Active MgH2?Mg Systems for Reversible Chemical Energy Storage

An overview of the importance of and methods available for heat storage in the form of sensible and latent heat is followed by a discussion of the advantages and disadvantages of reversible thermochemical energy storage compared to conventional energy sources such as fuels, i.e. irreversible chemical energy carriers. Of the reversible metal-hydride–metal systems, the MgH₂? Mg system is particularly attractive as a hydrogen and a high-temperature heat storage material because of its high hydrogen content and the high energy content of the Mg–H bond. The advances made in this area over the past few years, namely in catalytic hydrogenation and the doping of magnesium powders, have led to the development of “active MgH₂? Mg systems” for energy storage. The first experimental results on high-temperature heat storage (also with cooling) by coupling a MgH₂? Mg storage system with a low-temperature metal hydride storage system are presented.     

Design and Tuning of Photoswitches for Solar Energy Storage

Current energy demand makes it compulsory to explore alternative energy sources beyond fossil fuels. Molecular solar thermal (MOST) systems have been proposed as a suitable technology for the use and storage of solar energy. Compounds used for this application need to fulfil a long series of requirements, being the absorption of sunlight and the energy stored some of the most critical. In this paper, we study different families of well-known molecular photoswitches from the point of view of their potential use as MOST. Starting from basic structures, we use density functional theory (DFT) computational modelling to propose two different strategies to increase the energy difference between isomers and to tune the absorption spectrum. The inclusion of a mechanical lock in the structure, via an alkyl chain and the presence of a hydrogen bonding are shown to directly influence the energy difference and the absorption spectra. Results shown here prove that these two approaches could be relevant for the design of new compounds with improved performance for MOST applications.     

Maximizing the Solar Energy Storage of the Norbornadiene-Quadricyclane System: Mono-Heteroatom Effect by DFT Calculations

An attempt was made to maximize the solar energy storage in a norbornadiene (1)/quadricyclane (2) system, through the angling of mono-heteroatoms at C₁, C₂, or C₇ atoms of 1 and 2 and calculating the corresponding energies at the B3LYP/6-311++G(3df,2p) level of theory. Free energy gaps between 1 _nX and 2 _nX, Δ G_{(1nx) ? (2nx)}, as well as solar energy storage was the most for 1 _1As (–24.20),1 _2N (–32.48), and 1 _7As (–29.77) in kcalmol^?1 from group V of the Periodic Table.     

水凝胶的制备及仿生设计在能源领域应用的研究进展

能源与环境问题是当前时代面临的一大课题,有效利用并储存能源,缓解一系列严峻的环境污染问题也是当前研究的热点,电化学储能、光催化、光热界面蒸发和水汽收集这些能源利用措施已经作为环保手段深入人类的生活.大自然作为一位天然的设计师为我们能够提供诸多灵感,自然界诸多生物、生命体系中特性、机制和结构均暗含着十分巧妙的奥秘.本文重...     

Bis- and Tris-norbornadienes with High Energy Densities for Efficient Molecular Solar Thermal Energy Storage

Molecular solar thermal energy storage (MOST) systems can convert, store and release solar energy in chemical bonds, i.e., as chemical energy. In this work, phenyl- and naphthyl-linked bis- and tris-norbornadienes are presented as promising MOST systems with very high energy densities. The substrates were synthesized by Suzuki–Miyaura coupling reactions and their absorption properties and characteristic parameters for MOST applications were investigated. The norbornadiene derivatives showed absorption onsets of up to 386 nm and photoisomerization quantum yields of 56 % per photoisomerization event. The resulting quadricyclane products have half-lifes up to 14 d and very high energy densities of up to 734 kJ/kg. Overall, these norbornadienes fulfill necessary criteria for an optimal MOST system and are, therefore, a highly promising basis for the development of materials for efficient solar energy conversion and storage.     

Enhanced Conversion Efficiency Enabled by Species Migration in Direct Solar Energy Storage

Solar energy can be stored via either an indirect route in which electricity is involved as an intermediate step, or a direct route that utilizes photogenerated charge carriers for direct solar energy conversion. In this study, we investigate the fundamental difference between the direct and indirect routes in solar energy conversion using a new photoelectrochemical energy storage cell (PESC) as a model device. This PESC centers on a liquid junction that utilizes CH₃NH₃PbI₃ perovskite to drive photoelectrochemical reactions of Benzoquinone (BQ) and Ferrocene (Fc) redox species. The experimental studies show that the equilibrium redox potentials are 0.1 V and −0.78 V (vs Ag/AgNO₃) for Fc⁺/Fc and BQ/BQ^.−, respectively, which would produce a theoretical open-circuit voltage of 0.88 V for the storage device. The physics-based computational analysis shows a relatively flat reaction rate distribution in the electrode for the indirect route; however, in the direct route the photoelectrochemical reaction rate is critically affected by electron concentration due to strong light absorption of the perovskite material, which has been shown to vary by at least 10-fold in the transverse direction across the photoelectrode. The drastic variation of reaction rate in the photoelectrode creates an electric field that is 7.5 times stronger than the bulk electrolyte, which causes the photo-converted reaction product (i. e., BQ^.−) to drift away from the photoelectrode thereby creating a constant reaction driving force. As a result, it has been shown that the intrinsic solar to chemical conversion (ISTC) efficiency improves by ∼40 % for the direct route compared to the indirect route at 0.05 mA/cm².     

Presodiation Strategies for the Promotion of Sodium-Based Energy Storage Systems

Nowadays sodium-based energy storage systems (Na-based ESSs) have been widely researched as it possesses the possibility to replace traditional energy storage media to become next generation energy storage system. However, due to the irreversible loss of sodium ions in the first cycle, development of Na-based ESSs is limited. Presodiation, as a strategy of adding excess sodium ions to the system in advance, accomplishes the enhancement of electrochemical performance. In this minireview, different presodiation strategies applied in sodium-based energy storage systems will be summarized in detail, their functions and corresponding mechanisms will be discussed as well. Furthermore, the current novel application of presodiation method in other aspects of Na-based ESSs will be mentioned additionally. At last, in the view of present research status of presodiation, issues that can be mitigated are put forward and guidelines are given on how to deliberate in-depth presodiation technology in the future, dedicating to promote the further development of Na-based ESSs.     

Searching the Chemical Space of Bicyclic Dienes for Molecular Solar Thermal Energy Storage Candidates

Photoswitches are molecular systems that are chemically transformed subsequent to interaction with light and they find potential application in many new technologies. The design and discovery of photoswitch candidates require intricate molecular engineering of a range of properties to optimize a candidate to a specific applications, a task which can be tackled efficiently using quantum chemical screening procedures. In this paper, we perform a large scale screening of approximately half a million bicyclic diene photoswitches in the context of molecular solar thermal energy storage using ab initio quantum chemical methods. We further device an efficient strategy for scoring the systems based on their predicted solar energy conversion efficiency and elucidate potential pitfalls of this approach. Our search through the chemical space of bicyclic dienes reveals systems with unprecedented solar energy conversion efficiencies and storage densities that show promising design guidelines for next generation molecular solar thermal energy storage systems.     

Combination of Passive and Active Solar Heating with Thermal Energy Storage

This study investigated the impact of individual and combination of different sources of heating (passive solar heating, electric oil-heater, and solar air heater) in a pilot-scale building containing phase change material (PCM) for a potential reduction in energy consumption while maintaining thermal comfort. Unlike most of the recent simulations and modelling studies, this impact was tested experimentally using two identical control and test huts located at the University of Auckland. The control hut was equipped with standard gypsum boards while the test hut had gypsum boards containing PCM (PureTemp 20, PT20). The study found that combining both active and passive solar heating with a temperature-controlled electric oil heater demonstrated the ability to provide significant energy savings and maintain thermal comfort in the test hut, most notably overnight. The suggested combination was tested over different weather conditions and with different temperature constraints to maintain thermal comfort and achieve energy savings ranging from 33% to 87.5%.     

Improved Energy Conversion Efficiency of ZnO/Polythiophene Solar Cell in Ga-Doped ZnO Nanorod Array Photoanode

We reported the fabrication and doping effect of Ga-doped ZnO nanorods/electropolymerized polythio-phene(e-PT) hybrid photovoltaic(h-PV) devices. Ga-Doped ZnO nanorod array photoanode devices were fabricated via hydrothermally growing nanorods on sol-gel spin-coating ZnO seed layer, and then the nanorod array was immersed into a thiophene solution to yield a thin polythiophene film by electrochemically polymerization. Afterwards, a thin layer of Al was deposited on the surface of polythiophene to make an electrode for photovoltaic measurement. The ZnO nanorods with different Ga-doping contents were characterized by means of X-ray diffraction(XRD), scanning electron micrograph(SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS). Photovoltaic J-V characterization was performed on the e-PT/ZnO bilayer and bulk heterojunction(BHJ) devices. Though the unsubstituted polythiophene is not an ideal polymer material for solar cells with high power conversion efficiency, it is a sound model for the study on the effect of dopant in hybrid materials. The results indicate that doping Ga can substantially improve the power conversion efficiency of the ZnO-polythiophene solar cell.     

太阳能转换过程中的高分子应用

近年来,在太阳能利用的科学领域内,高分子材料得到了广泛的应用。本文从太阳能工艺学和太阳能转换两个方面对此问题作了介绍和讨论。     

纳米碳管储能的化学原理与储存容量研究

通过在大温度、压力范围内系统地测定氢在纳米碳管粉末与压片上的吸附等温线和对所得等温线的理论分析,计算出吸附热,并用超临界气体的吸附模型充分地描述了氢在纳米碳管上的吸附行为,证明纳米碳管储氢的原理是超临界吸附;比表面积和储气温度控制着储气容量.甲烷在干纳米碳管上的吸附机理与氢气相同,但在湿纳米碳管中的存储机理在于甲烷水合物的生成,因此孔容控制储气容量.单位质量多壁管的湿储容量是干储容量的5.1倍 ,单壁管可能产生更大的增强存储作用.     

酸功能化碳纳米管对多孔碳材料储能活性及稳定性的增强作用

采用球磨法将酸功能化碳纳米管（AMWCNTs）与环糊精均匀混合。 酸功能化有利于增强碳管和环糊精间的相互作用,从而使二者形成均匀、有效的复合。 在N2气保护下碳化并经后续的ZnCl2活化处理,最终获得酸功能化碳纳米管/多孔碳(PC)复合体材料。 采用透射电子显微镜、X射线衍射和拉曼光谱等方法对材料结构进行了表征。 结果表明,碳纳米管在多孔碳骨架内均匀分布,并且复合体同时具有较高的比表面积和良好的导电性。 循环伏安及恒流充放电等电化学测试表明,由于二者的协同作用及碳纳米管在多孔碳骨架内均匀、有效的复合,材料具有较好的电化学储能性能和良好的电化学稳定性。 电流密度为0.5 A/g时,AMWCNTs/PC12-4（其中12代表β-环糊精和AMWCNTs的质量比,4代表酸化碳纳米管/β-环糊精碳与氯化锌的质量比）复合材料的质量比电容为156 F/g,远远高于AMWCNTs（43 F/g）和PC-4（87 F/g）。 经5000次循环后,电极比电容无明显衰减,而且每次恒流充放电的库仑效率均大于99.9%,说明复合材料具有良好的稳定性,是非常有前景的超级电容器电极材料。     

Integrating a Photocatalyst into a Hybrid Lithium–Sulfur Battery for Direct Storage of Solar Energy

Direct capture and storage of abundant but intermittent solar energy in electrical energy‐storage devices such as rechargeable lithium batteries is of great importance, and could provide a promising solution to the challenges of energy shortage and environment pollution. Here we report a new prototype of a solar‐driven chargeable lithium–sulfur (Li‐S) battery, in which the capture and storage of solar energy was realized by oxidizing S^2? ions to polysulfide ions in aqueous solution with a Pt‐modified CdS photocatalyst. The battery can deliver a specific capacity of 792 mAh g^?1 during 2 h photocharging process with a discharge potential of around 2.53 V versus Li⁺/Li. A specific capacity of 199 mAh g^?1, reaching the level of conventional lithium‐ion batteries, can be achieved within 10 min photocharging. Moreover, the charging process of the battery can proceed under natural sunlight irradiation.     

Tuning of the properties of rhodopsin-based molecular switches

The modification of relevant chemical properties of rhodopsin-based molecular photoswitches is presented. We show how both the substituents present and the nitrogen atom quaternization are capable to change the wavelength of absorption and the thermal stability of the photoisomer. Adjusting these properties, the molecular switches could be turned into useful compounds for solar energy storage devices.     

石墨炔在电化学储能器件中的应用

当今社会,电化学储能器件在人类的社会活动中变得越来越重要。电极材料作为电化学储能器件的核心部分,一直是人们研究的焦点。石墨炔是一种新型的二维平面结构的全碳材料,它宽的层间距、大的比表面积、独特的三维孔隙结构和好的导电性使其在能源存储器件电极材料应用中具有巨大的潜力。基于石墨炔温和的制备方法与独特的结构特征,本文详细介绍了近年来石墨炔在储能方面的理论分析和实验进展。通过研究锂/钠在单层、多层石墨炔上的迁移率和存储,理论分析石墨炔基电池具有很好的储锂储钠性能。实验方面,石墨炔作为电极材料在储钠储锂方面的容量与理论值相近。此外石墨炔作为电极材料成功应用于超级电容器和金属-硫电池,并表现出了优异的容量存储性能。石墨炔纳米形貌的调控、石墨炔的热处理,以及异原子的掺杂等均可以有效地提高石墨炔在这些储能器件中的性能。     

石墨炔纳米材料的制备及在电化学能源中的应用

石墨炔纳米材料的制备与应用是石墨炔材料研究的重要方向, 通过对其纳米结构进行设计与优化, 可以提高石墨炔材料及其杂化结构的性能, 拓展其在能源储存与转换领域的应用. 本综述介绍了不同形貌和结构的石墨炔基纳米材料, 如纳米墙、 纳米片、 纳米薄膜等结构. 阐述了不同结构特征的石墨炔基纳米材料在电化学储能器件以及电化学能源催化中的应用, 同时也探讨了石墨炔不同纳米形貌和结构在能源应用领域快速发展的机遇及所面临的挑战.     

储能材料的模拟与设计

综述了近年来常用的计算模拟方法, 如第一原理计算, 分子动力学和蒙特-卡罗模拟. 介绍了应用这些方法在锂离子电池材料和储氢材料等储能材料研究中取得的成果和最新的进展, 展望了计算材料学和材料设计学在该领域中的应用前景.     

Research of Nanomaterials as Electrodes for Electrochemical Energy Storage

This paper has experimentally proved that hydrogen accumulates in large quantities in metal-ceramic and pocket electrodes of alkaline batteries during their operation. Hydrogen accumulates in the electrodes in an atomic form. After the release of hydrogen from the electrodes, a powerful exothermic reaction of atomic hydrogen recombination with a large energy release occurs. This exothermic reaction is the cause of thermal runaway in alkaline batteries. For the KSL-15 battery, the gravimetric capacity of sintered nickel matrix of the oxide-nickel electrode, as hydrogen storage, is 20.2 wt%, and cadmium electrode is 11.5 wt%. The stored energy density in the metal-ceramic matrix of the oxide-nickel electrode of the battery KSL-15 is 44 kJ/g, and in the cadmium electrode it is 25 kJ/g. The similar values for the KPL-14 battery are as follows. The gravimetric capacity of the active substance of the pocket oxide-nickel electrode, as a hydrogen storage, is 22 wt%, and the cadmium electrode is 16.9 wt%. The density of the stored energy in the active substance oxide-nickel electrode is 48 kJ/g, and in the active substance of the cadmium electrode it is 36.8 kJ/g. The obtained results of the accumulation of hydrogen energy in the electrodes by the electrochemical method are three times higher than any previously obtained results using the traditional thermochemical method.     

2D MXenes Nanosheets for Advanced Energy Conversion and Storage Devices: Recent Advances and Future Prospects

Since the initial MXenes were discovered in 2011, several MXene compositions constructed using combinations of various transition metals have been developed. MXenes are ideal candidates for different applications in energy conversion and storage, because of their unique and interesting characteristics, which included good electrical conductivity, hydrophilicity, and simplicity of large-scale synthesis. Herein, we study the current developments in two-dimensional (2D) MXene nanosheets for energy storage and conversion technologies. First, we discuss the introduction to energy storage and conversion devices. Later, we emphasized on 2D MXenes and some specific properties of MXenes. Subsequently, research advances in MXene-based electrode materials for energy storage such as supercapacitors and rechargeable batteries is summarized. We provide the relevant energy storage processes, common challenges, and potential approaches to an acceptable solution for 2D MXene-based energy storage. In addition, recent advances for MXenes used in energy conversion devices like solar cells, fuel cells and catalysis is also summarized. Finally, the future prospective of growing MXene-based energy conversion and storage are highlighted.