Production and Properties of Functional Nanomaterials and Composites for Electrochemical and Catalytic Applications
A special issue of Catalysts (ISSN 2073-4344). This special issue belongs to the section "Electrocatalysis".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2021) | Viewed by 7082
Special Issue Editors
2. Fraunhofer UMSICHT, 46047 Oberhausen, Germany
3. Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Tanta University, Tanta 31527, Egypt
Interests: MOFs and PCPs; functional applied nanomaterials; layer-by-layer (LbL) assembly; heterostructured electrode; composites; electrocatalysis
2. Fraunhofer UMSICHT, 46047 Oberhausen, Germany
Interests: renewable energy; electrocatalysis; bioinorganic chemistry
Interests: 1D/2D nanomaterials; composites; surfaces and interfaces; energy and environment; thermoelectrics; batteries
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Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Intensive research is being conducted into highly efficient and inexpensive nanoscale materials for electrochemical applications in renewable and clean energy systems. Nanostructuring of hybrid materials with multiple functions that are not attainable with their single components is a promising way to provide efficient and cheap electrocatalysts with comparable performances to noble metal-based catalysts and rare metal oxides. To develop hybrid functional materials into various types of electrodes with highly active layered morphologies, the assembly of functional two-dimensional (2D) materials is widely investigated. Particularly, 2D coordination polymers (CPs), including porous coordination polymers (PCPs) and metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) into well-defined three-dimensional (3D) structures using graphene oxide (GO) and/or reduced graphene oxide (rGO) nanosheets, produce efficient hybrids. These well-designed structures are promising precursors for nanostructured metal chalcogenide and/or metal oxides/rGO/carbon composites through a solid-state thermal treatment process.
An effective approach to increase the electrochemically active surface area in contact with electrolytes is to incorporate an abundance of pores within the materials via annealing, which will also provide sufficient channels for electrolyte penetration. Moreover, heating in an inert atmosphere improves the graphitic carbon, which leads to a remarkable enhancement in the electronic conductivity of rGO. To further improve the electrochemical properties of these catalysts, doping with heteroatoms such as nitrogen (N), sulfur (S), phosphorous (P), and/or boron (B) has been performed. The difference in electronegativity between carbon and heteroatoms and the high electron charge density of heteroatoms improves redox efficiency.
We invite researchers to contribute original research papers as well as review articles on electrochemical applications of novel CP (PCP and MOF) nanomaterials, their hybrids with carbon materials, and their thermally derived functional materials and electrodes. Topics of interest include but are not limited to performance evaluation of nanostructured functional materials for water splitting, including oxygen evolution reactions (OERs) and hydrogen evolution reactions (HERs), oxygen reduction reactions (ORRs), CO2 reduction, supercapacitors, batteries, etc. comparable to the currently used materials.
Dr. Mohamed B. Zakaria
Prof. Dr. Ulf-Peter Apfel
Dr. Amir Pakdel
Guest Editors
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Keywords
- Coordination polymers (CPs)
- Layered inorganic–organic hybrids
- Functional applied nanomaterials
- Nanoporous catalysts
- Metal chalcogenides, phosphides, and borides
- Metal oxides and carbides
- Heterostructured electrodes
- Electrochemistry
- Energy conversion and storage
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