batterydata/paper-abstracts huggingface dataset:
Sodium metal halide (Na-MH) batteries present tremendous opportunities for grid scale energy storage applications. In this work, we describe an advanced Na-MH battery operating at 190 °C using a bi-layer (thin dense/thick porous layers) β″-alumina solid-state electrolyte (BASE). The novel design of the bi-layer BASE promotes high Na-ion transportation by reducing the Na+ ion path length. The excellent battery performances are achieved with a stable capacity retention of 350 W h/kg up to >350 cycles (∼6 months). Moreover, owing to the thin dense layer of BASE, the round trip energy efficiency (or discharging energy density) of the tested battery shows an ∼8% increase compared to that of state of the art Na-MH battery reported in the literature. Results from this work clearly demonstrate that advanced Na-MH batteries using bi-layer BASEs can have significant impacts on improving battery performances at lower operating temperatures, and further stretch its feasibility in stationary energy storage applications.
An aqueous catholyte for Li-ion redox batteries employing reversible Br2/Br− redox reactions is investigated. The catholyte uses lithium bromide as the active material and potassium bromide aqueous solution as the supporting electrolyte. By tuning the acidity of the catholyte, stable cyclability of the cell has been achieved at room temperature with a discharge potential of ∼3.9 V, a reversible capacity of 290 mA h g−1, and a specific power density of ∼1000 W kg−1. Compared with the catholytes used in conventional redox-flow batteries, the reported catholyte is heavy-metal-free and can be operated in moderate acidity, providing an alternative option for sustainable electrical energy storage.
ABSTRACT Sulfated zirconia was successfully synthesized and uniformly coated onto a nickel-rich layered lithium oxide (LiNi0.8Co0.1Mn0.1O2), and investigated with a view to its potential use as a cathode material in Li-ion batteries. The uniformity of this sulfated zirconia coating was confirmed through electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Furthermore, the electrochemical properties of the sulfated-zirconia-coated LiNi0.8Co0.1Mn0.1O2 electrode were found to be greatly improved compared to those of pristine LiNi0.8Co0.1Mn0.1O2 and zirconia-coated LiNi0.8Co0.1Mn0.1O2, especially at elevated temperature (60°C). These results are directly attributed to the sulfated zirconia coating, which is effective in reducing side reactions by preventing direct contact between the active materials and electrolyte solutions, as well as forming a more stable solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) layer on the active material surface.
Preparation of multi-wall carbon nano-tubes (CNTs) is successfully demonstrated via a metal dusting (MD) process, in which a steel coupon and CO–CO2 mixed gas are the only reactants needed. During the process, fresh Fe–Ni nano-particles are produced spontaneously and continuously from the steel, and consequently catalyze the growth of the CNTs. Post-treatments, including heating in air at 550°C and etching in boiling nitric acid, are used to purify the as-prepared multi-wall CNTs. The microstructure modification due to the post-treatments are examined with a transmission electron microscopy. The possibility of utilizing the MD-produced CNTs as a hydrogen storage material is also explored in this study.
This paper uses an adaptive extended Kalman filter (AEKF)-based method to jointly estimate the State of Charge (SoC) and peak power capability of a lithium-ion battery in plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). First, to strengthen the links of the model's performance with battery's SoC, a dynamic electrochemical polarization battery model is employed for the state estimations. To get accurate parameters, we use four different charge–discharge current to improve the hybrid power pulse characteristic test. Second, the AEKF-based method is employed to achieve a robust SoC estimation. Third, due to the PHEVs require continuous peak power for acceleration, regenerative braking and gradient climbing, the continuous peak power capability estimation approach is proposed. And to improve its applicability, a general framework for six-step joint estimation approach for SoC and peak power capability is proposed. Lastly, a dynamic cycle test based on the urban dynamometer driving schedule is performed to evaluate the real-time performance and robustness of the joint estimation approach. The results show that the proposed approach can not only achieve an accurate SoC estimate and its estimation error is below 0.02 especially with big initial SoC error; but also gives reliable and robust peak power capability estimate.
The focus of this study is to review the latest developments and technologies on waste heat recovery of exhaust gas from internal combustion engines (ICE). These include thermoelectric generators (TEG), organic Rankine cycle (ORC), six-stroke cycle IC engine and new developments on turbocharger technology. Furthermore, the study looked into the potential energy savings and performances of those technologies. The current worldwide trend of increasing energy demand in transportation sector are one of the many segments that is responsible for the growing share of fossil fuel usage and indirectly contribute to the release of harmful greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. It is hoped that with the latest findings on exhaust heat recovery to increase the efficiency of ICEs, world energy demand on the depleting fossil fuel reserves would be reduced and hence the impact of global warming due to the GHG emissions would fade away.
Expansins and expansin-like proteins loosen cellulose microfibrils, possibly through the rupture of intramolecular hydrogen bonds. Together with the use of lignocellulolytic enzymes, these proteins are potential molecular tools to treat plant biomass to improve saccharification yields.
The detailed structural change in the charge–discharge process was investigated for the 20mol% aluminum-substituted α-nickel hydroxide by using high-energy synchrotron X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis. The 20mol% aluminum-substituted α-nickel hydroxide showed the α-Ni(OH)2/γ-NiOOH phase transformation in the charge–discharge process. The structural refinement has been done successfully on the basis of two phase models of the ideal phases and the fault ones, including the occupation sites for the potassium ions and H2O (OH−) molecules. The substituted aluminum ions were situated on both nickel sites and 18h sites in the interlayer. The α-Ni(OH)2 structure would be stabilized by the presence of the aluminum ions on the 18h sites. The α-Ni(OH)2 phases were transformed to the β-Ni(OH)2 phases after 50 cycles because the aluminum ions on the 18h sites would be migrated from the bulk to the surface.
A multi-particle model is developed and applied to the data from galvanostatic intermittent titration technique (GITT) experiments with varying pulse currents and relaxation periods on a LiNi1/3Mn1/3Co1/3O2 −LiMn2O4 (NMC-LMO) blended lithium-ion electrode. The good agreement between the simulated and experimental potential-time curves shows that the model is applicable for all GITT conditions considered, but more accurate for the case of small current pulse discharges with long relaxation times. Analysis of the current contribution and the solid-state surface concentration of each active component in the blended electrode shows a dynamic lithiation/delithiation interaction between the two components and between micron and submicron NMC particles during the relaxation periods in the GITT experiments. The interaction is attributed to the difference in the equilibrium potentials of the two components at any given stoichiometry which redistributes the lithium among LMO and NMC particles until a common equilibrium potential is reached.
Individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have difficulty perceiving and expressing emotions. Since prosodic changes in speech (i.e. changes in intonation, stress, rhythm, etc.) are crucial for extracting information about the emotional state of a speaker, an inability to perceive and interpret these prosodic changes may be related to impairments in social communication. This study used non-verbal emotional voice-clips to examine the ability of autistic and typically-developing children (7–13 years old) to extract affect from changes in prosody. This research also explored whether difficulty extracting affective intent from changes in prosody may be related to social competence. Autistic (n = 26) and typically-developing (n = 26) children accurately matched emotional voice-clips to emotion words, suggesting autistic children can accurately extract the affective meaning conveyed by changes in prosody. Autistic children were less accurate at matching the voice-clips to emotional faces, suggesting that autistic children may struggle to make use of prosodic information in a social context. Across both autistic and typically-developing children, prosody-face matching accuracy was found to predict overall social competence, as well as social inferencing abilities, suggesting that the inability to utilize affective information derived from a speaker’s voice may interfere with effective social communication.
This article presents results from experimental studies and techno-economic analysis of a catalytic process for the conversion of whole biomass into drop-in aviation fuels with maximal carbon yields. The combined research areas highlighted include biomass pretreatment, carbohydrate hydrolysis and dehydration, and catalytic upgrading of platform chemicals. The technology centers on first producing furfural and levulinic acid from five- and six-carbon sugars present in hardwoods and subsequently upgrading these two platforms into a mixture of branched, linear, and cyclic alkanes of molecular weight ranges appropriate for use in the aviation sector. Maximum selectivities observed in laboratory studies suggest that, with efficient interstage separations and product recovery, hemicellulose sugars can be incorporated into aviation fuels at roughly 80% carbon yield, while carbon yields to aviation fuels from cellulose-based sugars are on the order of 50%. The use of lignocellulose-derived feedstocks rather than commercially sourced model compounds in process integration provided important insights into the effects of impurity carryover and additionally highlights the need for stable catalytic materials for aqueous phase processing, efficient interstage separations, and intensified processing strategies. In its current state, the proposed technology is expected to deliver jet fuel-range liquid hydrocarbons for a minimum selling price of $4.75 per gallon assuming nth commercial plant that produces 38 million gallons liquid fuels per year with a net present value of the 20 year biorefinery set to zero. Future improvements in this technology, including replacing precious metal catalysts by base metal catalysts and improving the recyclability of water streams, can reduce this cost to $2.88 per gallon.
Demand for electricity in rural India has been met by extending the grid electricity distribution network. But the costs of extending lines to rural facilities are prohibitively expensive. Grid extension varies in cost on the distance to be covered, the land, utility and the size of the load. Considering these challenges, rural electrification will require considerable skill in the selection and implementation of technical and economic strategies for electrification. In rural places where the condition and quantity of grid power is expensive or insufficient, renewable energy alternatives may be the only option. So this paper estimates the domestic, industrial, agricultural, BTS load in a remote village called Kadayam, Tamilnadu, South India, identifies the optimal option for RE based electrification and compares it with conventional grid extension using HOMER software. The solution obtained from HOMER software shows that a hybrid combination of solar/wind/hydro/battery is a cost effective, sustainable, techno-economically and environmentally viable alternative to grid extension.
Summary Nitrogen-doped graphene (NG) is a promising metal-free catalyst for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in fuel cells and metal–air batteries. However, its practical application hinges on significant cost reduction by using novel synthetic methods and further improvement of the catalytic activity by increasing the density of catalytically active site. Here we report a low-cost, scalable, synthetic method for preparation of NG via pyrolysis of graphene oxide with a rationally selected N source polypyrrole. Because of the large number of N atoms in pyrrole ring, polypyrrole can facilitate the formation of graphitic N, which is considered vital for high catalytic activity. The resulting 3D porous structure of NG has an N doping level of 2–3at%, of which as high as 44% are graphitic N. Electrochemical characterizations show that NG has high catalytic activity toward ORR in an alkaline electrolyte via a favorable four-electron pathway for the formation of water, leading to high performance and low polarization loss. The NG also displays excellent long-term stability and resistance to methanol crossover, offering performance characteristics superior to those of a commercial Pt/C catalyst. The effect of pyrolysis temperature on the structure and property of NG are revealed using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and electrochemical measurements, providing important insights into the rational optimization of electrocatalytic activity for ORR. In addition, the NG also shows high catalytic activity toward oxygen evolution reaction (OER), rendering its potential application as a bifunctional electrocatalyst for both ORR and OER.
The equilibrium structures and electronic structure of LaNi5-xGax (x=0, 0.5, 1.0) compounds have been investigated by all-electron calculations. Based on the full geometry optimization, the densities of states and electron densities of LaNi5-xGax are plotted and analyzed. It is clear that the substitution of Ga at the Ni site leads to a progressive filling of the Ni-d bands, the ionic interaction between Ni and Ni, with Ga plays a dominant role in the stability of LaNi5-xGax compounds. The smaller the shift of E_F toward higher energy region, the more stable the compounds will be. The increased contribution of the Ni-d-Ga-d interactions near E_F and the low energy metal-gallium bonding bands indicate that the compounds become more stable. The results are compared with experimental data and discussed in light of previous studies.
Highly conducting porous polymer electrolytes comprised of poly(vinylidene-fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) (PVdF-HFP), metal oxide (TiO2, MgO, ZnO)/or mesoporous zeolite (MCM-41, SBA-15), ethylene carbonate (EC), propylene carbonate (PC), and LiClO4 were fabricated with a simple direct evaporation method. It was found that when metal oxide or mesoporous zeolite was mixed with PVdF-HFP, the impedance spectroscopy showed that the room temperature conductivity increased from 1.2×10−3 Scm−1 (for pure PVdF-HFP) to 2.1×10−3 Scm−1. SEM micrographs showed that the pore size of the composite membrane was similar to that of pure PVdF-HFP membrane but the porosity decreased, nevertheless the solution uptake increased. The increasing in solution uptake is not related directly to the surface area or dielectric constant of the oxides. It may be due to the affinity of the metal oxide toward the electrolyte solution. Furthermore, the solution leakage of PVdF-HFP/MgO and PVdF-HFP/SBA-15 composite electrolytes also decreased compared to pure PVdF-HFP electrolyte. These polymer composite electrolytes were stable up to 5.5V (versus Li/Li+) and the lithium ion cells assembled with these polymer electrolyte show a good performance at a discharge rate below C/2.
The layered Li[Li0.07Ni0.1Co0.6Mn0.23]O2 materials were synthesized by sol–gel method with glycine or citric acid as chelating agent. The prepared materials were characterized by means of XRD, SEM and Raman spectroscopy. Li/Li[Li0.07Ni0.1Co0.6Mn0.23]O2 cells were assembled and subjected to charge–discharge studies at different C rates, viz 0.2, 1, 2 and 4C. Although the samples showed less discharge capacity at 4C rate the fade in capacity per cycle is lesser than that of capacity fade at 0.2C rate. The citric acid assisted sample is found to be superior in terms of discharge capacity, capacity retention rate and also in thermal stability to that of sample prepared with glycine as chelating agent.
As the density of graphite anode is increasing, the pore size and volume in the graphite anode is reduced, which results in a decrease in the electrolyte permeability of electrode. The electrochemical degradation of high density graphite anode due to the low permeability is a major obstacle to its use as anode for lithium ion batteries. In this study, we report on high density graphite anode with the carbon additive added that provides micron size pore structure of the high density graphite anode, which results in an increase in the rate capability. The high density graphite anode with carbon additive exhibited 32.4% higher rate capability at 1C compared to the high density graphite anode without carbon additive. This improvement is mainly attributed to the increased micron-size pores, which enhances the kinetic associated with lithium by improved electrolyte permeation and increased interface between the electrolyte and active material.
This paper analyzes the global geography of open society orientations in the sense of Karl Popper’s notion of open society, by means of a database consisting of five common, public and widely used indicators such as UNDP’s Human Development Index, the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Index, the Heritage Foundation’s Economic Freedom Index, Reporters Sans Frontières’ Press Freedom Index, and Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index. We carry out a cluster analysis based on the Self-Organizing Map (SOM) technique, and find that the geography of open society orientation organizes globally into four main clusters with distinctive socio-economic characteristics. We discuss the implications of the clusterization and find that it provides interesting insight also as to the post-2008 response of countries to the global financial crisis.
To date, the utility of behavioral activation (BA) as a treatment for depression has been primarily demonstrated in an individual therapy format, with few empirical investigations exploring group-based delivery. In addition, little is known about the utility of such interventions within veterans, a population known to have increased rates of depression. To this end, the purpose of the proposed study was to examine the potential therapeutic benefits of BA delivered in a group-based format to an outpatient sample of veterans with a primary depressive diagnosis. The sample consisted of 32 veterans presenting for psychological services within a general mental health clinic at a large, Southeastern Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital. Depression and quality of life symptoms were measured pre- and post- delivery of the Brief Behavioral Activation Treatment for Depression-Revised (BATD-R; Lejuez et al. Behavior Modification, 35(2), 111–161, 2011), a 10-session manualized protocol designed to address depressive symptoms by increasing patient contact with reinforcing environmental contingencies. Consistent with prediction, engagement in BATD-R led to reductions in depression symptoms and increases in overall life satisfaction from pre- to post-treatment. The present study provides preliminary support for the effectiveness of BATD-R delivered in a group-based format among an outpatient sample of veterans.
We have studied the relationships between the cation distributions in bulk and on the surface and the electrocatalytical reactivity towards the oxygen reduction reaction (orr) on thin film electrodes of cobalt and manganese spinel type oxides Mn x Co3−x O4 (0≤x≤1). The cationic distributions were computed from XRD, XPS, magnetism and oxidation power measurements showing the presence of the Co3+/Co2+ and Mn4+/Mn3+ solid state redox couples and also vacancies in octahedral sites. The electrocatalytic activity and kinetic parameters for the orr were determined using the RRDE technique in 1 M KOH solution at 25°C. Two Tafel zones of slopes b c1 and b c2 around −60 and −120 mV dec−1 were observed. The disk current/ring current ratio, (I D/I R), increases with x and decreases with the applied overpotential. At constant overpotential η the real electrocatalytical current densities j increase when x increases. The orr can be characterized by an intrinsic kinetic parameter J′ obtained from this current ratio at various electrode rotational frequencies. This J′ increases with the redox couple Co2+/Co3+ ratio, increasing more in the bulk than at the surface of the electrode.
This paper studies the role of IMF-supported programs in mitigating the likelihood of subsequent sovereign defaults in borrowing countries. Using a panel of 106 developing countries from 1970 to 2016 and an entropy balancing methodology, we find that IMF-supported programs significantly reduce the likelihood of subsequent sovereign defaults. This finding is robust to different specifications of the entropy balancing and alternative identification strategies. Our results suggest that a country that signs a program with the IMF typically experiences a slight improvement in its sovereign credit rating and a decrease in both government debt-to-GDP and fiscal deficit-to-GDP during the program period compared to the period before.
Bardet-Biedl syndrome (BBS) is a rare oligogenic disorder exhibiting both clinical and genetic heterogeneity. Although the BBS phenotype is variable both between and within families, the syndrome is characterized by the hallmarks of developmental and learning difficulties, post-axial polydactylia, obesity, hypogenitalism, renal abnormalities, retinal dystrophy, and several less frequently observed features. Eleven genes mutated in BBS patients have been identified, and more are expected to exist, since about 20–30% of all families cannot be explained by the known loci. To investigate the etiopathogenesis of BBS, we created a mouse null for one of the murine homologues, Bbs4, to assess the contribution of one gene to the pleiotropic murine Bbs phenotype. Bbs4 null mice, although initially runted compared to their littermates, ultimately become obese in a gender-dependent manner, females earlier and with more severity than males. Blood chemistry tests indicated abnormal lipid profiles, signs of liver dysfunction, and elevated insulin and leptin levels reminiscent of metabolic syndrome. As in patients with BBS, we found age-dependent retinal dystrophy. Behavioral assessment revealed that mutant mice displayed more anxiety-related responses and reduced social dominance. We noted the rare occurrence of birth defects, including neural tube defects and hydrometrocolpos, in the null mice. Evaluations of these null mice have uncovered phenotypic features with age-dependent penetrance and variable expressivity, partially recapitulating the human BBS phenotype.
We have designed and synthesized a novel nanocrystalline manganese oxide with a nanofibrous morphology by employing an electrodeposition process in the presence of a non-ionic surfactant. This unique nanoporous/nanocrystalline material effectively accommodates the structural transformation during lithium insertion and avoids deleterious morphological changes as observed in battery materials composed of large particles. Consequently, the material exhibits outstanding cycling stability in addition to its high discharge capacity.
This study aimed to quantitatively compare the somatosensory function changes of inferior alveolar nerve (IAN) after mandibular third molar extraction with a surgery protocol of coronectomy, as opposed to the conventional method.