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2D Materials for Energy Storage and Conversion

A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Energy Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2020) | Viewed by 10299

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 2155/3, 18223 Prague, Czech Republic
Interests: 2D materials; Raman spectroscopy; AFM; electrochemistry; energy storage and conversion

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

2D materials like graphene, transition metal dichalcogenides, phosphorene, and many others, represent one of the focal points of current research and development. Most of the unique features of these materials directly relate to their two-dimensional nature that gives rise to dramatically different properties from their bulk progenitors. Whether it is due to their exceptional mechanical properties, optoelectronic structure, large surface area, catalytic activity, or to the possibility to tailor all those traits to particular needs, 2D materials seem to be predestined to revolutionize many fields, with energy storage and conversion belonging to the most prominent ones.

From batteries and supercapacitors, via fuel cells to solar cells, thermoelectric or triboelectric generators, from standalone monolayers to bulk composites, organic or inorganic, there have been many promising concepts of 2D materials-based energy applications over the past few years, some of them even reaching the market already.  However, recent massive progress calls for a critical evaluation in order to identify the most auspicious directions and to focus on—without burrowing into areas where bulk materials are not significantly outperformed by their 2D off-springs. At the same time, we must not stop looking into the fundamentals of all the processes, since 2D materials bring physics not accessible to many laboratories until recently and many of them still unexplored.

It is my pleasure to invite you to submit a manuscript to this Special Issue. There are no limits concerning the type of your contribution: Topical reviews, critical outlooks, brief communications, or full papers are all welcome.

We are looking forward to reading your manuscript.

Dr. Otakar Frank
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • 2D materials
  • energy storage
  • energy conversion
  • batteries
  • supercapacitors
  • solar cells
  • fuel cells

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

8 pages, 1785 KiB  
Article
Preparation and Characterization of Paramagnetic Bis (8-Hydroxyquinoline) Manganese Crystals
by Feng Jiang, Jiawen Song, Mengqi Dong and Yinong Wang
Materials 2020, 13(10), 2379; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma13102379 - 21 May 2020
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1998
Abstract
The magnetic properties of π-conjugated bis (8-hydroxyquinoline) manganese (Mnq2) crystals are investigated. Rod-shaped Mnq2 crystals are prepared by using the physical vapor deposition method. Field emission scanning electronic microscopy spectra show that the Mnq2 nanorods have perfect plane quadrangular [...] Read more.
The magnetic properties of π-conjugated bis (8-hydroxyquinoline) manganese (Mnq2) crystals are investigated. Rod-shaped Mnq2 crystals are prepared by using the physical vapor deposition method. Field emission scanning electronic microscopy spectra show that the Mnq2 nanorods have perfect plane quadrangular ends. Energy dispersive spectrometer and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis demonstrates that the powders and nanorods are the same compound with a high purity. X-ray diffraction analysis shows the high crystal quality of the prepared Mnq2 nanorods. The magnetic measurement, using alternating gradient magnetometer and magnetic property measurement system superconducting quantum interference device vibrating sample magnetometer, indicates that the prepared Mnq2 nanorods show a paramagnetic property at room temperature. First-principles density functional theory (DFT) calculations are used to study the electronic structure and magnetic properties of the prepared Mnq2 crystals. DFT calculations show that the magnetic moment of the Mnq2 isolated molecule is 5 μB, which mainly comes from the localized Mn 3d orbital. The energy difference between the antiferromagnetic and ferromagnetic states of the Mnq2 monoclinic cell is only 0.1 meV, which may explain the paramagnetic property observed in the prepared Mnq2 nanorods and also indicates the difficulty of preparing intrinsic ferromagnetic Mnq2 crystals. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 2D Materials for Energy Storage and Conversion)
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15 pages, 2442 KiB  
Article
Anomalous Discharge Behavior of Graphite Nanosheet Electrodes in Lithium-Oxygen Batteries
by Philipp Wunderlich, Jannis Küpper and Ulrich Simon
Materials 2020, 13(1), 43; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma13010043 - 20 Dec 2019
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2459
Abstract
Lithium-oxygen (Li-O2) batteries require rational air electrode concepts to achieve high energy densities. We report a simple but effective electrode design based on graphite nanosheets (GNS) as active material to facilitate the discharge reaction. In contrast to other carbon forms we [...] Read more.
Lithium-oxygen (Li-O2) batteries require rational air electrode concepts to achieve high energy densities. We report a simple but effective electrode design based on graphite nanosheets (GNS) as active material to facilitate the discharge reaction. In contrast to other carbon forms we tested, GNS show a distinctive two-step discharge behavior. Fundamental aspects of the battery’s discharge profile were examined in different depths of discharge using scanning electron microscopy and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. We attribute the second stage of discharge to the electrochemically induced expansion of graphite, which allows an increase in the discharge product uptake. Raman spectroscopy and powder X-ray diffraction confirmed the main discharge product to be Li2O2, which was found as particulate coating on GNS at the electrode top, and in damaged areas at the bottom together with Li2CO3 and Li2O. Large discharge capacity comes at a price: the chemical and structural integrity of the cathode suffers from graphite expansion and unwanted byproducts. In addition to the known instability of the electrode–electrolyte interface, new challenges emerge from high depths of discharge. The mechanistic origin of the observed effects, as well as air electrode design strategies to deal with them, are discussed in this study. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 2D Materials for Energy Storage and Conversion)
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17 pages, 3585 KiB  
Article
A Facile Synthesis of MoS2/g-C3N4 Composite as an Anode Material with Improved Lithium Storage Capacity
by Ha Tran Huu, Xuan Dieu Nguyen Thi, Kim Nguyen Van, Sung Jin Kim and Vien Vo
Materials 2019, 12(11), 1730; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma12111730 - 28 May 2019
Cited by 29 | Viewed by 4899
Abstract
The demand for well-designed nanostructured composites with enhanced electrochemical performance for lithium-ion batteries electrode materials has been emerging. In order to improve the electrochemical performance of MoS2-based anode materials, MoS2 nanosheets integrated with g-C3N4 (MoS2/g-C [...] Read more.
The demand for well-designed nanostructured composites with enhanced electrochemical performance for lithium-ion batteries electrode materials has been emerging. In order to improve the electrochemical performance of MoS2-based anode materials, MoS2 nanosheets integrated with g-C3N4 (MoS2/g-C3N4 composite) was synthesized by a facile heating treatment from the precursors of thiourea and sodium molybdate at 550 °C under N2 gas flow. The structure and composition of MoS2/g-C3N4 were confirmed by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis and elemental analysis. The lithium storage capability of the MoS2/g-C3N4 composite was evaluated, indicating high capacity and stable cycling performance at 1 C (A·g−1) with a reversible capacity of 1204 mA·h·g−1 for 200 cycles. This result is believed the role of g-C3N4 as a supporting material to accommodate the volume change and improve charge transport for nanostructured MoS2. Additionally, the contribution of the pseudocapacitive effect was also calculated to further clarify the enhancement in Li-ion storage performance of the composite. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue 2D Materials for Energy Storage and Conversion)
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