In this study, porous Mo-5 wt% Cu with unidirectionally aligned pores is prepared by freeze drying of camphene slurry with MoO3-CuO powders. Unidirectional freezing of camphene slurry with dispersion stability is conducted at -25℃, and pores in the frozen specimens are generated by sublimation of the camphene crystals. The green bodies are hydrogen-reduced at 750℃ and sintered at 1000℃ for 1 h. X-ray diffraction analysis reveals that MoO3- CuO composite powders are completely converted to a Mo-and-Cu phase without any reaction phases by hydrogen reduction. The sintered bodies with the Mo-Cu phase show large and aligned parallel pores to the camphene growth direction as well as small pores in the internal walls of large pores. The pore size and porosity decrease with increasing composite powder content from 5 to 10 vol%. The change of pore characteristics is explained by the degree of powder rearrangement in slurry and the accumulation behavior of powders in the interdendritic spaces of solidified camphene.
In this study, freeze drying of a porous Ni with unidirectionally aligned pore channels is accomplished by using a NiO powder and camphene. Camphene slurries with NiO content of 5 and 10 vol% are prepared by mixing them with a small amount of dispersant at 50℃. Freezing of a slurry is performed at -25℃ while the growth direction of the camphene is unidirectionally controlled. Pores are generated subsequently by sublimation of the camphene during drying in air for 48 h. The green bodies are hydrogen-reduced at 400℃ and then sintered at 800℃ and 900℃ for 1 h. X-ray diffraction analysis reveals that the NiO powder is completely converted to the Ni phase without any reaction phases. The sintered samples show large pores that align parallel pores in the camphene growth direction as well as small pores in the internal walls of large pores. The size of large and small pores decreases with increasing powder content from 5 to 10 vol%. The influence of powder content on the pore structure is explained by the degree of powder rearrangement in slurry and the accumulation behavior of powders in the interdendritic spaces of solidified camphene.
In this study, a method to remove residual powder on a multi-layered graphene and a new approach to transfer multi-layered graphene at once are studied. A graphene one-step transfer (GOST) method is conducted to minimize the residual powder comparison with a layer-by-layer transfer. Furthermore, a residual powder removing process is investigated to remove residual powder at the top of a multi-layered graphene. After residual powder is removed, the sheet resistance of graphene is decreased from 393 to 340 Ohm/sq in a four-layered graphene. In addition, transmittance slightly increases after residual powder is removed from the top of the multi-layered graphene. Optical and atomic-force microscopy images are used to analyze the graphene surface, and the Ra value is reduced from 5.2 to 3.7 nm following residual powder removal. Therefore, GOST and residual powder removal resolve the limited application of graphene electrodes due to residual powder.
In aluminum brazing processes, corrosive flux, which is used in preventing oxidation, is currently raising environmental concerns because it generates many pollutants such as dioxin. The brazing process involving noncorrosive flux is known to encounter difficulties because the melting temperature of the flux is similar to that of the base material. In this study, a new brazing filler material is developed based on aluminum and non-corrosive flux composite powder. To minimize the interference of consolidation aluminum alloy powder by the flux, the flux is intentionally embedded in the aluminum alloy powder using a mechanical milling process. This study demonstrates that the morphology of the composite powder can be varied according to the mixing process, and this significantly affects the relative density and mechanical properties of the final filler samples.
In this study, the effects of powder size and composition on the reflectance of Al-Si based alloys are presented. First, the reflectance of Al-Si bulk and powder are analyzed to confirm the effect of powder size. Results show that the bulk has a higher reflectance than that of powder because the bulk has lower surface defects. In addition, the larger the particle size, the higher is the reflectance because the interparticle space decreases. Second, the effect of composition on the reflectance by the changing composition of Al-Si-Mg is confirmed. Consequently, the reflectance of the alloy decreases with the addition of Si and Mg because dendrite Si and Mg2Si are formed, and these have lower reflectance than pure Al. Finally, the reflectance of the alloy is due to the scattering of free electrons, which is closely related to electrical conductivity. Measurements of the electrical conductivity based on the composition of the Al-Si-Mg alloy confirm the same tendency as the reflectance.
The gas sensor is essential to monitoring dangerous gases in our environment. Metal oxide (MO) gas sensors are primarily utilized for flammable, toxic and organic gases and O3 because of their high sensitivity, high response and high stability. Tungsten oxides (WO3) have versatile applications, particularly for gas sensor applications because of the wide bandgap and stability of WO3. Nanosize WO3 are synthesized using the hydrothermal method. Asprepared WO3 nanopowders are in the form of nanorods and nanorulers. The crystal structure is hexagonal tungsten bronze (MxWO3, x =< 0.33), characterized as a tunnel structure that accommodates alkali ions and the phase stabilizer. A gas detection test reveals that WO3 can detect acetone, butanol, ethanol, and gasoline. This is the first study to report this capability of WO3.
Current synthesis processes for titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles require expensive precursors or templates as well as complex steps and long reaction times. In addition, these processes produce highly agglomerated nanoparticles. In this study, we demonstrate a simple and continuous approach to synthesize TiO2 nanoparticles by a salt-assisted ultrasonic spray pyrolysis method. We also investigate the effect of salt content in a precursor solution on the morphology and size of synthesized products. The synthesized TiO2 nanoparticles are systematically characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron micrograph, and UV-Vis spectroscopy. These nanoparticles appear to have a single anatase phase and a uniform particle-size distribution with an average particle size of approximately 10 nm. By extrapolating the plots of the transformed Kubelka-Munk function versus the absorbed light energy, we determine that the energy band gap of the synthesized TiO2 nanoparticles is 3.25 eV
Tungsten trioxide (WO3) is a promising candidate as a photocatalyst because of its outstanding electrical and optical properties. In this study, we prepare WO3 thin films by electrodeposition and characterize the photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue using these films. Depending on the voltage conditions (static and pulse), compact and porous WO3 films are fabricated on a transparent ITO/glass substrate. The morphology and crystal structure of electrodeposited WO3 thin films are investigated by scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and X-ray diffraction. An application of static voltage during electrodeposition yields a compact layer of WO3, whereas a highly porous morphology with nanoflakes is produced by a pulse voltage process. Compared to the compact film, the porous WO3 thin film shows better photocatalytic activities. Furthermore, a much higher reaction rate of degradation of methylene blue can be achieved after post-annealing of WO3 thin films.
Quantum dots (QDs) are an attractive material for application in solar energy conversion devices because of their unique properties including facile band-gap tuning, a high-absorption coefficient, low-cost processing, and the potential multiple exciton generation effect. Recently, highly efficient quantum dot-sensitized solar cells (QDSCs) have been developed based on CdSe, PbS, CdS, and Cu-In-Se QDs. However, for the commercialization and wide application of these QDSCs, replacing the conventional rigid glass substrates with flexible substrates is required. Here, we demonstrate flexible CISe QDSCs based on vertically aligned TiO2 nanotube (NT) electrodes. The highly uniform TiO2 NT electrodes are prepared by two-step anodic oxidation. Using these flexible photoanodes and semi-transparent Pt counter electrodes, we fabricate the QDSCs and examine their photovoltaic properties. In particular, photovoltaic performances are optimized by controlling the nanostructure of TiO2 NT electrodes
Layered LiNi0.83Co0.11Mn0.06O2 cathode materials single- and dual-doped by the rare-earth elements Ce and Nd are successfully fabricated by using a coprecipitation-assisted solid-phase method. For comparison purposes, nondoping pristine LiNi0.83Co0.11Mn0.06O2 cathode material is also prepared using the same method. The crystal structure, morphology, and electrochemical performances are characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS) mapping, and electrochemical techniques. The XRD data demonstrates that all prepared samples maintain a typical α-NaFeO2-layered structure with the R-3m space group, and that the doped samples with Ce and/or Nd have lower cation mixing than that of pristine samples without doping. The results of SEM and EDS show that doped elements are uniformly distributed in all samples. The electrochemical performances of all doped samples are better than those of pristine samples without doping. In addition, the Ce/Nd dualdoped cathode material shows the best cycling performance and the least capacity loss. At a 10 C-rate, the electrodes of Ce/Nd dual-doped cathode material exhibit good capacity retention of 72.7, 58.5, and 45.2% after 100, 200, and 300 cycles, respectively, compared to those of pristine samples without doping (24.4, 11.1, and 8.0%).
High performance lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) have attracted considerable attention as essential energy sources for high-technology electrical devices such as electrical vehicles, unmanned drones, uninterruptible power supply, and artificial intelligence robots because of their high energy density (150-250 Wh/kg), long lifetime (> 500 cycles), low toxicity, and low memory effects. Of the high-performance LIB components, cathode materials have a significant effect on the capacity, lifetime, energy density, power density, and operating conditions of high-performance LIBs. This is because cathode materials have limitations with respect to a lower specific capacity and cycling stability as compared to anode materials. In addition, cathode materials present difficulties when used with LIBs in electric vehicles because of their poor rate performance. Therefore, this study summarizes the structural and electrochemical properties of cathode materials for LIBs used in electric vehicles. In addition, we consider unique strategies to improve their structural and electrochemical properties.