Synthesis and Characterization of Carbon-Coated LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 in a Single Step by an Inverse Microemulsion Route

Layered LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2, which is isostructural to LiCoO2, is considered as a potential cathode material. A layer of carbon coated on the particles improves the electrode performance, Which is attributed to an increase of the grain connectivity and also to protection of metal oxide from chemical reaction. The present work involves in situ synthesis of carbon-coated submicrometer-sized particles of LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 in an inverse microemulsion medium in the presence of glucose. The precursor obtained from the reaction is heated in air at 900 degrees C for 6 h to get crystalline LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2. The carbon coating is found to impart porosity as well as higher surface area in relation to bare samples of the compound. The electrochemical characterization studies provide that carbon-coated LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 samples exhibit improved rate capability and cycling performance. The carbon coatings are shown to suppress the capacity fade, which is normally observed for the bare compound. Impedance spectroscopy data provide additional evidence for the beneficial effect of a carbon coating on LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 particles.

The formation of carbon nanostructures by in situ TEM mechanical nanoscale fatigue and fracture of carbon thin films

A technique to quantify in real time the microstructural changes occurring during mechanical nanoscale fatigue of ultrathin surface coatings has been developed. Cyclic nanoscale loading, with amplitudes less than 100 nm, is achieved with a mechanical probe miniaturized to fit inside a transmission electron microscope (TEM). The TEM tribological probe can be used for nanofriction and nanofatigue testing, with 3D control of the loading direction and simultaneous TEM imaging of the nano-objects. It is demonstrated that fracture of 10-20 nm thick amorphous carbon films on sharp gold asperities, by a single nanoscale shear impact, results in the formation of < 10 nm diameter amorphous carbon filaments. Failure of the same carbon films after cyclic nanofatigue, however, results in the formation of carbon nanostructures with a significant degree of graphitic ordering, including a carbon onion.

Hydrogen- 1 and Carbon- 13 Magnetic Resonance Studies of Nonactin-Calcium Complex

For an understanding of the cation selectivity and general binding characteristics of macrotetralide antibiotic nonactin (NA) with ions of different sizes and charges, the nature of binding of divalent cation, Ca2+, to NA and conformation of the NA-Ca2+ complex have been studied by use of 270-MHz proton nuclear magnetic resonance ('H NMR) and carbon-13 nuclear magnetic resonance (13C NMR). The calcium ion induced significantly large changes in chemical shifts for H7, H2, H3, and H5 protons of NA and relatively small changes for H18 and H2' protons. Changes in I3C chemical shift were quite large for carbonyl carbon, C,; it is noteworthy that in the NA-K+ complex, H2 and H2' protons practically do not show any change during complexation and carbonyl carbon shows a much smaller chemical shift change.

Enhancement of organic phase controlled extraction of copper by activated carbon

The addition of activated carbon particles (Darco-G, average size 4.3,μm) is shown to enhance the initial rate of extraction of copper in a Lewis cell by a mixture of α- and β-hydroxyoximes, when the rate of extraction is controlled by resistances in the organic phase. It is likely that the copper complex is adsorbed by carbon near the interace and partially released in the bulk. The enhancing effect of carbon vanishes when toluene is used as a diluent instead of heptane, presumably because toluene preferentially adsorbs on its surface.

Theoretical investigations of the two-bond proton-carbon-13 coupling constants. Angular variations of the couplings involving carboxyl carbon

A formulation has been developed using perturbation theory to evaluate the π-contribution to the nuclear spin coupling constants involving nuclei at least one of which is an unsaturated center. This fromulation accounts for the π-contribution in terms of the core polarization and one-center exchange at the π-center. The formulation developed together with the Dirac vector model and Penney-Dirac bond-order formalisms was employed to calculate the geminal (two-bond) proton coupling constants of carboxyl carbons in α-disubstituted acetic acids. The calculated coupling constants were found to have an orientational dependence. The results of the calculation are in good agreement with the experimental values.

Jump Reorientation of Water Molecules Confined in Narrow Carbon Nanotubes

We used molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to study the reorientational dynamics of water molecules confined inside narrow carbon nanotubes immersed in a bath of water. Our simulations show that the confined water molecules exhibit bistability in their reorientational relaxation, which proceeds by angular jumps between the two stable states. The angular jump of a water molecule in the bulk involves the breaking of a hydrogen bond with one of its neighbors and the formation of a hydrogen bond with a different neighbor. In contrast, the angular jump of a confined water molecule corresponds to an interchange of the two hydrogen atoms that can form a hydrogen bond with the same neighbor. The free energy barrier between these two states is a few k(B)T. The analytic solution of a simplified two-state jump model that qualitatively explains the reorientational behavior observed in simulations is also presented.

Oxides supported carbon air-electrodes for alkaline solution power devices

Porous carbon oxygen-reducing electrodes incorporated with perovskite oxide catalysts are reported. It has been possible to fabricate high-performance oxygen-reducing electrodes by introducing La0.5Sr0.5CoO3 and La0.99Sr0.01NiO3 with the activated coconut-shell charcoal; these electrodes could sustain load currents as high as 1 A cm−2 without serious degradation. A model to explain oxygen-reducing activity of these oxides has been proposed.

Electroconductance in single-wall carbon nanotubes

A comparative study of the electric-field induced hopping transport probes the effective dimensionality (D) in bulk and ultrathin films of single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNTs). The values of the scaling function exponents for the electroconductance are found to be consistent with that in three-dimensional and two-dimensional systems. The significant difference in threshold voltage in these two types of SWNTs is a consequence of the variation in the number of energetically favorable sites available for charge carriers to hop by using the energy from the field. Furthermore, a modification to the magnetotransport is observed under high electric-fields.

Molecular structure of a cyclic tetrapeptide disulfide. A novel 310 helical conformation with an S-S bridge

The crystal structure of the cyclic peptide disulfide Boc-Cys-Pro-Aib-Cys-NHMe has been determined by X-ray diffraction. The peptide crystallizes in the space group P212121, with A = 8.646(1), B = 18.462(2), C = 19.678(3)Å and Z = 4. The molecules adopt a highly folded compact conformation, stabilized by two intramolecular 4→ 1 hydrogen bonds between the Cys (1) and Pro (2) CO groups and the Cys (4) and methylamide NH groups, respectively. The backbone conformational angles for the peptide lie very close to those expected for a 310 helix. The S-S bridge adopts a right handed twist with a dihedral angle of 82°. The structure illustrates the role of stereochemically constrained residues, in generating novel peptide conformations. Aib, α-aminoisobutyric acid; Z, benzyloxycarbonyl; Boc, t-butyloxycarbonyl; OMe, methyl ester; OBz, benzyl ester; NHMe, N-methylamide; Tosyl, p-toluenesulfonyl.

Oxidation of sodium sulphide in the presence of fine activated carbon particles in a foam bed contactor

The oxidation of sodium sulphide in the presence of fine activated carbon particles (4.33 μm) has been studied at 75°C in a foam bed contactor. The existing single-stage model of a foam bed reactor has been modified to take into account the effect of heterogeneous catalyst particles and the absorption in the storage section. The variables studied are catalyst loading, initial sulphide concentration and the average liquid hold-up in the foam bed. It is seen that the rates of oxidation of sodium sulphide are considerably enhanced by an increase in the loading of activated carbon particles. The rate of conversion of sodium sulphide also increases with an increase in the average liquid hold-up in the foam. The modified model predicts these effects fairly well. The contribution of reaction in the storage section is found to be less than 2% of the overall rate of conversion in the contactor.

Adsorption of carbon monoxide on the surfaces of polycrystalline transition metals and alloys: electron energy loss and ultraviolet photoelectron spectral studies1

Adsorption of CO has been investigated on the surfaces of polycrystalline transition metals as well as alloys by employing electron energy loss spectroscopy (eels) and ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (ups). CO adsorbs on polycrystalline transition metal surfaces with a multiplicity of sites, each being associated with a characteristic CO stretching frequency; the relative intensities vary with temperature as well as coverage. Whilst at low temperatures (80- 120 K), low coordination sites are stabilized, the higher coordination sites are stabilized at higher temperatures (270-300 K). Adsorption on surfaces of polycrystalline alloys gives characteristic stretching frequencies due to the constituent metal sites. Alloying, however, causes a shift in the stretching frequencies, indicating the effect of the band structure on the nature of adsorption. The up spectra provide confirmatory evidence for the existence of separate metal sites in the alloys as well as for the high-temperature and low-temperature phases of adsorbed CO.

Interaction of carbon monoxide with surfaces of metglasses

UPS and XPS studies indicate that carbon monoxide preferentially adsorbs dissociatively on the surfaces of the metallic glasses, Ni76B12Si12 and Fe40Ni38Mo4B18, suggesting that such metglasses could be potential catalysts for some of the reactions involving CO.

Reorientation of Water Inside Carbon Nanorings by Large Angular Jumps

Molecular dynamics simulations of the orientational dynamics of water molecules confined inside narrow carbon nanorings reveal that reorientational relaxation is mediated by large amplitude angular jumps. The distribution of waiting time between jumps peaks at about 60 fs, and has a slowly decaying exponential tail with a timescale of about 440 fs. These time scales are much faster than the mean waiting time between jumps of the water molecules in bulk.