New eco-friendly low-cost binders for Li-ion anodes

In the production of commercial Li-ion batteries, the active materials slurries are generally prepared using polyvinylidene fluoride (PVdF) as binder because of its good adhesion properties and electrochemical stability. Unfortunately, there are some disadvantages related to the use of PVdF: the most important is the use of toxic and environmentally unfriendly solvents, such as N-methyl-pyrrolidone (NMP), and the second is the high costs. In the light of these considerations, it seemed straightforward to investigate the suitability of some water-soluble, inexpensive, and eco-friendly materials to test as alternative binders (sodium alginate, chitosan tragacanth gum, gelatin). The rheological properties of these materials have been investigated in addition to the electrochemical characterization. Furthermore, graphite electrodes with PVdF, carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), and styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) binders have been considered for sake of comparison. We found that some of these water-soluble binders, besides good electrochemical performances, showed a high adhesion to the current collector and a good electrochemical stability under the experimental conditions employed, which makes them interesting for the next generation of Li-ion batteries.     

Study of micropores accessibility in coals and activated carbon using immersion heats with C1–C4 alkanols

Two natural coals and a sample of activated carbon were studied with respect to micropores accessibility for C1–C4 alkanols using immersion calorimetry. From the immersion enthalpies, micropores volumes were calculated according to the Stoeckli–Kraehenbuehl (SK) equation, and obtained values were compared with the surface characteristics of gas adsorption measurements. Validity of the SK equation was found to be problematic for natural coals giving micropores volumes up to three times exceeding those of the CO₂ adsorption measurements. Reason for such discrepancy is discussed, with specific interactions between coals and alkanols likewise marked swelling of coals in the presence of alkanols being recognised as possible explanation. A drop in immersion heats with branched butanols was generally observed, enabling at least semi-quantitative evaluation of the abundance of micropores with diameters below ca. 0.7 nm that are inaccessible for tert-butanol.

     

The influence of stabilizers on the properties of silicone rubber

The influence of various stabilizers on the properties of rubber based on silicone rubber SKTV is studied. It is established that the use of the Ca/Zn stabilizer in the resin composition makes it possible to increase thermal resistance and physico-mechanical characteristics of the rubber used to make sealing elements in the automotive industry.     

O the volume growth of the hyperbolic regular $$\varvec{}$$-simplex

In this paper we give lower and upper bounds for the volume growth of a regular hyperbolic simplex, namely for the ratio of the n-dimensional volume of a regular simplex and the \((n-1)\)-dimensional volume of its facets. In addition to the methods of U. Haagerup and M. Munkholm we use a third volume form based on the hyperbolic orthogonal coordinates of a body. In the case of the ideal, regular simplex our upper bound gives the best known upper bound. On the other hand, also in the ideal case our general lower bound, improved the best known one for \(n=3\).     

Construction of a perturbatively correct light-front Hamiltonian for a (2+1)-dimensional gauge theory

We discuss a perturbation theory on the light front regularized by a method analogous to Pauli–Villars regularization for the (2+1)-dimensional SU(N)-symmetric gauge theory. This allows constructing a correct renormalized light-front Hamiltonian.     

On the divergence of trigonometric Fourier series in classes <Emphasis Type="Italic">ϕ</Emphasis>(<Emphasis Type="Italic">L</Emphasis>) close to <Emphasis Type="Italic">L</Emphasis>

We show the unimprovability of a theorem on sufficient convergence conditions for the trigonometric Fourier series of a function in classes ?(L) in the case when the class ?(L) is “close” to L.     

A regularized method for solving constrained pseudoinverse problems

For a constrained pseudoinverse problem whose operators satisfy the complementarity condition we propose a one-parameter continuous regularization method of the second order. This method is based on stabilization of solutions to Cauchy problems for a linear differential equation of the second order in a Hilbert space which is obtained from the heavy ball method. We establish requirements to the parametric regularization function and perturbation levels that ensure the stability of the method in the class of all possible bounded perturbations.     

Measuring centrality by a generalization of degree

Network analysis has emerged as a key technique in communication studies, economics, geography, history and sociology, among others. A fundamental issue is how to identify key nodes, for which purpose a number of centrality measures have been developed. This paper proposes a new parametric family of centrality measures called generalized degree. It is based on the idea that a relationship to a more interconnected node contributes to centrality in a greater extent than a connection to a less central one. Generalized degree improves on degree by redistributing its sum over the network with the consideration of the global structure. Application of the measure is supported by a set of basic properties. A sufficient condition is given for generalized degree to be rank monotonic, excluding counter-intuitive changes in the centrality ranking after certain modifications of the network. The measure has a graph interpretation and can be calculated iteratively. Generalized degree is recommended to apply besides degree since it preserves most favourable attributes of degree, but better reflects the role of the nodes in the network and has an increased ability to distinguish among their importance.