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Design and Characterization of Energy Catalytic Materials
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Design and Characterization of Energy Catalytic Materials

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 November 2024) | Viewed by 5692

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Gang Cheng

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, Wuhan Institute of Technology, Donghu New & High Technology Development Zone, Wuhan 430205, China
Interests: energy and environmental catalysis; photocatalysis; biomass reforming; materials synthesis and processing
Dr. Chao Han

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Materials Sciences and Engineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083, China
Interests: electrocatalyst; thermoelectric materials; water electrolysis; CO2 reduction reaction; metal-air battery; synthesis of nanomaterials
Prof. Dr. Florian J. Stadler

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518055, China
Interests: nanomaterials science; polymer science; soft matter science; 2D materials; environmental chemistry
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

It is well known that most energy-consuming processes are directly or indirectly related to catalytic reactions. The rapid growth of global energy demand has greatly promoted the utilization of various energy systems and the development and transformation of energy catalytic materials. Photocatalysis, electrochemical catalysis, thermal catalysis, and photo–electrochemical/thermal coupled catalysis systems offer potential routes to address the increasing environmental and energy-related issues. Semiconductor-based photocatalysis can achieve solar energy conversion to chemical energy, including photocatalytic hydrogen production, photocatalytic CO2 reduction, photocatalytic degradation, photocatalytic nitrogen fixation, and so on. Electrochemical catalysis mainly includes fuel cells, electrochemical reduction of CO2 into high value-added chemicals, electrosynthesis of NH3, electrochemical water splitting, and electrochemical removal of pollutants. In recent years, photo-electrochemical/thermal catalysis has been a new technology that integrates photocatalysis and electrochemical/thermal catalysis. Take the photothermal catalysis as an example, it can not only improve the efficiency of catalytic reactions but also transform low-density solar energy into high-density chemical energy. The rational design of the catalysts with surface and interface optimization would be a promising approach to maximize the efficacy of energy conversion. On the other hand, unveiling the atomic structure of the catalysts, as well as identifying the active sites to play with the molecules is also a prerequisite with the participation of theoretical and experimental expertise. In this regard, looking for effective characterization techniques for in situ monitoring of reaction intermediates and catalytic products is another challenge that demands theoretical analysis of the combination of in situ techniques and machine learning. The Special Issue, Design and Characterization of Energy Catalytic Materials, will include a comprehensive overview and in-depth research paper addressing recent progress in energy catalysis. Studies of advanced characterization techniques and design methods in this field are highly encouraged.

Potential topics include, but are not limited to:

  • Photocatalysis;
  • Electrochemical catalysis;
  • Photo-electrochemical/Photo-thermal catalysis;
  • Carbon dioxide reduction;
  • Hydrogen evolution;
  • Nitrogen reduction;
  • Fuel cells;
  • Hydrogen peroxide production;
  • Pollutants removal;  
  • Biomass conversion;
  • Thermodynamics;
  • In situ techniques;
  • Fabrication methodology.

Prof. Dr. Gang Cheng
Dr. Chao Han
Prof. Dr. Florian J. Stadler
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Materials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • energy catalysis
  • energy storage
  • energy conversion
  • materials synthesis
  • materials characterization

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 2242 KiB  
Article
Pt-TiO2 Systems for Enhanced Hydrogen Production from Glycerol: Direct vs Sequential Incorporation Through Photodeposition
by Ana M. Carozo, Francisco J. López-Tenllado, M. Carmen Herrera-Beurnio, Jesús Hidalgo-Carrillo, Juan Martín-Gómez, Rafael Estevez, Alejandro Ariza-Pérez, Francisco J. Urbano and Alberto Marinas
Materials 2024, 17(20), 5109; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma17205109 - 19 Oct 2024
Viewed by 610
Abstract
Pt-TiO2 systems are the most widely used photocatalysts in the production of green hydrogen from glycerol photoreforming. To incorporate metals on the surface of materials, photodeposition is the most used method because it employs mild conditions. However, despite its use, there are [...] Read more.
Pt-TiO2 systems are the most widely used photocatalysts in the production of green hydrogen from glycerol photoreforming. To incorporate metals on the surface of materials, photodeposition is the most used method because it employs mild conditions. However, despite its use, there are some parameters that have not been deeply studied, such as the appropriate metal loading and the method itself, to obtain a better dispersion of Pt. In this work, six Pt-TiO2 catalysts were synthesized by a classical photodeposition method employing UV radiation. The studied Pt wt.% range was 0.15–0.60 wt.%, being incorporated in one step or in subsequent ones. HRTEM analyses showed that both methods allowed a homogeneous distribution of Pt, and in both, the particle size was around 2.3–3.6 nm, increasing with metal loading. The photocatalytic activity of materials was tested in glycerol photoreforming under UV radiation, and the 0.45 wt.% Pt-containing solid that had been synthesized in one step was the one that allowed the highest hydrogen production. This might suggest that around 0.40% is the appropriate metal loading for hydrogen production under these conditions and that incorporating the desired metal percentage in one step is the most efficient method in terms of energy and time savings. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Design and Characterization of Energy Catalytic Materials)
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17 pages, 4729 KiB  
Article
Effect of Pretreatment on the Nitrogen Doped Activated Carbon Materials Activity towards Oxygen Reduction Reaction
by Galina Dobele, Ance Plavniece, Aleksandrs Volperts, Aivars Zhurinsh, Daina Upskuviene, Aldona Balciunaite, Vitalija Jasulaitiene, Gediminas Niaura, Martynas Talaikis, Loreta Tamasauskaite-Tamasiunaite, Eugenijus Norkus, Jannicke Kvello and Luis César Colmenares-Rausseo
Materials 2023, 16(17), 6005; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16176005 - 31 Aug 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1262
Abstract
Nitrogen-doped activated carbons with controlled micro- and mesoporosity were obtained from wood and wastes via chemical processing using pre-treatment (pyrolysis at 500 °C and hydrothermally carbonization at 250 °C) and evaluated as oxygen reduction catalysts for further application in fuel cells. The elemental [...] Read more.
Nitrogen-doped activated carbons with controlled micro- and mesoporosity were obtained from wood and wastes via chemical processing using pre-treatment (pyrolysis at 500 °C and hydrothermally carbonization at 250 °C) and evaluated as oxygen reduction catalysts for further application in fuel cells. The elemental and chemical composition, structure and porosity, and types of nitrogen bonds of obtained catalyst materials were studied. The catalytic activity was evaluated in an alkaline medium using the rotating disk electrode method. It was shown that an increase in the volume of mesopores in the porous structure of a carbon catalyst promotes the diffusion of reagents and the reactions proceed more efficiently. The competitiveness of the obtained carbon materials compared to Pt/C for the reaction of catalytic oxygen reduction is shown. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Design and Characterization of Energy Catalytic Materials)
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23 pages, 3819 KiB  
Article
Investigation of Hydrogen and Oxygen Evolution on Cobalt-Nanoparticles-Supported Graphitic Carbon Nitride
by Ausrine Zabielaite, Aldona Balciunaite, Daina Upskuviene, Dijana Simkunaite, Ramunas Levinas, Gediminas Niaura, Jurate Vaiciuniene, Vitalija Jasulaitiene, Loreta Tamasauskaite-Tamasiunaite and Eugenijus Norkus
Materials 2023, 16(17), 5923; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16175923 - 30 Aug 2023
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1564
Abstract
This study focuses on fabricating cobalt particles deposited on graphitic carbon nitride (Co/gCN) using annealing, microwave-assisted and hydrothermal syntheses, and their employment in hydrogen and oxygen evolution (HER and OER) reactions. Composition, surface morphology, and structure were examined using inductively coupled plasma optical [...] Read more.
This study focuses on fabricating cobalt particles deposited on graphitic carbon nitride (Co/gCN) using annealing, microwave-assisted and hydrothermal syntheses, and their employment in hydrogen and oxygen evolution (HER and OER) reactions. Composition, surface morphology, and structure were examined using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction. The performance of Co-modified gCN composites for the HER and OER were investigated in an alkaline media (1 M KOH). Compared to the metal-free gCN, the modification of gCN with Co enhances the electrocatalytic activity towards the HER and OER. Additionally, thermal annealing of both Co(NO3)2 and melamine at 520 °C for 4 h results in the preparation of an effective bifunctional Co3O4/gCN catalyst for the HER with the lower Eonset of −0.24 V, a small overpotential of −294.1 mV at 10 mA cm−2, and a low Tafel slope of −29.6 mV dec−1 in a 1.0 M KOH solution and for the OER with the onset overpotential of 286.2 mV and overpotential of 422.3 mV to achieve a current density of 10 mA cm−2 with the Tafel slope of 72.8 mV dec−1. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Design and Characterization of Energy Catalytic Materials)
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14 pages, 31108 KiB  
Article
A p–n Junction by Coupling Amine-Enriched Brookite–TiO2 Nanorods with CuxS Nanoparticles for Improved Photocatalytic CO2 Reduction
by Zhangjing Chen, Xueteng Zhu, Jinyan Xiong, Zhipan Wen and Gang Cheng
Materials 2023, 16(3), 960; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16030960 - 19 Jan 2023
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1667
Abstract
Photocatalytic CO2 reduction is a promising technology for reaching the aim of “carbon peaking and carbon neutrality”, and it is crucial to design efficient photocatalysts with a rational surface and interface tailoring. Considering that amine modification on the surface of the photocatalyst [...] Read more.
Photocatalytic CO2 reduction is a promising technology for reaching the aim of “carbon peaking and carbon neutrality”, and it is crucial to design efficient photocatalysts with a rational surface and interface tailoring. Considering that amine modification on the surface of the photocatalyst could offer a favorable impact on the adsorption and activation of CO2, in this work, amine-modified brookite TiO2 nanorods (NH2-B-TiO2) coupled with CuxS (NH2-B-TiO2-CuxS) were effectively fabricated via a facile refluxing method. The formation of a p–n junction at the interface between the NH2-B-TiO2 and the CuxS could facilitate the separation and transfer of photogenerated carriers. Consequently, under light irradiation for 4 h, when the CuxS content is 16%, the maximum performance for conversion of CO2 to CH4 reaches at a rate of 3.34 μmol g−1 h−1 in the NH2-B-TiO2-CuxS composite, which is approximately 4 times greater than that of pure NH2-B-TiO2. It is hoped that this work could deliver an approach to construct an amine-enriched p–n junction for efficient CO2 photoreduction. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Design and Characterization of Energy Catalytic Materials)
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