Chemistry Aspects and Designing Strategies of Flexible Materials for High-Performance Flexible Lithium-Ion Batteries.

In recent years, flexible and wearable electronics such as smart cards, smart fabrics, bio-sensors, soft robotics, and internet-linked electronics have impacted our lives. In order to meet the requirements of more flexible and adaptable paradigm shifts, wearable products may need to be seamlessly integrated. A great deal of effort has been made in the last two decades to develop flexible lithium-ion batteries (FLIBs). The selection of suitable flexible materials is important for the development of flexible electrolytes self-supported and supported electrodes. This review is focused on the critical discussion of the factors that evaluate the flexibility of the materials and their potential path toward achieving the FLIBs. Following this analysis, we present how to evaluate the flexibility of the battery materials and FLIBs. We describe the chemistry of carbon-based materials, covalent-organic frameworks (COFs), metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), and MXene-based materials and their flexible cell design that represented excellent electrochemical performances during bending. Furthermore, the application of state-of-the-art solid polymer and solid electrolytes to accelerate the development of FLIBs is introduced. Analyzing the contributions and developments of different countries has also been highlighted in the past decade. In addition, the prospects and potential of flexible materials and their engineering are also discussed, providing the roadmap for further developments in this fast-evolving field of FLIB research.

Recent Advances on Nitrogen-Doped Porous Carbons Towards Electrochemical Supercapacitor Applications.

Due to ever-increasing global energy demands and dwindling resources, there is a growing need to develop materials that can fulfil the World's pressing energy requirements. Electrochemical energy storage devices have gained significant interest due to their exceptional storage properties, where the electrode material is a crucial determinant of device performance. Hence, it is essential to develop 3-D hierarchical materials at low cost with precisely controlled porosity and composition to achieve high energy storage capabilities. After presenting the brief updates on porous carbons (PCs), then this review will focus on the nitrogen (N) doped porous carbon materials (NPC) for electrochemical supercapacitors as the NPCs play a vital role in supercapacitor applications in the field of energy storage. Therefore, this review highlights recent advances in NPCs, including developments in the synthesis of NPCs that have created new methods for controlling their morphology, composition, and pore structure, which can significantly enhance their electrochemical performance. The investigated N-doped materials a wide range of specific surface areas, ranging from 181.5 to 3709 m2 g-1 , signifies a substantial increase in the available electrochemically active surface area, which is crucial for efficient energy storage. Moreover, these materials display notable specific capacitance values, ranging from 58.7 to 754.4 F g-1 , highlighting their remarkable capability to effectively store electrical energy. The outstanding electrochemical performance of these materials is attributed to the synergy between heteroatoms, particularly N, and the carbon framework in N-doped porous carbons. This synergy brings about several beneficial effects including, enhanced pseudo-capacitance, improved electrical conductivity, and increased electrochemically active surface area. As a result, these materials emerge as promising candidates for high-performance supercapacitor electrodes. The challenges and outlook in NPCs for supercapacitor applications are also presented. Overall, this review will provide valuable insights for researchers in electrochemical energy storage and offers a basis for fabricating highly effective and feasible supercapacitor electrodes.

Synthesis of Electrical Conductive Metal-Organic Frameworks for Electrochemical Applications.

Electrical conductivity is very important property of nanomaterials for using wide range of applications especially energy applications. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are notorious for their low electrical conductivity and less considered for usage in pristine forms. However, the advantages of high surface area, porosity and confined catalytic active sites motivated researchers to improve the conductivity of MOFs. Therefore, 2D electrical conductive MOFs (ECMOF) have been widely synthesized by developing the effective synthetic strategies. In this article, we have summarized the recent trends in developing the 2D ECMOFs, following the summary of potential applications in the various fields with future perspectives.

A facile two-step hydrothermal preparation of 2D/2D heterostructure of Bi2WO6/WS2 for the efficient photodegradation of methylene blue under sunlight.

A facile two-step hydrothermal method was successfully used to prepare a photocatalyst Bi2WO6/WS2 heterojunction for methyl blue (MB) photodegradation. Fabricated photocatalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Band gap measurements were carried out by diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). Results indicated that the prepared heterostructure photocatalyst has increased visible light absorption. Photocatalytic performance was evaluated under sunlight irradiation for methylene blue (MB) degradation as a model dye. Variations in pH (4-10), amount of catalyst (0.025-0.1 g/L), and initial MB concentrations (5-20 ppm) were carried out, whereas all prepared catalysts were used to conduct the tests with a visible spectrophotometer. Degradation activity improved with the pH increase; the optimum pH was approximately 8. Catalyst concentration is directly related to degradation efficiency and reached 93.56% with 0.075 g of the catalyst. Among tested catalysts, 0.01 Bi2WO6/WS2 has exhibited the highest activity and a degradation efficiency of 99.0% in 40 min (min) for MB. MB photodegradation follows pseudo-first-order kinetics, and obtained values of kapp were 0.0482 min-1, 0.0337 min-1, 0.0205 min-1, and 0.0087 min-1 for initial concentrations of 5 ppm, 10 ppm, 15 ppm, and 20 ppm, respectively. The catalyst was reused for six cycles with a negligible decrease in the degradation activity. Heterostructure 0.01 Bi2WO6/WS2 has exhibited a photocurrent density of 16 µA cm-2, significantly higher than 2.0 and 4.5 µA cm-2 for the pristine WS2 and Bi2WO6, respectively. The findings from these investigations may serve as a crucial stepping stone towards the remediation of polluted water facilitated by implementing such highly efficient photocatalysts.

Facile Synthesis of PdO.TiO2 Nanocomposite for Photoelectrochemical Oxygen Evolution Reaction.

The rapid depletion of fossil fuels and environmental pollution has motivated scientists to cultivate renewable and green energy sources. The hydrogen economy is an emerging replacement for fossil fuels, and photocatalytic water splitting is a suitable strategy to produce clean hydrogen fuel. Herein, the photocatalyst (PdO.TiO2) is introduced as an accelerated photoelectrochemical oxygen evolution reaction (OER). The catalyst showed significant improvement in the current density magnitude from 0.89 (dark) to 4.27 mA/cm2 (light) during OER at 0.5 V applied potential. The as-synthesized material exhibits a Tafel slope of 170 mVdec-1 and efficiency of 0.25% at 0.93 V. The overall outcomes associated with the photocatalytic activity of PdO.TiO2 demonstrated that the catalyst is highly efficient, thereby encouraging researchers to explore more related catalysts for promoting facile OER.

Selective Synthesis of Bismuth or Bismuth Selenide Nanosheets from a Metal Organic Precursor: Investigation of their Catalytic Performance for Water Splitting.

The development of cost-effective, functional materials that can be efficiently used for sustainable energy generation is highly desirable. Herein, a new molecular precursor of bismuth (tris(selenobenzoato)bismuth(III), [Bi(SeOCPh)3]), has been used to prepare selectively Bi or Bi2Se3 nanosheets via a colloidal route by the judicious control of the reaction parameters. The Bi formation mechanism was investigated, and it was observed that the trioctylphosphine (TOP) plays a crucial role in the formation of Bi. Employing the vapor deposition method resulted in the formation of exclusively Bi2Se3 films at different temperatures. The synthesized nanomaterials and films were characterized by p-XRD, TEM, Raman, SEM, EDX, AFM, XPS, and UV-vis spectroscopy. A minimum sheet thickness of 3.6 nm (i.e., a thickness of 8-9 layers) was observed for bismuth, whereas a thickness of 4 nm (i.e., a thickness of 4 layers) was observed for Bi2Se3 nanosheets. XPS showed surface oxidation of both materials and indicated an uncapped surface of Bi, whereas Bi2Se3 had a capping layer of oleylamine, resulting in reduced surface oxidation. The potential of Bi and Bi2Se3 nanosheets was tested for overall water-splitting application. The OER and HER catalytic performances of Bi2Se3 indicate overpotentials of 385 mV at 10 mA cm-2 and 220 mV, with Tafel slopes of 122 and 178 mV dec-1, respectively. In comparison, Bi showed a much lower OER activity (506 mV at 10 mA cm-2) but a slightly better HER (214 mV at 10 mA cm-2) performance. Similarly, Bi2Se3 nanosheets were observed to exhibit cathodic photocurrent in photoelectrocatalytic activity, which indicated their p-type behavior.

Transportation and Accumulation of Redox Active Species at the Buried Interfaces of Plasticized Membrane Electrodes.

The transportation and accumulation of redox active species at the buried interface between glassy carbon electrodes and plasticized polymeric membranes have been studied using synchrotron radiation X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (SR-XPS), near edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS), in situ electrochemical Fourier transform infrared-attenuated total reflectance (FTIR-ATR) spectroscopy, cyclic voltammetry (CV), chronoamperometry (CA), and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Ferrocene tagged poly(vinyl chloride) [FcPVC], ferrocene (Fc), and its derivatives together with tetracyanoquinodimethane (TCNQ) doped plasticized polymeric membrane electrodes have been investigated, so as to extend the study of the mechanism of this reaction chemistry to different time scales (both small and large molecules with variable diffusion coefficients) using a range of complementary electrochemical and surface analysis techniques. This study also provides direct spectroscopic evidence for the transportation and electrochemical reactivity of redox active species, regardless of the size of the electrochemically reactive molecule, at the buried interface of the substrate electrode. With all redox dopants, when CA electrolysis was performed, redox active species were undetectable (<1 wt % of signature elements or below the detection limit of SR-XPS and NEXAFS) in the outermost surface layers of the membrane, while a high concentration of redox species was located at the electrode substrate as a consequence of the deposition of the reaction product (Fc(+)-anion complex) at the buried interface between the electrode and the membrane. This reaction chemistry for redox active species within plasticized polymeric membranes may be useful in the fashioning of multilayered polymeric devices (e.g., chemical sensors, organic electronic devices, protective laminates, etc.) based on an electrochemical tunable deposition of redox molecules at the buried substrate electrode beneath the membrane.

Neuropeptides encoded by the genomes of the Akoya pearl oyster Pinctata fucata and Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas: a bioinformatic and peptidomic survey.

BACKGROUND: Oysters impart significant socio-ecological benefits from primary production of food supply, to estuarine ecosystems via reduction of water column nutrients, plankton and seston biomass. Little though is known at the molecular level of what genes are responsible for how oysters reproduce, filter nutrients, survive stressful physiological events and form reef communities. Neuropeptides represent a diverse class of chemical messengers, instrumental in orchestrating these complex physiological events in other species. RESULTS: By a combination of in silico data mining and peptide analysis of ganglia, 74 putative neuropeptide genes were identified from genome and transcriptome databases of the Akoya pearl oyster, Pinctata fucata and the Pacific oyster, Crassostrea gigas, encoding precursors for over 300 predicted bioactive peptide products, including three newly identified neuropeptide precursors PFGx8amide, RxIamide and Wx3Yamide. Our findings also include a gene for the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) and two egg-laying hormones (ELH) which were identified from both oysters. Multiple sequence alignments and phylogenetic analysis supports similar global organization of these mature peptides. Computer-based peptide modeling of the molecular tertiary structures of ELH highlights the structural homologies within ELH family, which may facilitate ELH activity leading to the release of gametes. CONCLUSION: Our analysis demonstrates that oysters possess conserved molluscan neuropeptide domains and overall precursor organization whilst highlighting many previously unrecognized bivalve idiosyncrasies. This genomic analysis provides a solid foundation from which further studies aimed at the functional characterization of these molluscan neuropeptides can be conducted to further stimulate advances in understanding the ecology and cultivation of oysters.

Advancing Catalysts by Nanoconfinement and Catalysis for Enhanced Hydrogen Production from Magnesium Borohydride: A Review.

Hydrogen storage in solid-state materials represents a highly promising avenue for advancing hydrogen storage technologies, driven by their potential for high efficiency, reduced risk, and cost-effectiveness. Among these materials, magnesium borohydride (Mg(BH4)2), hereafter denoted as MBH, stands out for its exceptional characteristics, boasting a gravimetric capacity of 14.9 wt% and a volumetric hydrogen density capacity of 146 kg/m3. However, the practical application of MBH is impeded by challenges such as high desorption temperatures (≥ 270°C), sluggish kinetics, poor reversibility, and the formation of unexpected byproducts like diborane. To meet  these, extensive research efforts have been directed towards enhancing the hydrogen storage properties of MBH. This review provides a comprehensive survey of recent advancements in MBH research, with a particular focus on experimental findings related to nanoconfined MBH and modified thermodynamic processes aimed at enabling hydrogen release at lower temperatures by mitigating sluggish kinetics. Specifically, nanostructuring techniques, catalyst-mediated nanoconfinement methodologies, and alloy/compositional modifications will be elucidated, highlighting their potential to enhance hydrogen storage properties and overcome existing limitations. Furthermore, this review discusses the challenges encountered in the utilization of MBH for hydrogen storage applications and offers insights into the future prospects of this material.

Novel and efficient Bi-doped CoTe nano-solar evaporators embedded on leno weave cotton gauze for efficient solar-driven desalination.

Solar-driven desalination is considered an alternative to the conventional desalination due to its nearly zero carbon footprint and ease of operating in remote areas. Water can be purified wherever sunlight is available, providing a viable solution to water shortage. Metal chalcogenide-based materials are revolutionary for solar evaporators due to their excellent photothermal conversion efficiency, facile synthesis methods, stability, and low cost. Herein we present a prototype Bi-doped CoTe nano-solar evaporator embedded on leno weave cotton gauze (Bi/CoTe@CG) using the sonication process. The nano-solar evaporator was synthesized using a simple hydrothermal approach to provide an opportunity to scale up. The as designed solar evaporator consisting of 5 % Bi/CoTe@CG showed an excellent water flux of 2.38 kg m-2 h-1 upon one sun radiation (1 kW m-2), considered among the highest literature-reported values. The introduced solar evaporator showed excellent solar efficiency of 96.7 %, good stability, and reusability for five cycles of one hour. The best doping ratio of Bi in CoTe was obtained as Bi0.5Co9.5Te with a contact angle of 11.9° in powder form. The hydrophilic nature of the designed solar-evaporator increased the water interaction with the embedded nano-solar evaporator, which helps the transfer of the heat to nearby water molecules, break their hydrogen bonding and increase the evaporation rate. The ion concentration, of the desalinated pure water collected using Bi/CoTe@CG, decreased by many orders of magnitude and it is far below the limit of WHO standards for Na+ and K+. Thus, a self-floating Bi-doped CoTe nano-solar evaporator deposited on cotton gauze (CG) is an excellent solar evaporator for seawater desalination. The proposed solar evaporator is another step towards introducing environmentally friendly desalination methods.

Efficient Adsorption of Methylene Blue Using a Hierarchically Structured Metal-Organic Framework Derived from Layered Double Hydroxide.

The growing concerns about environmental pollution, particularly water pollution, are causing an increasing alarm in modern society. One promising approach to address this issue involves engineering existing materials to enhance their effectiveness. A one-step solvothermal reconstruction approach was used to build an eco-friendly two-dimensional (2D) AlNiZn-LDH/BDC MOF composite. The characterizations confirm the formation of a metal-organic framework (MOF) at the layered double hydroxide (LDH) surface. The resulting synthesized material, 2D AlNiZn-LDH/BDC MOF, demonstrated remarkable efficacy in decontaminating methylene blue (MB), a model cationic dye found in water systems. The removal performance of 2D AlNiZn-LDH/BDC MOF was significantly higher than that of pristine 2D AlNiZn-LDH. This improvement shows the potential to increase the adsorption capabilities of nanoporous LDH materials by incorporating organic ligands and integrating meso-/microporosity through MOF formation on their surfaces. Furthermore, their kinetic, isothermal, and thermodynamic studies elucidated the adsorption behavior of this composite material. The results of synthesized MOF showed excellent removal efficiency (92.27%) of 10 ppm of MB aqueous solution as compared to pristine LDH. Additionally, the as-synthesized adsorbent could be regenerated for six successive cycles. This method holds promise for the synthesis of novel and highly effective materials to combat water pollution, laying the groundwork for potential advancements in diverse applications.

Ferrocene-Boosted Nickel Sulfide Nanoarchitecture for Enhanced Alkaline Water Splitting.

Enhanced electrocatalysts that are cost-effective, durable, and derived from abundant resources are imperative for developing efficient and sustainable electrochemical water-splitting systems to produce hydrogen. Therefore, the design and development of non-noble-based catalysts with more environmentally sustainable alternatives in efficient alkaline electrolyzers are important. This work reports ferrocene (Fc)-incorporated nickel sulfide nanostructured electrocatalysts (Fc-NiS) using a one-step facile solvothermal method for water-splitting reactions. Fc-NiS exhibited exceptional electrocatalytic activity under highly alkaline conditions, evident from its peak current density of 345 mA cm-2 , surpassing the 153 mA cm-2 achieved by the pristine nickel sulfide (NiS) catalysts. Introducing ferrocene enhances electrical conductivity and facilitates charge transfer during water-splitting reactions, owing to the inclusion of iron metal. Fc-NiS exhibits a very small overpotential of 290 mV at 10 mA cm-2 and a Tafel slope of 50.46 mV dec-1 , indicating its superior charge transfer characteristics for the three-electron transfer process involved in water splitting. This outstanding electrocatalytic performance is due to the synergistic effects embedded within the nanoscale architecture of Fc-NiS. Furthermore, the Fc-NiS catalyst also shows a stable response for the water-splitting reactions. It maintains a steady current density with an 87% retention rate for 25 hours of continuous operation, indicating its robustness and potential for prolonged electrolysis processes.

Engineering Mn-Doped CdS Thin Films Through Chemical Bath Deposition for High-Performance Photoelectrochemical Water Splitting.

Doping conventional materials with a second element is an exciting strategy for enhancing catalytic performance via electronic structure modifications. Herein, Mn-doped CdS thin films were successfully synthesized with the aid of the chemical bath deposition (CBD) by varying the pH value (8, 10, and 12) and the surfactant amount (20, 40, 60 mg). Different morphologies like nano-cubes, nanoflakes, nano-worms, and nanosheets were obtained under different deposition conditions. The optimized Mn-doped CdS synthesized at pH=8 exhibited better photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) than pure CdS films, with a maximum photocurrent density of 300 µA/cm2 at an external potential of 0.5 V, under sunlight illumination. The observed performance is attributed to the successful Mn doping, porosity, high surface area, and nanosphere morphology.

Recent trends in wastewater treatment by using metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and their composites: A critical view-point.

Respecting the basic need of clean and safe water on earth for every individual, it is necessary to take auspicious steps for waste-water treatment. Recently, metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are considered as promising material because of their intrinsic features including the porosity and high surface area. Further, structural tunability of MOFs by following the principles of reticular chemistry, the MOFs can be functionalized for the high adsorption performance as well as adsorptive removal of target materials. However, there are still some major concerns associated with MOFs limiting their commercialization as promising adsorbents for waste-water treatment. The cost, toxicity and regenerability are the major issues to be addressed for MOFs to get insightful results. In this article, we have concise the current strategies to enhance the adsorption capacity of MOFs during the water-treatment for the removal of toxic dyes, pharmaceuticals, and heavy metals. Further, we have also discussed the role of metallic nodes, linkers and associated functional groups for effective removal of toxic water pollutants. In addition to conformist overview, we have critically analyzed the MOFs as adsorbents in terms of toxicity, cost and regenerability. These factors are utmost important to address before commercialization of MOFs as adsorbents for water-treatment. Finally, some future perspectives are discussed to give directions for potential research.

Evidence for a surface confined ion-to-electron transduction reaction in solid-contact ion-selective electrodes based on poly(3-octylthiophene).

The ion-to-electron transduction reaction mechanism at the buried interface of the electrosynthesized poly(3-octylthiophene) (POT) solid-contact (SC) ion-selective electrode (ISE) polymeric membrane has been studied using synchrotron radiation-X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (SR-XPS), near edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS), and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS)/neutron reflectometry (NR). The tetrakis[3,5-bis(triflouromethyl)phenyl]borate (TFPB(-)) membrane dopant in the polymer ISE was transferred from the polymeric membrane to the outer surface layer of the SC on oxidation of POT but did not migrate further into the oxidized POT SC. The TFPB(-) and oxidized POT species could only be detected at the outer surface layer (≤14 Ǻ) of the SC material, even after oxidation of the electropolymerized POT SC for an hour at high anodic potential demonstrating that the ion-to-electron transduction reaction is a surface confined process. Accordingly, this study provides the first direct structural evidence of ion-to-electron transduction in the electropolymerized POT SC ISE by proving TFPB(-) transport from the polymeric ISE membrane to the oxidized POT SC at the buried interface of the SC ISE. It is inferred that the performance of the POT SC ISE is independent of the thickness of the POT SC but is instead contingent on the POT SC surface reactivity and/or electrical capacitance of the POT SC. In particular, the results suggest that the electropolymerized POT conducting polymer may spontaneously form a mixed surface/bulk oxidation state, which may explain the unusually high potential stability of the resulting ISE. It is anticipated that this new understanding of ion-to-electron transduction with electropolymerized POT SC ISEs will enable the development of new and improved devices with enhanced analytical performance attributes.

Transport and accumulation of ferrocene tagged poly(vinyl chloride) at the buried interfaces of plasticized membrane electrodes.

Cyclic voltammetry (CV), synchrotron radiation-X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (SR-XPS) and near edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) show that oxidation of ferrocene tagged PVC induces an accumulation of high molecular weight polymer at the buried interface between the substrate electrode and the plasticized membrane.

Effect of (Sm, In) Doping on the Electrical and Thermal Properties of Sb2Te3 Microstructures.

Doped Sb2Te3 narrow-band-gap semiconductors have been attracting considerable attention for different electronic and thermoelectric applications. Trivalent samarium (Sm)- and indium (In)-doped Sb2Te3 microstructures have been synthesized by the economical solvothermal method. Powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) was used to verify the synthesis of single-phase doped and undoped Sb2Te3 and doping of Sm and In within the crystal lattice of Sb2Te3. Further, the morphology, structure elucidation, and stability have been investigated systematically by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Raman analysis, and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). These analyses verified the successful synthesis of hexagonal undoped Sb2Te3 (AT) and (Sm, In)-doped Sb2Te3 (SAT, IAT) microstructures. Moreover, the comparison of dielectric parameters, including dielectric constant, dielectric loss, and tan loss of AT, SAT, and IAT, was done in detail. An increment in the electrical conductivities, both AC and DC, from 1.92 × 10-4 to 4.9 × 10-3 Ω-1 m-1 and a decrease in thermal conductivity (0.68-0.60 W m-1 K-1) were observed due to the doping by trivalent (Sm, In) dopants. According to our best knowledge, the synthesis and dielectric properties of (Sm, In)-doped and undoped Sb2Te3 in comparison with their electrical properties and thermal conductivity have not been reported earlier. This implies that appropriate doping with (Sm, In) in Sb2Te3 is promising to enhance the electronic and thermoelectric behavior.

Enhanced Electrocatalytic Activity of Amorphized LaCoO3 for Oxygen Evolution Reaction.

Amorphous inorganic perovskites have attracted significant attention as efficient electrocatalysts due to their unique structural flexibility and good catalytic activity. In particular, the disordered structure and a surface rich in defects such as oxygen vacancies can contribute to the superior electrocatalytic activity of amorphous oxides compared to their crystalline counterpart. In this work, we report the synthesis of LaCoO3 , followed by an amorphization process through urea reduction with tailored modifications. The as-synthesized catalysts were thoroughly tested for their performance in oxygen evolution reaction (OER), Remarkably, the amorphous LaCoO3 synthesized at 450 °C (referred to as LCO-4) exhibits excellent OER catalytic activity. At an overpotential of 310 mV, it achieved a current density of 10 mA/cm-2 , exceedingly fast to 1 A/cm-2 at an overpotential of only 460 mV. Moreover, LCO-4 exhibited several advantageous features compared to pristine LaCoO3 and LaCoO3 amorphized at other two temperatures (350 °C, LCO-3, and 550 °C, LCO-5). The amorphized LCO-4 catalyst showed a higher electrochemically active surface area, a key factor in boosting catalytic performance. Additionally, LCO-4 demonstrated the lowest Tafel slope of 70 mVdec-1 , further highlighting its exceptional OER activity. Furthermore, the long-term stability of LCO-4 is notably superior than pristine LaCoO3 (LCO-P) and the other amorphized samples (LCO-3 and LCO-5). The enhanced catalytic activity of LCO-4 can be attributed to its unique disordered structure, small crystallite size, and higher concentration of oxygen vacancies in the final catalyst.

Recent Advances in Transition Metal Tellurides (TMTs) and Phosphides (TMPs) for Hydrogen Evolution Electrocatalysis.

The hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is a developing and promising technology to deliver clean energy using renewable sources. Presently, electrocatalytic water (H2O) splitting is one of the low-cost, affordable, and reliable industrial-scale effective hydrogen (H2) production methods. Nevertheless, the most active platinum (Pt) metal-based catalysts for the HER are subject to high cost and substandard stability. Therefore, a highly efficient, low-cost, and stable HER electrocatalyst is urgently desired to substitute Pt-based catalysts. Due to their low cost, outstanding stability, low overpotential, strong electronic interactions, excellent conductivity, more active sites, and abundance, transition metal tellurides (TMTs) and transition metal phosphides (TMPs) have emerged as promising electrocatalysts. This brief review focuses on the progress made over the past decade in the use of TMTs and TMPs for efficient green hydrogen production. Combining experimental and theoretical results, a detailed summary of their development is described. This review article aspires to provide the state-of-the-art guidelines and strategies for the design and development of new highly performing electrocatalysts for the upcoming energy conversion and storage electrochemical technologies.

NiCo2O4 nano-needles as an efficient electro-catalyst for simultaneous water splitting and dye degradation.

Developing an efficient and non-precious bifunctional catalyst capable of performing water splitting and organic effluent degradation in wastewater is a great challenge. This article reports an efficient bifunctional nanocatalyst based on NiCo2O4, synthesized using a simple one-pot co-precipitation method. We optimized the synthesis conditions by varying the synthesis pH and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) concentrations. The prepared catalyst exhibited excellent catalytic activity for the electrochemical oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and simultaneous methylene blue (MB) dye degradation. Among the catalysts, the catalyst synthesized using 1 g SDS as a surfactant at 100 °C provided the highest current density (658 mA cm-2), lower onset potential (1.34 V vs. RHE), lower overpotential (170 mV @ 10 mA cm-2), and smallest Tafel slope (90 mV dec-1) value. Furthermore, the OH˙ radicals produced during the OER electrochemically degraded the MB to 90% within 2 hours. The stability test conducted at 20 mA cm-2 showed almost negligible loss of the electrochemical response for OER, with 99% retention of the original response. These results strongly suggest that this catalyst is a promising candidate for addressing the challenges of wastewater treatment and energy generation.