbents were prepared with porous micromorphologies and large contact areas using a variety of organometallic Li-precursors, achieving fast CO₂ sorption kinetics, high capacity and excellent cyclic stability at a low CO₂ concentration (15?vol%). It was found that a high conversion of ~?74% was maintained for pure Li₄SiO₄ even after 100 sorption/desorption cycles. Moreover, by doping with Na₂CO₃ to reduce the CO₂ diffusion resistance, the conversion of the sorbent was further enhanced to 93.2%. The enhancement mechanism of alkali carbonate have been proven here to be ascribed to the formation of the eutectic melt of Li/Na carbonates, the existence and function of which has been confirmed in this study.     

Effect of focused ion beam sample preparation on the phase composition of zirconia

The investigation of phase transformations in metastable ceramic systems such as zirconia often requires local phase analysis within the areas of interest. Electron backscatter diffraction is a suitable method in combination with focused ion beam sample preparation. The interaction between ion beam and sample has to be carefully considered. In case of metastable Y-PSZ and Mg-PSZ, phase transformations were observed after FIB preparation with 30?kV, 30?nA and 5° incidence angle. Damage was the dominating effect for angles of 72°. The expected local temperature increase due to the ion bombardment with 30?kV and 30?nA is 700?K for ZrO₂. Thus, the observed phase transformations can be explained on the basis of the temperature increase in the corresponding Y-PSZ phase diagram. In case of Mg-PSZ, the transition temperature is 1083?°C. The local temperature increase was obviously lower. The excitation energy for the observed phase transformation was smaller than expected from the phase diagrams of the thermodynamic equilibrium. Using 5?kV, 4.8?nA and 5° incidence angle, no phase transformations and no damage were observed. Thus, these conditions are well suited for the FIB preparation of metastable zirconia.