The work describes the design and manufacturing of a test device for post-mortem measurements of electrodes of electrochemical cells using X-ray diffraction spectroscopy. The theoretical part describes the diffractometer Rigaku Miniflex 600, for which the product is intended. At the same time, an overview of solutions in various applications is processed here in the form of a recherche. The practical part documents the current development of a new cell, on which tests were performed. Here is an overview of the influence of gases and insulating materials on the resulting data, especially distortion and attenuation. Subsequently, a new design with improved hermetic insulation and sample displacement error correction is described. The principle of operation of the manufactured cell, including the control unit and software, is elaborated in the form of technical documentation. Finally, the functionality is verified by comparing the diffractograms of the powder standards and the graphite electrodes.

This work deals with investigation of intercalation of alkaline metals in electrochromic devices by the help of the quartz crystal microbalance method. The general aim is to investigate the influence of molar mass and resistance on properties of vanadium pentoxide and tungsten trioxide electrochromic films. The main measuring method used for investigating of interacalation of sodium and lithium ions into these films is the cyclic voltammetry. Drawn graphs reveals that sodium and lithium ions shows different qualities during intercalation, particularly in participation of solvent, therefore, in the influence of molar mass and in structural changes in the films.

The intercalation of surfactant anions, namely sodium dodecyl sulphate, sodium benzene sulphonate and lauric acid, into commercial layered double hydroxides (LDH-CO3) with approximate composition [Mg0.654AI0.346 (OH)2](CO3)0.173.0.5H2O] was explored. LDH-CO3 is commercially available in bulk form owing to its large scale applications as a PVC stabiliser and acid scavenger in polyolefins. It is therefore of interest to investigate intercalation methods using LDH-CO3 as starting material. The intercalation method used was compared with the pre existing procedures, for instance the co-precipitation, ion exchange and regeneration methods. Due to the tenacity with which the carbonate ion is held in LDH-CO3, direct ion exchange is an intricate matter. Hence, in the regeneration method the carbonate ion is removed by thermal treatment and the LDH-surfactant is obtained by reaction of the LDH and surfactant in an aqueous medium. Nevertheless, the resulting products are impure and poorly crystallised, and only partial intercalation is achieved. The underlying principle of the current method is protonation of the carbonate anion to a monovalent anion that is easily exchanged with surfactant anions. Improved results were obtained when water-soluble organic acids were used, the most suitable being lower aliphatic carboxylic acids, e.g. acetic, butyric and hexanoic acid. In contrast, higher linear aliphatic carboxylic acids are preferentially intercalated to the anionic surfactants. In both cases the carboxylic acids are assumed to assist intercalation by facilitating the elimination of the carbonate ions present in the anionic clay galleries. X-ray diffraction analysis, thermal analysis and infrared spectroscopy confirmed the monolayer intercalation of LDH-dodecyl sulphate and LDH-dodecylbenzene sulphonate. In contrast, LDH-laurate featured a bilayer structure. / Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Chemistry / unrestricted

No description available.

京都大学 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(エネルギー科学) / 甲第23295号 / エネ博第420号 / 新制||エネ||80(附属図書館) / 京都大学大学院エネルギー科学研究科エネルギー基礎科学専攻 / (主査)教授 萩原 理加, 教授 野平 俊之, 教授 坂口 浩司 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Energy Science / Kyoto University / DFAM

<p>Tuning the structural and electronic properties of layered materials is critical for the development of thin, flexible semiconductors that are capable of overcoming Moore’s law. Intercalation of transition metals (TMs) into the interlayer gaps of a two-dimensional host material is one of the most promising methods toward modifying the electronic properties without disrupting the chemical bonds within the layers. Previous studies have shown that the intercalation of TMs into Bi2Se3, SnS2, TaS2, and NbS2 altered the electronic, optical, and magnetic properties of the material due to orbital hybridization between the d-orbitals of the intercalant and the bands of the host material. However, the synthesis of intercalated 2D materials using compositionally-limited because the process is driven by a charge transfer reaction from the intercalant to the conduction band of the host material, which is difficult to achieve on group VI TMDs (MoS2, WS2) with high energy conduction bands. As a result, only metal atoms that are highly reducing, like alkali metals, can be effectively intercalated into WS2. Meanwhile, alkali metal-intercalated WS2 materials are unstable under ambient conditions, which significantly limits further device application. In this dissertation, we developed a solution-phase synthetic method to successfully intercalate a broad range of redox-active TM cations into WS2 and access a variety of intercalation morphologies. With these different intercalated structures, the electronic properties of WS2 can be systematically adjusted.</p> <p>First, we synthesized vanadium-intercalated WS2, and structural characterization reveals that solvated vanadium cations are uniformly intercalated in WS2, which significantly increases the interlayer spacing from 6.2 Å to 14.2 Å. Raman and X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) experiments indicate a strong interaction between the vanadium intercalants and the WS2 basal plane. Electronic transport measurements show that the vanadium-intercalated WS2 is an n-type semiconductor with room-temperature conductivity of 12 S/cm, 2 orders of magnitude higher than pristine WS2. The electronic properties can be further tuned by varying the concentration of V intercalants.</p> <p>We further synthesized TM-intercalated WS2 using 17 different metal precursors, varying the identity, reduction potential, charge density, and ionic radius in order to determine the key properties that influence intercalation. With detailed structural characterization, we determined that both charge density and reduction potential of the precursor are critical toward achieving selective intercalation over secondary nucleation. The strength of the host-guest interaction is also dependent on the transition metal identity. With the strongest interaction between the TM intercalants and WS2 basal plane, FeCl3-WS2 has the lowest work function of 4.97 eV and the highest conductivity of 110 S/cm.</p>

Anion intercalation in the graphite positive electrode of a dual-ion battery requires high potential (&gt; 4.3 V vs Li+/Li), which aggravates parasitic reactions involving electrolyte decomposition and Al corrosion, manifesting in poor coulombic efficiency, cycle life, and quick self-discharge. This study aims to investigate the stability of anion-intercalated graphite electrodes in a 4 M solution of lithium bis(fluorosulfonyl)imide (LiFSI) in ethyl methyl carbonate (EMC) using both in-situ and ex-situ Raman spectroscopy. The concentrated electrolyte is essential as it limits parasitic reactions at the cathode-electrolyte interface (CEI) occurring in parallel to anion intercalation. Using electrochemical methods including cyclic voltammetry, and post-mortem electron microscopy it was confirmed that the Al current collector is largely stable at potentials as high as 5.2 V in the electrolyte under consideration; no dissolved Al species were detected using EDX characterization. Results from the cyclic voltammetry study also indicate that parasitic reactions can be mitigated when the cut-off potential is limited to 5.0 V leading to higher coulombic efficiency (CE = 94 %) and more stable discharge capacity (85.17 mAh g-1). However, extending the potential to 5.1 and 5.2 V results in the discharge capacity increasing by almost 20 mAh g-1, though at the expense of the coulombic efficiency, which decreases from 94 to 76 %. Upon raising the cut-off potential to 5.3 V, the CE significantly decreased (20.62 %) as a result of extensive solvent decomposition ultimately leading to much quicker capacity fading.  Based on SEM images taken after 50 cycles, graphite particles did not sustain any structural or morphological change during cycling regardless of the cut-off potentials applied. Further tests were conducted on Li-graphite DIBs using galvanostatic methods in the range from 3 to 5 V, and at different specific currents (20, 50, and 100 mA g-1). Though the cells exhibited good performance in terms of capacity retention, and cycle life at all currents, the coulombic efficiency tended to decrease as the test currents were lowered. This observation confirms the presence of parasitic reactions which are only visible when the experimental timescale is sufficiently long. At 50 and 100 mA g-1, the CE reached &gt; 98 % which further verifies the kinetic aspect of electrolyte decomposition reactions. It is evident that self-discharge sustained in the course of open-circuit potential (OCP) relaxation of the fully charged cell can reveal the stability of the electrolyte and the anion-intercalated graphite. Raman spectroscopy measurements conducted in-situ and ex-situ on graphite electrodes charged and discharged to a series of potential cut-offs reveal the existence of self-discharge leading to extraction of anions from the graphite particles. This was demonstrated through the spectral appearance of E2g2(i) band next to E2g2(b) band at a fully intercalated state, as opposed to the in-situ spectrum, which only showed one intercalated band (E2g2(b)). It can be concluded that concentrated electrolytes (such as 4 M LiFSI in EMC) only provide kinetic stability and are unable to entirely inhibit parasitic reactions at the interface. This further highlights the need for electrolyte additives that can create a more stable interfacial passivation layer on the positive electrode so that more reversible anion intercalation can be attained.

In this thesis, we have explored the possibilities to realize a Graphene Based Hybrid structures (GBHs) by the functionalization of a graphene layer on both sides. The first chapter gives a general introduction about graphene and a literature review of different metal intercalations on graphene. The second chapter explains the experimental techniques used in this work. In chapter 3, we studied the functionalization of epitaxial graphene on SiC(0001) by gold intercalation. With the help of Scanning Tunneling Microscopy, we have evidenced and characterized different intercalation modes such as the formation of aggregates of individual gold atoms and the formation of a continuous gold layer between the top graphene and the buffer layer. The free standing nature of the intercalated gold atoms was examined by differential charge density plot, projected density of states calculations and further by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The band structure modification of graphene due to these intercalated gold atoms was evidenced by Angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, which reveals a strong Van Hove extension and an increase of the Fermi velocity. Extend to this research, to obtain an extended Van Hove singularity usually observed in highly doped graphene; we studied highly electron donor molecules, TetraThioFullvalene (TTF) on pristine and gold intercalated graphene and on graphite (chapter 4). The dependence of charge transfer of these molecules with their conformation and the reactivity of photochromic with conjugated molecules on graphene were also discussed. To understand the structural properties of these molecules photophysical measurements were performed in chapter 5.

The landscape of consumer electronics has drastically changed over the last decade. Technological advances have led to the development of portable media devices, such as the iPod, smart phones and laptops. This has been achieved primarily through miniaturisation and using materials such as Lithium and Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) to increase energy density in batteries and as transparent electrodes for light emitting displays respectively. However, ten years on there are now new consumer demands, which are dictating the direction of research and new products are under constant development. Graphene is a promising next-generation material that was discovered in 2004. It is composed of a two-dimensional lattice made only from carbon. The atoms are arranged in a two atom basis hexagonal crystal structure which forms a fundamental building block of all sp2 hybrid forms of carbon. The production of large area graphene has a high cost, due to the long growth times and the high temperatures required. This is relevant as graphene is not viable compared to other transparent conductors which are produced on industrial scales for a fraction of the cost of graphene growth. Furthermore, graphene has a high intrinsic resistivity (2KW/_) which is three orders of magnitude greater than the current industry standard ITO. This limits the size of the electrodes as there is dissipation of energy across the electrode leading to inefficiency. Furthermore a potential drop occurs across the electrode leading to a non-uniform light emission when the electrode is used in a light emitting display. I investigate alternative methods of large area graphene growth with the aim of reducing the manufacturing costs, while maintaining the quality required for graphene human interface devices. Building on this I develop new fabrication methods for the production of large-area graphene devices which are flexible and transparent and show the first all graphene touch sensor. Focusing on the reducing the high resistivity of graphene using FeCl3 intercalation, while maintaining high optical transmission, I show low resistivity achieved using this process for microscopic graphene flakes, large-area graphene grown on silicon carbide and large-area graphene grown by CVD. Furthermore, I explore the stability of FeCl3 intercalated graphene and a process to transfer a material to arbitrary flexible substrates.

Le travail de thèse, présenté dans ce mémoire, est consacré à l'étude de nouveaux matériaux d'électrode pour batterie lithium-ion pour le stockage d'énergie photovoltaïque. Ce type de production d'énergie impose de nombreuses intermittences de charge, des non synchronisations entre les périodes de production et de consommation, etc. L'objectif est d'évaluer le comportement de différents types de matériau d'électrode dans des batteries soumises à des profils de charge photovoltaïque pour ensuite sélectionner les plus adaptés à ce stockage spécifique d'énergie. Les matériaux choisis, Li4Ti5O12, Li2Ti3O7, NiP3, TiSnSb, présentent tous des mécanismes de réaction vis-à-vis du lithium très différents. Afin d'améliorer la durée de vie de ces matériaux d'électrodes, un travail d'optimisation des performances électrochimiques a été effectué en travaillant sur leur synthèse puis sur la formulation des électrodes. La formulation d'électrode en utilisant la carboxymethylcellulose sodique a notamment donné d'excellents résultats. La caractérisation de leurs propriétés physico-chimiques a été réalisée par diffraction des rayons X, in situ et en température, MEB, ATD, cyclage galvanostatique, etc.). Afin de reproduire des profils représentatifs de la production photovoltaïque à l'échelle des accumulateurs expérimentaux de laboratoire, un banc de simulation a été élaboré et validé avec un accumulateur de référence à base de Li4Ti5O12. Après cette étape de validation, les différents matériaux d'électrode ont été testés en condition photovoltaïque. Cette étude a permis de montrer que les intermittences de courte de durée (passages nuageux) et les régimes variables qu'impose ce type de production n'ont pas que peu d'influence sur les propriétés électrochimiques de l'ensemble de ces matériaux. Cependant, les périodes d'absence de production (nuit, journée pluvieuse, etc.) correspondant à une relaxation pour le matériau peuvent avoir un impact important. Les matériaux de conversion (NiP3, TiSnSb) ont montré de surprenants bons résultats. Enfin, les observations montrent que chaque type de matériau (mécanisme électrochimique différent) pourrait convenir i) à un type de production photovoltaïque, c'est à dire à une zone géographique et ii) à un type d'application particulière. / The thesis work, presented in this manuscript, is devoted to the study of new materials for lithium-ion battery for storing solar energy. This type of energy production imposes intermittent loading, non-synchronization between periods of production and consumption, etc. The objective is to evaluate the behavior of different types of electrode material in batteries under photovoltaic (PV) charge profiles and then to select the most suitable for this specific energy storage. The chosen materials, Li4Ti5O12, Li2Ti3O7, NiP3, TiSnSb, follow all very different reaction mechanisms versus lithium. To improve the cycling life of these electrode materials, a work on electrochemical performance optimization was performed by working on the synthesis and the electrode formulation. The electrode formulation, using in particular carboxymethyl cellulose, presented excellent results. Characterization of their physico-chemical properties was carried out by X-ray diffraction, in situ and as function of temperature, SEM, DTA, galvanostatic cycling, etc.). To reproduce representative profiles of the photovoltaic production at the experimental batteries scale, a test bench has been developed and validated with reference batteries (Li4Ti5O12). After this step of validation, different electrode materials were tested under photovoltaic conditions. This study shows that both intermittences with short duration (clouds) and variable rates of current imposed by this type of production don't strong influence on the electrochemical properties of all these materials. However, periods of no production (night, rainy day, etc.), corresponding to a relaxation for the material, can impact significantly. Materials following conversion mechanism (NiP3, TiSnSb) showed surprising good results. Finally, the observations indicated that each type of material (with different electrochemical mechanism) could be adapted to i) a type of photovoltaic production, ie to a geographical area and ii) a type of application.