Search Results

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
  • Item
    Time‐Dependent Cation Selectivity of Titanium Carbide MXene in Aqueous Solution
    (Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 2022) Wang, Lei; Torkamanzadeh, Mohammad; Majed, Ahmad; Zhang, Yuan; Wang, Qingsong; Breitung, Ben; Feng, Guang; Naguib, Michael; Presser, Volker
    Electrochemical ion separation is a promising technology to recover valuable ionic species from water. Pseudocapacitive materials, especially 2D materials, are up-and-coming electrodes for electrochemical ion separation. For implementation, it is essential to understand the interplay of the intrinsic preference of a specific ion (by charge/size), kinetic ion preference (by mobility), and crystal structure changes. Ti3C2Tz MXene is chosen here to investigate its selective behavior toward alkali and alkaline earth cations. Utilizing an online inductively coupled plasma system, it is found that Ti3C2Tz shows a time-dependent selectivity feature. In the early stage of charging (up to about 50 min), K+ is preferred, while ultimately Ca2+ and Mg2+ uptake dominate; this unique phenomenon is related to dehydration energy barriers and the ion exchange effect between divalent and monovalent cations. Given the wide variety of MXenes, this work opens the door to a new avenue where selective ion-separation with MXene can be further engineered and optimized.
  • Item
    Rings and Chains: Synthesis and Characterization of Polyferrocenylmethylene
    (Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 2021) Winter, Tamara; Haider, Wasim; Schießer, Alexander; Presser, Volker; Gallei, Markus; Schäfer, André
    The synthesis and characterization of polyferrocenylmethylene (PFM) starting from dilithium 2,2-bis(cyclopentadienide)propane and a Me2C[1]magnesocenophane is reported. Molecular weights of up to Mw = 11 700 g mol–1 featuring a dispersity, Ð, of 1.40 can be achieved. The material is studied by different methods comprising nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight (MALDI-ToF) mass spectrometry, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) measurements elucidating the molecular structure and thermal properties of these novel polymers. Moreover, cyclic voltammetry (CV) reveals quasi-reversible oxidation and reduction behavior and communication between the iron centers. Also, the crystal structure of a related cyclic hexamer is presented
  • Item
    How to speed up ion transport in nanopores
    ([London] : Nature Publishing Group UK, 2020) Breitsprecher, Konrad; Janssen, Mathijs; Srimuk, Pattarachai; Mehdi, B. Layla; Presser, Volker; Holm, Christian; Kondrat, Svyatoslav
    Electrolyte-filled subnanometre pores exhibit exciting physics and play an increasingly important role in science and technology. In supercapacitors, for instance, ultranarrow pores provide excellent capacitive characteristics. However, ions experience difficulties in entering and leaving such pores, which slows down charging and discharging processes. In an earlier work we showed for a simple model that a slow voltage sweep charges ultranarrow pores quicker than an abrupt voltage step. A slowly applied voltage avoids ionic clogging and co-ion trapping—a problem known to occur when the applied potential is varied too quickly—causing sluggish dynamics. Herein, we verify this finding experimentally. Guided by theoretical considerations, we also develop a non-linear voltage sweep and demonstrate, with molecular dynamics simulations, that it can charge a nanopore even faster than the corresponding optimized linear sweep. For discharging we find, with simulations and in experiments, that if we reverse the applied potential and then sweep it to zero, the pores lose their charge much quicker than they do for a short-circuited discharge over their internal resistance. Our findings open up opportunities to greatly accelerate charging and discharging of subnanometre pores without compromising the capacitive characteristics, improving their importance for energy storage, capacitive deionization, and electrochemical heat harvesting.
  • Item
    Best practice for electrochemical water desalination data generation and analysis
    (Maryland Heights, MO : Cell Press, 2023) Torkamanzadeh, Mohammad; Kök, Cansu; Burger, Peter Rolf; Ren, Panyu; Zhang, Yuan; Lee, Juhan; Kim, Choonsoo; Presser, Volker
    Electrochemical desalination shows promise for ion-selective, energy-efficient water desalination. This work reviews performance metrics commonly used for electrochemical desalination. We provide a step-by-step guide on acquiring, processing, and calculating raw desalination data, emphasizing informative and reliable figures of merit. A typical experiment uses calibrated conductivity probes to relate measured conductivity to concentration. Using a standard electrochemical desalination cell with activated carbon electrodes, we demonstrate the calculation of desalination capacity, charge efficiency, energy consumption, and ion selectivity metrics. We address potential pitfalls in performance metric calculations, including leakage current (charge) considerations and aging of conductivity probes, which can lead to inaccurate results. The relationships between pH, temperature, and conductivity are explored, highlighting their influence on final concentrations. Finally, we provide a checklist for calculating performance metrics and planning electrochemical desalination tests to ensure accuracy and reliability. Additionally, we offer simplified spreadsheet tools to aid data processing, system design, estimations, and upscaling.