Functional Nanomaterials 2023: Session III
Sponsored by: TMS Functional Materials Division, TMS Structural Materials Division, TMS: Nanomaterials Committee, TMS: Composite Materials Committee
Program Organizers: Yong Lin Kong, University of Utah; Sarah Ying Zhong, University of South Florida; Mostafa Bedewy, University of Pittsburgh; Woochul Lee, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa; Changhong Cao, McGill University; Kiyo Fujimoto, Idaho National Laboratory; Surojit Gupta, University of North Dakota; Michael Cai Wang, University of South Florida
Tuesday 8:00 AM
March 21, 2023
Room: Aqua 305
Location: Hilton
Session Chair: Woochul Lee, University of Hawaii at Manoa; Ying Zhong, Harbin Institute of Technology (Shenzhen)); Kiyo Fujimoto, Idaho National Laboratory; Mostafa Bedewy, University of Pittsburgh
8:00 AM Invited
One-dimensional Nano-carbon Additives for Flexible Lithium Rechargeable Battery: Yoon Hwa1; 1Arizona State University
As the functional additive of battery electrodes, one-dimensional (1D) nano-carbons such as carbon nanotubes and nanofibers have shown their promising abilities in improving the mechanical and electrochemical performance of lithium rechargeable batteries. The 1D nano-carbons additives construct an effective network structure in the electrode to enhance and keep the electrochemical performance of battery electrodes under various battery operation conditions, which is attributed to the following features: 1) The continuous electron percolation network along the 1D carbon; 2) excellent mechanical robustness given by their atomic structure and nano-wire entanglement structure. The effectiveness of 1D carbon additives is maximized when electrochemically active particles are incorporated homogeneously. In this presentation, a rational design of electrodes incorporating 1D nano-carbons for lithium rechargeable cells will be introduced, and their working and failure mechanisms for the flexible application will be discussed.
8:30 AM Invited
Synthesis and Ion Transport Study for the Development of Graphene Aerogel Electrodes: Multiscale Computations: Seungha Shin1; Yu-Kai Weng1; Md Abdullah Al Hasan1; Kenneth Kihm1; Douglas Aaron1; 1University of Tennessee
The enhancement of ion transport in electrodes is critical to the performance of the organic electrochemical systems as they suffer from poor ionic conductivity. In organic flow batteries, convective flux of electrolytes by pressure gradient is a main driving force for the ion transport in addition to electric field, and thus, the improvement of the convective ion transport is needed. In our research, for the development of graphene electrodes with effective ion transport, we studied the synthesis of directionally porous graphene aerogel (D-GA) and the ion transport in graphene nanochannels. Since D-GA is synthesized using freeze casting, water-ice phase change and graphene structuring processes were computationally investigated via molecular dynamics and finite volume method. Also, the coupling of the pressure-driven and electric field driven ion transport was examined using molecular dynamics of graphene nanochannels. Recent progress from our multiscale computational research for the graphene electrode development will be presented.
9:00 AM Keynote
Nanoscale Phenomena in Advanced Batteries - From Thin Film Battery Platform to Practical Batteries: Shirley Meng1; 1The University of Chicago
Nanomaterials have made significant impact in the field of electrochemical energy storage. In this talk I will give a few examples where we showcase how in-depth understanding at the nano-scale helped designing better electrode and electrolyte materials. Advanced characterization tools such as electron microscopy and coherent X-ray diffraction imaging have been optimized for the study of these nanoscale phenomena. I will demonstrate in a model system how we can build thin film all solid state battery as a platform to study interfacial phenomena in a way that cannot be done in a regular battery.
9:40 AM Break
10:00 AM
Coupling of Electric Field Driven Ion Transport with Convective Flow in Graphene Nanochannels: Md Abdullah Al Hasan1; Yu-Kai Weng1; Seungha Shin1; Kenneth Kihm1; Doug Aaron1; 1University of Tennessee
The performance of graphene-based electrodes is largely dependent on the ion transport efficiency. Understanding the surface interaction with ion and its effect on the coupling of different driving forces can greatly enhance ion transport, however, remains unexplored. In this research, the ion transport through the graphene nanochannel was investigated by the molecular dynamics (MD) simulations by controlling the several driving forces. Our calculated ionic mobility under various electric field and pressure difference, were in reasonable agreement with the experimental results, thus verified the simulation model. Ion mobility was found higher at lower interaction strength, higher temperature, higher pressure difference, and larger channel size. Moreover, significant coupling between pressure difference and electric field was observed at lower interaction strength and larger channel size. This study will provide comprehensive understanding of the pressure gradient and electric field coupling, which can enable effective ion transport control in organic redox flow batteries.
10:20 AM
Application of 2D Materials as Additives In Hybrid Perovskite Solar Cells for Improved Performance and Stability: Chang-Yong Nam1; 1Brookhaven National Laboratory
Hybrid perovskites solar cells boast impressive photovoltaic power conversion efficiency now exceeding 25% but still need to overcome a few critical issues for their practical application, including the device operational stability under light and elevated temperature. In this talk, I will showcase our recent research efforts on utilizing 2D materials, including 2D boron nitrides, as additives in hybrid perovskite solar cells. The results demonstrate remarkably improved device stability and power conversion efficiency, which are primarily attributed to an increased crystallization kinetics by 2D boron nitrides, which leads to enlarged grain size and reduced grain boundary areas, as confirmed by in-situ synchrotron X-ray scattering during the perovskite-forming thermal annealing step. Also to be briefly discussed is the 2D MoS2 additive that similarly impart improved hybrid solar cell performance and stability.
10:40 AM Invited
Covellite Enveloped Spherical Carbon Nanoparticles Decorated Polyurethane Foam as Solar Evaporator for Efficient Interfacial Water Evaporation: Suman Chhetri1; Anh Nguyen1; Woochul Lee1; 1University of Hawaii at Manoa
Solar-driven interfacial steam generation is considered as a sustainable pathway for clean water generation. However, designing an evaporator that can harvest maximum heat at air-water interface with the minimum usage of photothermal material is still a challenge to this technology. Here, a heterostructure of covellite (CuS) and spherical carbon nanoparticles (CPs) (CPs@CuS) was prepared and selectively confined on the upper surface of polydopamine (PDA) activated polyurethane (PU) foam. With reasonable light absorption and anchoring abilities, the PDA film on PU foam acts as both solar absorber and platform for interactions that enables CPs@CuS to firmly adhere onto foam surface. The CPs@CuS coated foam exhibited an excellent solar absorption of 98.9% leading to surface temperature elevation of 61.6 ℃ upon solar illumination of 1 kW m-2 . Taking merits of the synergistic effect, the coated PU foam demonstrates an evaporation rate of 1.62 kg m−2 h−1 and energy efficiency of 93.8%.
11:00 AM
Feature Classification of Evaporation-driven Multi-scale 3D Printing: Samannoy Ghosh1; Marshall Johnson2; Rajan Neupane1; James Hardin3; John Berrigan3; Surya Kalidindi2; Yong Lin Kong1; 1University of Utah; 2Georgia Institute of Technology; 3Air Force Research Laboratory
The evaporative patterning process is highly sensitive to print parameters such as concentration and ink composition. The ability to print consistently is particularly important for the printing of active electronics, which requires the integration of multiple functional layers. Here we demonstrate a microfluidics-driven multi-scale 3D printer where the microfluidic-driven 3D printer can rapidly modulate ink composition, such as concentration and solvent-to-cosolvent ratio, to explore multi-dimensional parameter space. The integration of the printer with an image-processing algorithm and a support vector machine-guided classification model enables automated, in situ pattern classification. We envision that such integration will provide valuable insights into understanding the complex evaporative-driven assembly process and ultimately enable an autonomous optimization of printing parameters that can robustly adapt to unexpected perturbations.