Synergistic Effect of SnO2/ZnWO4 Core–Shell Nanorods with High Reversible Lithium Storage Capacity

High reversible lithium storage capacity is obtained from novel SnO₂/ZnWO₄ core–shell nanorods. At C/20 (20 h per half cycle) rate, the reversible capacity of SnO₂/ZnWO₄ core–shell nanorods is as high as 1000 mAh g^?1, much higher than that of pure ZnWO₄, SnO₂, or the traditional theoretical result of the simple mixture. Such performance can be attributed to the synergistic effect between the nanostructured SnO₂ and ZnWO₄. The distinct electrochemical activity of ZnWO₄ nanorods probably activates the irreversible capacity of the SnO₂ nanoparticles. These results indicate that high‐performance lithium ion batteries can be realized by introducing the synergistic effect of one‐dimensional core–shell nanocomposites.     

MnO@Carbon Core–Shell Nanowires as Stable High‐Performance Anodes for Lithium‐Ion Batteries

A facile method is presented for the large‐scale preparation of rationally designed mesocrystalline MnO@carbon core–shell nanowires with a jointed appearance. The nanostructures have a unique arrangement of internally encapsulated highly oriented and interconnected MnO nanorods and graphitized carbon layers forming an external coating. Based on a comparison and analysis of the crystal structures of MnOOH, Mn₂O₃, and MnO@C, we propose a sequential topotactic transformation of the corresponding precursors to the products. Very interestingly, the individual mesoporous single‐crystalline MnO nanorods are strongly interconnected and maintain the same crystallographic orientation, which is a typical feature of mesocrystals. When tested for their applicability to Li‐ion batteries (LIB), the MnO@carbon core–shell nanowires showed excellent capacity retention, superior cycling performance, and high rate capability. Specifically, the MnO@carbon core–shell nanostructures could deliver reversible capacities as high as 801 mA h g^?1 at a high current density of 500 mA g^?1, with excellent electrochemical stability after testing over 200 cycles, indicating their potential application in LIBs. The remarkable electrochemical performance can mainly be attributed to the highly uniform carbon layer around the MnO nanowires, which is not only effective in buffering the structural strain and volume variations of anodes during repeated electrochemical reactions, but also greatly enhances the conductivity of the electrode material. Our results confirm the feasibility of using these rationally designed composite materials for practical applications. The present strategy is simple but very effective, and appears to be sufficiently versatile to be extended to other high‐capacity electrode materials with large volume variations and low electrical conductivities.     

Facile Synthesis of Ge@C Core–Shell Nanocomposites for High‐Performance Lithium Storage in Lithium‐Ion Batteries

Herein, we report a facile and “green” synthetic route for the preparation of Ge@C core–shell nanocomposites by using a low‐cost Ge precursor. Field‐emission scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy analyses confirmed the core–shell nanoarchitecture of the Ge@C nanocomposites, with particle sizes ranging from 60 to 100 nm. Individual Ge nanocrystals were coated by a continuous carbon layer, which had an average thickness of 2 nm. When applied as an anode materials for lithium‐ion batteries, the Ge@C nanocomposites exhibited a high initial discharge capacity of 1670 mAh g^?1 and superior rate capability. In particular, Ge@C nanocomposite electrodes maintained a reversible capacity of 734 mAh g^?1 after repeated cycling at a current density of 800 mA g^?1 over 100 cycles.     

A Core–Shell Fe/Fe2O3 Nanowire as a High‐Performance Anode Material for Lithium‐Ion Batteries

The preparation of novel one‐dimensional core–shell Fe/Fe₂O₃ nanowires as anodes for high‐performance lithium‐ion batteries (LIBs) is reported. The nanowires are prepared in a facile synthetic process in aqueous solution under ambient conditions with subsequent annealing treatment that could tune the capacity for lithium storage. When this hybrid is used as an anode material for LIBs, the outer Fe₂O₃ shell can act as an electrochemically active material to store and release lithium ions, whereas the highly conductive and inactive Fe core functions as nothing more than an efficient electrical conducting pathway and a remarkable buffer to tolerate volume changes of the electrode materials during the insertion and extraction of lithium ions. The core–shell Fe/Fe₂O₃ nanowire maintains an excellent reversible capacity of over 767 mA h g^?1 at 500 mA g^?1 after 200 cycles with a high average Coulombic efficiency of 98.6 %. Even at 2000 mA g^?1, a stable capacity as high as 538 mA h g^?1 could be obtained. The unique composition and nanostructure of this electrode material contribute to this enhanced electrochemical performance. Due to the ease of large‐scale fabrication and superior electrochemical performance, these hybrid nanowires are promising anode materials for the next generation of high‐performance LIBs.     

A Self‐Standing and Flexible Electrode of Yolk–Shell CoS2 Spheres Encapsulated with Nitrogen‐Doped Graphene for High‐Performance Lithium‐Ion Batteries

Flexible lithium‐ion batteries (LIBs) have recently attracted increasing attention with the fast development of bendable electronic systems. Herein, a facile and template‐free solvothermal method is presented for the fabrication of hybrid yolk–shell CoS₂ and nitrogen‐doped graphene (NG) sheets. The yolk–shell architecture of CoS₂ encapsulated with NG coating is designed for the dual protection of CoS₂ to address the structural and interfacial stability concerns facing the CoS₂ anode. The as‐prepared composite can be assembled into a film, which can be used as a binder‐free and flexible electrode for LIBs that does not require any carbon black conducting additives or current collectors. When evaluating lithium‐storage properties, such a flexible electrode exhibits a high specific capacity of 992 mAh g^?1 in the first reversible discharge capacity at a current rate of 100 mA g^?1 and high reversible capacity of 882 mAh g^?1 after 150 cycles with excellent capacity retention of 89.91 %. Furthermore, a reversible capacity as high as 655 mAh g^?1 is still achieved after 50 cycles even at a high rate of 5 C due to the yolk–shell structure and NG coating, which not only provide short Li‐ion and electron pathways, but also accommodate large volume variation.     

Sulfur‐Impregnated Core–Shell Hierarchical Porous Carbon for Lithium–Sulfur Batteries

Core–shell hierarchical porous carbon spheres (HPCs) were synthesized by a facile hydrothermal method and used as host to incorporate sulfur. The microstructure, morphology, and specific surface areas of the resultant samples have been systematically characterized. The results indicate that most of sulfur is well dispersed over the core area of HPCs after the impregnation of sulfur. Meanwhile, the shell of HPCs with void pores is serving as a retard against the dissolution of lithium polysulfides. This structure can enhance the transport of electron and lithium ions as well as alleviate the stress caused by volume change during the charge–discharge process. The as‐prepared HPC‐sulfur (HPC‐S) composite with 65.3 wt % sulfur delivers a high specific capacity of 1397.9 mA h g^?1 at a current density of 335 mA g^?1 (0.2 C) as a cathode material for lithium–sulfur (Li‐S) batteries, and the discharge capacity of the electrode could still reach 753.2 mA h g^?1 at 6700 mA g^?1 (4 C). Moreover, the composite electrode exhibited an excellent cycling capacity of 830.5 mA h g^?1 after 200 cycles.     

A Sub‐50‐nm Monosized Superparamagnetic Fe3O4@SiO2 T2‐Weighted MRI Contrast Agent: Highly Reproducible Synthesis of Uniform Single‐Loaded Core–Shell Nanostructures

Oleic acid stabilized superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPION) were selected as the cores for fabrication of sub‐50‐nm monodisperse single‐loaded SPION@SiO₂ core–shell nanostructures. Parameters that influence the formation of SPION@SiO₂ in the water‐in‐oil reverse microemulsion system have been systematically investigated. The sufficiently high concentration of well‐dispersed SPION, together with an appropriately low injection rate of tetraethoxysilane, were found to be the keys to efficiently prevent the homogeneous nucleation of silica and obtain a high‐quality single‐loaded core–shell nanocomposite. A more detailed mechanism for incorporating oleic acid capped inorganic functional nanoparticles into silica is proposed on the basis of previous reports and our new experimental results. Finally, the as‐synthesized SPION@SiO₂ nanospheres are exploited as an MRI‐enhanced contrast agent, and their contrast effect in solution is tested by using a clinical MRI instrument.     

Porous Carbon Anodes for a High Capacity Lithium‐Ion Battery Obtained by Incorporating Silica into Benzoxazine During Polymerization

Porous carbon anodes with a controllable V_mes/V_mic ratio were synthesized through the self‐assembly of poly(benzoxazine‐co‐resol) and the simultaneous hydrolysis of tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) followed by carbonization and removal of silica. The V_mes/V_mic ratio of the carbon can be controlled in the range of approximately 1.3–32.6 through tuning the amount of TEOS. For lithium‐ion battery anodes, a correlation between the electrochemical performance and V_mes/V_mic ratio has been established. A high V_mes/V_mic ratio in porous carbons is favorable for enhancing the accessibility of Li ions to active sites provided by the micropores and for achieving good lithium storage performance. The obtained porous carbon exhibits a high reversible capacity of 660 mAh g^?1 after 70 cycles at a current density of 100 mA g^?1. Moreover, at a high current density of 3000 mA g^?1, the capacity still remains at 215 mAh g^?1, showing a fast charge‐discharge potential. This synthesis method relying on modified benzoxazine chemistry with the hydrolysis of TEOS may provide a new route for the development of mesoporous carbon‐based electrode materials.     

Core–Shell Carbon‐Coated CuO Nanocomposites: A Highly Stable Electrode Material for Supercapacitors and Lithium‐Ion Batteries

Herein we present a simple method for fabricating core–shell mesostructured CuO@C nanocomposites by utilizing humic acid (HA) as a biomass carbon source. The electrochemical performances of CuO@C nanocomposites were evaluated as an electrode material for supercapacitors and lithium‐ion batteries. CuO@C exhibits an excellent capacitance of 207.2 F g^?1 at a current density of 1 A g^?1 within a potential window of 0–0.46 V in 6 M KOH solution. Significantly, CuO electrode materials achieve remarkable capacitance retentions of approximately 205.8 F g^?1 after 1000 cycles of charge/discharge testing. The CuO@C was further applied as an anode material for lithium‐ion batteries, and a high initial capacity of 1143.7 mA h g^?1 was achieved at a current density of 0.1 C. This work provides a facile and general approach to synthesize carbon‐based materials for application in large‐scale energy‐storage systems.     

Engineering the Mesopores of Fe3O4@Mesosilica Core–Shell Nanospheres through a Solvothermal Post‐Treatment Method

A solvothermal post‐treatment method was developed to synthesize Fe₃O₄@mesosilica core–shell nanospheres (CSNs) with a well‐preserved morphology, mesoporous structure, and tunable large pore diameters (2.5–17.6 nm) for the first time. N,N‐Dimethylhexadecylamine (DMHA), which was generated in situ during the heat‐treatment process, was mainly responsible for this pore‐size enlargement, as characterized by NMR spectroscopy. This pore‐size expansion can be strengthened with the aid of hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS), whilst the nature of the surface of the Fe₃O₄@mesosilica CSNs can be easily modified with trimethylsilyl groups during the pore‐size‐expansion process. The hydrophobicity of the Fe₃O₄@mesosilica CSNs increased for the enlarged mesopores and the adsorption capacity of these CSNs for benzene (up to 1.5 g g^?1) is the highest ever reported for Fe₃O₄@mesosilica CSNs. The resultant Fe₃O₄@mesosilica CSNs (pore size: 10 nm) showed a 3.6‐times higher adsorption capacity of lysozyme than those without the pore expansion (pore size: 2.5 nm), thus making them a good candidate for loading large molecules.     

Nitrogen‐Doped Mesoporous Carbon‐Encapsulated MoO2 Nanobelts as a High‐Capacity and Stable Host for Lithium‐Ion Storage

N‐doped mesoporous carbon‐capped MoO₂ nanobelts (designated as MoO₂@NC) were synthesized and applied to lithium‐ion storage. Owing to the stable core–shell structural framework and conductive mesoporous carbon matrix, the as‐prepared MoO₂@NC shows a high specific capacity of around 700 mA h g⁻¹ at a current of 0.5 A g⁻¹, excellent cycling stability up to 100 cycles, and superior rate performance. The N‐doped mesoporous carbon can greatly improve the conductivity and provide uninhibited conducting pathways for fast charge transfer and transport. Moreover, the core–shell structure improved the structural integrity, leading to a high stability during the cycling process. All of these merits make the MoO₂@NC to be a suitable and promising material for lithium ion battery.     

Metallodendritic Grafted Core–Shell γ‐Fe2O3 Nanoparticles Used as Recoverable Catalysts in Suzuki C?C Coupling Reactions

The use of dendritic structures for the grafting of core–shell γ‐Fe₂O₃/polymer 300 nm superparamagnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) has been performed with four metallodendrons that were functionalized with diphosphinopalladium complexes. The catalytic performance of these nanocatalysts was optimized for the Suzuki C? C cross‐coupling reaction. These results demonstrated the importance of optimizing the catalytic efficiency of grafted MNPs by optimizing the dendritic structures and the nature of the peripheral phosphine ligands. All of these nanocatalysts showed remarkable reactivity towards bromoarenes and they were recovered and efficiently reused by magnetic separation with almost no loss of reactivity, even after 25 cycles.     

High‐Performance Lithium‐Ion Anodes with Hierarchically Assembled Single‐Crystal SnO2 Nanoflake Spheres

A large‐scale hierarchical assembly route is reported for the formation of SnO₂ on the nanoscale that contains rigid and robust spheres with irregular channels for rapid access of Li ions into the hierarchically structured interiors. Large volume changes during the process of Li insertion and extraction are accommodated by the SnO₂ nanoflake spheres’ internal porosity. The hierarchical SnO₂ nanoflake spheres exhibit good lithium storage properties with high capacity and long‐lasting performance when used as lithium‐ion anodes. A reversible capacity of 517 mA h g^?1, still greater than the theoretical capacity of graphite (372 mA h g^?1), after 50 charge–discharge cycles is attained. Meanwhile, the synthesis process is simple, inexpensive, safe, and broadly applicable, providing new avenues for the rational engineering of electrode materials with enhanced conductivity and power.     

Core–Shell PbI2@WS2 Inorganic Nanotubes from Capillary Wetting

Multiwall WS ₂ nanotube templates were used as hosts to prepare core–shell PbI₂@WS₂ nanotubes by a capillary‐wetting method. Conformal growth of PbI₂ layers on the inner wall of the relatively wide WS₂ nanotubes (i.d. ca. 10 nm) leads to nanotubular structures which were not previously observed in narrow carbon nanotube templates. Image simulation after structural modeling (see picture) showed good agreement with the experimental HRTEM image.

     

Core–Shell‐Structured CNT@RuO2 Composite as a High‐Performance Cathode Catalyst for Rechargeable Li–O2 Batteries

A RuO₂ shell was uniformly coated on the surface of core CNTs by a simple sol–gel method, and the resulting composite was used as a catalyst in a rechargeable Li–O₂ battery. This core–shell structure can effectively prevent direct contact between the CNT and the discharge product Li₂O₂, thus avoiding or reducing the formation of Li₂CO₃, which can induce large polarization and lead to charge failure. The battery showed a high round‐trip efficiency (ca. 79 %), with discharge and charge overpotentials of 0.21 and 0.51 V, respectively, at a current of 100 mA g_total^?1. The battery also exhibited excellent rate and cycling performance.