Article
Energy & Fuels
Aroa R. Mainar, Elena Iruin, J. Alberto Blazquez
Summary: Electrically rechargeable zinc-air batteries have low cost, high security and energy density, but low power density, which requires improvement for commercial potential. The development of a new technology, ZASH battery, integrates the advantages of zinc-air and silver-zinc technologies, showing potential for practical applications in the market. Further research on material development beyond conventional approaches could lead to progress in technology for future market applications.
JOURNAL OF ENERGY STORAGE
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Lei Chen, Kairui Hu, Ke Yang, Meltem Yanilmaz, Xu Han, Yong Liu, Xiangwu Zhang
Summary: This study proposes a novel carbon fiber-based current collector for flexible zinc ion batteries (ZIBs). By modifying the properties of carbon fibers through activation and etching, a carbonized polypyrrole (CPPy) nanowire conductive network is constructed. This enables high energy storage in ZIBs. Experimental results demonstrate excellent cycle stability and specific capacity of the battery.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Xiaofan Shen, Xiaona Wang, Nengsheng Yu, Wei Yang, Yurong Zhou, Yanhong Shi, Yulian Wang, Lizhong Dong, Jiangtao Di, Qingwen Li
Summary: This study reports the preparation of polypyrrole-wrapped MnO2/carbon nanotubes composite cathodes for aqueous Zinc-ion batteries. The designed composite cathodes exhibit increased structural stability, improved electronic conductivity, and enhanced battery performance.
ACTA PHYSICO-CHIMICA SINICA
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Yeonsu Jung, Young Shik Cho, Jae Hyun Park, Jae Yeong Cheon, Jae Won Lee, Jae Ho Kim, Chong Rae Park, Taehoon Kim, Seung Jae Yang
Summary: This study examines and controls the architectures of carbon nanotube yarn (CNTY) through chemical modification in order to develop lightweight and superstrong CNTYs. The architecture of CNTY, with polymer layers surrounding a compact bundle of CNTs, allows for further chemical cross-linking and enhances load-transfer efficiency. The resulting CNTY exhibits excellent mechanical performance and is a promising candidate for a space elevator cable.
Article
Materials Science, Textiles
Jackie Y. Cai, Jie Min, Jill McDonnell, Lijing Wang, Robert Knott
Summary: Gamma irradiation was applied to vertically aligned carbon nanotube (CNT) forests to improve the interfacial adhesion and then spun into CNT yarns. The yarns spun from the irradiated forests showed higher tensile strength and lower breaking elongation. Increasing spinning tension improved the strength of both the irradiated and unirradiated yarns, but the irradiated yarns had more significant improvements. The relative improvements in yarn tenacity ranged from 14% to 26% under various spinning tensions.
JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL TEXTILES
(2022)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Emine S. Karaman, Zhiqian Wang, Kun Chen, Zain Siddiqui, YuHsuan Cheng, Sagnik Basuray, Vivek Kumar, Somenath Mitra
Summary: In this study, functionalized carbon nanotubes and graphene oxide doped polyvinyl alcohol-based gel electrolytes were investigated for battery applications. The fCNT-doped gel electrolyte exhibited significantly improved ionic conductivity, mechanical strength, and electrochemical stability compared to pure GE and GOGE. The fCNTs provided a homogeneous distribution of ionic channels, serving as redox shuttles and facilitating ion migration in the gel. The batteries based on fCNTGE showed good electrochemical stability with a specific capacity of 204.3 mAh g(-1) (C/20).
MATERIALS CHEMISTRY AND PHYSICS
(2021)
Article
Automation & Control Systems
Bum-Joon Kim, Yongwoo Jang, Ji Hwan Moon, Ray H. Baughman, Seon Jeong Kim
Summary: The novel accelerometer based on coiled carbon nanotube yarn demonstrates excellent dynamic sensing performance in the low-frequency range and is designed in a compact fiber-like structure for practical applications. Open-circuit voltage signals generated during the stretch-and-release process increase linearly with acceleration, and when attached to a vehicle's seatbelt, the accelerometer generates OCV changes in response to specific acceleration changes.
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRIAL ELECTRONICS
(2021)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Hanfang Zhang, Yihe Zhang, Yanran Liu, Xiancheng Shi, Yingge Zhang, Liqi Bai, Qi Wang, Li Sun
Summary: This study presents a new VO-α-MnO2/CNPK/G composite material for improving the performance of α-MnO2 zinc-ion batteries. The introduction of VO improves the reversibility of Zn2+ adsorption/desorption, leading to better energy storage properties. The nanotube array structure of VO-α-MnO2/CNPK/G facilitates fast ion/electron transfer and stable microstructure.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Tae Jin Mun, Ji Hwan Moon, Jong Woo Park, Ray H. Baughman, Seon Jeong Kim
Summary: With an increasing focus on energy harvesting, studies on practical application and performance of energy harvesters are becoming more prevalent. Researchers are exploring the use of continuous energy sources, such as wind, river flow, and sea waves, for energy-harvesting devices. A new technology based on coiled carbon nanotube (CNT) yarns has emerged, which generates energy through mechanical stretch and release. This technology has been demonstrated in a variety of fluid flow environments and tested in river and ocean settings.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Shihong Chen, Haowen Ren, Yang Qiu, Chunhui Luo, Qiang Zhao, Wei Yang
Summary: In this study, a flower-like porous carbon material was designed to synthesize Co/Zn/Mn@NC, which showed excellent bifunctional catalytic activity with a half-wave potential of 0.86 V for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and an overpotential of 360 mV for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) at 10 mA/cm2. The Zn-Air battery (ZAB) with Co/Zn/Mn@NC-800 exhibited a higher power density of 163 mW/cm2 and a specific capacity of 832 mA h/gZn compared to Pt/C + RuO2. Moreover, the Co/Zn/Mn@NC-800-based ZAB showed superior long-term stability with only a 0.3% decline in efficiency after 534 cycles (>150 h). These results suggest that the synthesized Co/Zn/Mn@NC catalyst has great potential for practical application in ZABs.
JOURNAL OF POWER SOURCES
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Z. -x. Huang, H. Liu, Y. -x. Liu, L. Tan, Y. -j. Wu
Summary: This work successfully prepared a hierarchical silver-coated zinc anode, which exhibited long-term cycle stabilities of zinc stripping and plating with the assistance of anionic surfactant (trisodium citrate). The Ag-coated zinc anode showed improved stability compared to pure zinc anodes, with over 1200 cycles of operation. The study provides new insights for enhancing the performance of Zn-metal batteries.
MATERIALS TODAY CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Wonkyeong Son, Sungwoo Chun, Jae Myeong Lee, Gichan Jeon, Hyeon Jun Sim, Hyeon Woo Kim, Sung Beom Cho, Dongyun Lee, Junyoung Park, Joonhyeon Jeon, Dongseok Suh, Changsoon Choi
Summary: In this study, a twist-stable and hydrophilic coiled carbon nanotube (CNT) yarn was prepared by the easy electrochemical oxidation (ECO) method. The resulting yarns showed increased density and capacitance, and were fabricated into stretchable supercapacitors.
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Hanfang Zhang, Yihe Zhang, Yanran Liu, Xiancheng Shi, Yingge Zhang, Liqi Bai, Qi Wang, Li Sun
Summary: The oxygen-deficient alpha-MnO2 nanotube integrated with graphene and N, P codoped cross-linked porous carbon nanosheet composite (VO-alpha-MnO2/CNPK/G) has been prepared for advanced zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) with improved rate performance and cycle life. The introduction of VO in MnO2 reduces the Gibbs free energy of Zn2+ adsorption, making the adsorption/desorption process more reversible. The as-made battery exhibits high capacity and energy density, attributed to VO, and the composite structure enhances ion/electron transfer and stability. The electrochemical performance of VO-alpha-MnO2 is greatly improved with the addition of G and CNPK, achieving high capacity, energy density, and long cycle life.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Li Song, Haiyu Fan, Tao Wang, Tengfei Xiang, Mingdao Zhang, Chuangang Hu, Wei Zhou, Jianping He
Summary: A highly active and stable electrocatalyst (Co@N-CNT) is synthesized through a solid-state thermal conversion process, showing remarkable bifunctional activities and superior durability with the best ORR active site as Co@graphitic N-C and the best OER active site as Co@pyridinic N-C.
ENERGY STORAGE MATERIALS
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Young Shik Cho, Jae Won Lee, Jaewook Kim, Yeonsu Jung, Seung Jae Yang, Chong Rae Park
Summary: By controlling the micro-textural structure through a bundle engineering process during direct spinning, carbon nanotube yarns (CNTYs) achieved a tensile strength of 5.5 N tex(-1). The development of multiscale bundle structures, from elementary bundles to secondary bundles, without any damage, significantly improved the mechanical performance of CNTYs.
Article
Materials Science, Composites
Tanvir Sohail, Sushan Nakarmi, Rebekah Sweat, Ray Baughman, Hongbing Lu, Samit Roy
Summary: The objective of this paper is to predict the fiber/matrix interfacial debond strength in composites. A novel approach using atomic force microscopy and Fourier series-decomposition is presented to determine the surface roughness and interfacial shear strength.
COMPOSITE INTERFACES
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Xinghao Hu, Jingjing Jia, Yingming Wang, Xintian Tang, Shaoli Fang, Yilun Wang, Ray H. Baughman, Jianning Ding
Summary: A fast thermally powered sheath-driven yarn muscle using a hybrid CNT sheath and an inexpensive polymer core has been reported. Compared to traditional muscles, the stroke recovery rate of this yarn muscle is lower, but it has higher mechanical power during the full contraction cycle.
ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Zhong Wang, Tae Jin Mun, Fernando M. Machado, Ji Hwan Moon, Shaoli Fang, Ali E. Aliev, Mengmeng Zhang, Wenting Cai, Jiuke Mu, Jae Sang Hyeon, Jong Woo Park, Patrick Conlin, Kyeongjae Cho, Enlai Gao, Gang Wan, Chi Huynh, Anvar A. Zakhidov, Seon Jeong Kim, Ray H. Baughman
Summary: This study improves the performance of twistron harvesters by optimizing the alignment of precursor CNT forests, stretching the precursor twisted yarn, applying higher tensile loads during pre-coiling, using electrothermal pulse annealing, and incorporating reduced graphene oxide nanoplates. The peak output power is significantly increased at both 1 Hz and 30 Hz frequencies, with the latter achieving a 13-fold improvement compared to previous harvesters. The maximum energy conversion efficiency is also greatly improved. Twistron anode and cathode yarn arrays are stretched out-of-phase to double the output voltage.
ADVANCED MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
Jung Gi Choi, Geoffrey M. Spinks, Seon Jeong Kim
Summary: Soft robotics is a promising field that aims to create robot systems with versatile and complex movements similar to natural organisms. In this study, composite fibers made from shape memory polymers and thermo-sensitive hydrogels were used to create various types of actuators such as tensile, torsional, and flexural actuators. The fibers could be programmed and reprogrammed by heating and cooling, and they demonstrated reversible actuation. The optimized fibers showed significant strokes in torsion, bending, and tensile movements, offering a convenient means for generating different actuation types in soft robotics.
SENSORS AND ACTUATORS A-PHYSICAL
(2022)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Yongwoo Jang, Ji Hwan Moon, Chanho Lee, Sung Min Lee, Heesoo Kim, Gyu Hyeon Song, Geoffrey M. Spinks, Gordon G. Wallace, Seon Jeong Kim
Summary: This article introduces a surface electromyogram (sEMG) device that utilizes nanotechnology to recognize the strength, direction, and degree of muscle movement. By combining sEMG with nanoelectrodes, complementary information can be provided for monitoring human motion.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Eunyoung Kim, Yongwoo Jang, Hyunsoo Kim, Dong Yeop Lee, Jung Gi Choi, Seon Jeong Kim
Summary: DNA artificial muscle can undergo reversible movement under calcium stimulation, similar to the contraction mechanism of natural muscle. This artificial muscle has high work performance and has great potential for biomedical applications.
SENSORS AND ACTUATORS B-CHEMICAL
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Xiaoyu Hu, Jiatian Li, Sitong Li, Guanghao Zhang, Run Wang, Zhongsheng Liu, Mengmeng Chen, Wenqian He, Kaiqing Yu, Wenzhong Zhai, Weiqiang Zhao, Abdul Qadeer Khan, Shaoli Fang, Ray H. Baughman, Xiang Zhou, Zunfeng Liu
Summary: This paper reports an artificial muscle controlled by thermodynamic-twist coupling, which can be used in different actuation modes, such as elongation, contraction, and torsional rotation. It provides a new design strategy for intelligent materials.
NATIONAL SCIENCE REVIEW
(2023)
Article
Materials Science, Composites
Zhong Wang, Ray H. Baughman
Summary: This overview discusses the use of twisted yarns and highly elastic coiled yarns for various applications such as artificial muscles, energy harvesting, sensing, and refrigeration. The fabrication methods for coiled carbon nanotube and polymer yarns are similar, and their properties can be manipulated to achieve elasticity, actuation, cooling, energy harvesting, and sensing capabilities. The performance of these yarns is remarkable, including artificial muscles with significantly higher power output than human muscles, and mechanical energy harvesters providing higher peak electrical power per weight than existing material-based energy harvesters.
JOURNAL OF COMPOSITE MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Materials Science, Biomaterials
Dong Yeop Lee, Yongwoo Jang, Eunyoung Kim, Tao Li, Seon Jeong Kim
Summary: The tissue-engineered vascular graft (TEVG) is a promising alternative for small-diameter blood vessel replacement, and a bioresorbable polyglycolic acid (PGA) fiber-knitted tubular scaffold shows potential as a flexible and durable support for vascular cells. The PGA tubular knit serves as a porous three-dimensional matrix for cell attachment and growth, and it can withstand mechanical damage and maintain suturability.
JOURNAL OF MATERIALS CHEMISTRY B
(2023)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Tao Li, Yongwoo Jang, Jung Gi Choi, Dong Yeop Lee, Jae Sang Hyeon, Seon Jeong Kim
Summary: In this study, a high water content hydrogel fiber with increased stretchability was developed through biomimetic design. The fiber self-coiled under aqueous conditions, resulting in high water content and stretchability. This has potential implications for various medical applications.
ACS APPLIED POLYMER MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Wonkyeong Son, Jae Myeong Lee, Sungwoo Chun, Seongjun Yu, Jun Ho Noh, Hyeon Woo Kim, Sung Beom Cho, Seon Jeong Kim, Changsoon Choi
Summary: A facile strategy of electrochemical inner-bundle activation (EIBA) is reported to enhance the properties of CNT yarns. The EIBA-treated yarns exhibit enhanced wettability, improved torsional actuation, and increased capacitance.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2023)
Article
Materials Science, Composites
Tanvir Sohail, Rebekah Sweat, Hongbing Lu, Ray Baughman, Samit Roy
Summary: This paper develops a novel approach to determine the fiber/matrix interfacial shear strength (IFSS) in a polymer composite with carbon fiber roughness and the presence of carbon nanotubes (CNTs). The carbon fiber surface exhibits multi-scale asperities, which are modeled using Fourier series decomposition to capture surface roughness. Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations are used to determine the interfacial shear strength of different surface asperities. The results show that the presence of CNTs enhances the IFSS by about 19%.
COMPOSITE INTERFACES
(2023)
Proceedings Paper
Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
Jung Gi Choi, Jae Sang Hyeon, Seon Jeong Kim
Summary: This study reports a diving/surfacing device made from thermo-sensitive poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) hydrogel. The device shows fast and reversible diving/surfacing cycles in response to heating and cooling. The results suggest the potential of controllable PNIPAM hydrogel devices for underwater micro robots.
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Enlai Gao, Yongzhe Guo, Zhengzhi Wang, Steven O. Nielsen, Ray H. Baughman
Summary: In this study, the stability, strength, and toughness of B, C, BC, and BN chains were investigated using first-principles calculations. It was found that BC chains exhibited the highest recorded gravimetric strength and high toughness, surpassing the predicted performance of carbyne.