HOT Articles in EES

The following HOT articles have been highlighted by the reviewers of the articles as being particularly interesting or significant pieces of research. These are all free to access until 18/06/2015. The order they appear in the list has no meaning or ranking.


A thermodynamic tank model for studying the effect of higher hydrocarbons on natural gas storage in metal–organic frameworks
Hongda Zhang, Pravas Deria, Omar K. Farha, Joseph T. Hupp and Randall Q. Snurr
DOI: 10.1039/C5EE00808E, Paper

C5EE00808E GA


Hydrogen or batteries for grid storage? A net energy analysis
Matthew A. Pellow, Christopher J. M. Emmott, Charles J. Barnhart and Sally M. Benson
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE04041D, Analysis

C4EE04041D GA


A quantitative analysis of the efficiency of solar-driven water-splitting device designs based on tandem photoabsorbers patterned with islands of metallic electrocatalyst
Yikai Chen, Ke Sun, Heather Audesirk, Chengxiang Xiang and Nathan S. Lewis
DOI: 10.1039/C5EE00311C, Paper

C5EE00311C GA


Metal–organic frameworks and their derived nanostructures for electrochemical energy storage and conversion
Wei Xia, Asif Mahmood, Ruqiang Zou and Qiang Xu
DOI: 10.1039/C5EE00762C, Review Article

C5EE00762C GA


You can’t have an energy revolution without transforming advances in materials, chemistry and catalysis into policy change and action
Geoffrey A. Ozin
DOI: 10.1039/C5EE00907C, Perspective

C5EE00907C GA


A simple spiro-type hole transporting material for efficient perovskite solar cells
Paramaguru Ganesan, Kunwu Fu, Peng Gao, Ines Raabe, Kurt Schenk, Rosario Scopelliti, Jingshan Luo, Lydia H. Wong, Michael Grätzel and Mohammad Khaja Nazeeruddin
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE03773A, Communication

C4EE03773A GA

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Electricity harvested from magnetic noise

In Korea, Jungho Ryu and colleagues at the Korea Institute of Materials Science, have designed a magneto–mechano–electric generator that harvests magnetic energy from the environment.  It is made from a magnetostrictive single crystal composite that elongates and contracts in a low frequency magnetic field. The strain induced in this material outputs a voltage and Ryu’s team have demonstrated that their device can harvest energy from a vacuum pump cable to power 35 light emitting diodes. They are conducting further studies to improve its power density and the materials science community is excited about how this technology could be utilised in the future.

Want to know more?

Read the full article in Chemistry World by Heather Powell.

Or, take a look at the original article which is free to access until 15th June 2015:

Ubiquitous magneto-mechano-electric generator” by J. Ryu et al., DOI:10.1039/C5EE00414D

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Professor Henry Snaith elected Fellow of the Royal Society

Credit: University of Oxford

We are pleased to announce that Professor Henry Snaith, of the Clarendon Laboratory at Oxford University and Energy and Environmental Science Advisory Board member, has been elected a fellow of the Royal Society. Fellows of the Royal Society are elected for life through a peer review process on the basis of excellence in science and we would like to congratulate Henry on this achievement.

As head of the Photovolatic and Optoelectronic Device Group, Henry leads an interdisciplinary research team which focusses on optoelectronic materials synthesis, device development and characterisation with the primary focus of developing low cost photovoltaic concepts. Henry has pioneered the development of hybrid materials for energy and photovoltaics and the recent discovery of highly efficient perovskite solar cells has received much attention by the academic community and by industry as a low-cost alternative to silicon photovoltaics.

Read a selection of Henry’s papers – free to access until 15th June 2015:

Low-temperature processed meso-superstructured to thin-film perovskite solar cells, James M. Ball, Michael M. Lee, Andrew Hey and Henry J. Snaith, Energy Environ. Sci., 2013,6, 1739-1743, DOI: 10.1039/C3EE40810H

Formamidinium lead trihalide: a broadly tunable perovskite for efficient planar heterojunction solar cells, Giles E. Eperon, Samuel D. Stranks, Christopher Menelaou, Michael B. Johnston, Laura M. Herz and Henry J. Snaith, Energy Environ. Sci., 2014,7, 982-988, DOI: 10.1039/C3EE43822H

Sub-150 °C processed meso-superstructured perovskite solar cells with enhanced efficiency, Konrad Wojciechowski, Michael Saliba, Tomas Leijtens, Antonio Abate and Henry J. Snaith, Energy Environ. Sci., 2014,7, 1142-1147, DOI: 10.1039/C3EE43707H

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Membrane-less water splitting device

A water splitting electrolyser typically contains an ion-conducting membrane which separates the electrodes and keeps the oxygen and hydrogen apart, preventing explosion. However, these membranes are expensive and thus the development of a membrane-less electrolyser is an exciting advance. Researchers at Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne, led by Demetri Psaltis, have developed such a device by exploiting the Segré–Silberberg effect. The oxygen and hydrogen are kept separate as the distance between the two electrodes is less than a few hundred micrometres and they do not mix because lift forces in the narrow passage push them towards the wall they evolved from.This is a microfluidic device that provides promising proof-of-concept and the group are now attempting to scale up.

Want to know more?

Read the full article in Chemistry World by Isobel Marr.

Or, take a look at the original article which is free to access untill 1st June 2015:

A membrane-less electrolyzer for hydrogen production across the pH scale” by S. Mohammad H. Hashemi,  Miguel A. Modestino and Demetri Psaltis, DOI:10.1039/C5EE00083A

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Ultrasound test echos with battery charge

Measuring the charge within a battery can often involve the use of expensive equipment such as synchrotron light sources, which are not accessible to all researchers. However, scientists at Princeton University lead by Dr Daniel Steingart have developed a method of using ultrasound echoes to measure charge within a battery at different times, giving physical insight into a battery’s state. This ultrasomic imaging of what is happening inside a cell could prove to be useful commercially.

Want to know more?

Read the full article in Chemistry World by Osman Mohamed.

Or, take a look at the original article which is free to access untill 2nd June 2015:

Electrochemical-acoustic time of flight: in operando correlation of physical dynamics with battery charge and health by A. G. Hsieh, S. Bhadra, B. J. Hertzberg,  P. J. Gjeltema, A. Goy,  J. W. Fleischer and  D. A. Steingart, DOI: 10.1039/C5EE00111K.

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HOT Articles in EES

The following HOT articles have been highlighted by the reviewers of the articles as being particularly interesting or significant pieces of research. These are all free to access until 15/05/2015. The order they appear in the list has no meaning or ranking.

Positive onset potential and stability of Cu2O-based photocathodes in water splitting by atomic layer deposition of a Ga2O3 buffer layer
Changli Li, Takashi Hisatomi, Osamu Watanabe, Mamiko Nakabayashi, Naoya Shibata, Kazunari Domen and Jean-Jacques Delaunay
DOI: 10.1039/C5EE00250H, Paper

C5EE00250H GA

Toward the rational design of non-precious transition metal oxides for oxygen electrocatalysis
Wesley T. Hong, Marcel Risch, Kelsey A. Stoerzinger, Alexis Grimaud, Jin Suntivich and Yang Shao-Horn
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE03869J, Review Article

C4EE03869J GA

Tracking the structural arrangement of ions in carbon supercapacitor nanopores using in situ small-angle X-ray scattering
C. Prehal, D. Weingarth, E. Perre, R. T. Lechner, H. Amenitsch, O. Paris and V. Presser
Journal Article
DOI: 10.1039/C5EE00488H, Paper

C5EE00488H GA

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HOT Articles in EES

The following HOT articles have been highlighted by the reviewers of the articles as being particularly interesting or significant pieces of research. These are all free to access until 31/03/2015. The order they appear in the list has no meaning or ranking.

CO2-free electric power circulation via direct charge and discharge using the glycolic acid/oxalic acid redox couple

R. Watanabe, M.Yamauchi, M.Sadakiyo, R. Abe and T. Takeguchi
DOI: 10.1039/C5EE00192G

10.1039/C5EE00192G


Atomic scale enhancement of metal–support interactions between Pt and ZrC for highly stable electrocatalysts
Niancai Cheng,  Mohammad Norouzi Banis, Jian Liu, Adam Riese, Shichun Mu, Ruying Li, Tsun-Kong Sham and Xueliang Sun

DOI: 10.1039/C4EE04086D

10.1039/C4EE04086D


Novel scalable synthesis of highly conducting and robust PEDOT paper for a high performance flexible solid supercapacitor
Bihag Anothumakkool, Roby Soni, Siddheshwar, N. Bhangea and Sreekumar Kurungot

DOI: 10.1039/C5EE00142K

 DOI: 10.1039/C5EE00142K


Olivine LiFePO4: the remaining challenges for future energy storage
Jiajun Wang and  Xueliang Sun

DOI: 10.1039/C4EE04016C

10.1039/C4EE04016C


Anomalously large interface charge in polarity-switchable photovoltaic devices: an indication of mobile ions in organic–inorganic halide perovskites
Yong Zhao, Chunjun Liang, Huimin Zhang, Dan Li, Ding Tian, Guobao Li, Xiping Jing, Wenguan Zhang, Weikang Xiao, Qian Liu,  Fujun Zhang and  Zhiqun He

DOI: 10.1039/C4EE04064C

10.1039/C4EE04064C


SnO2 nanocrystal-decorated mesoporous ZSM-5 as a precious metal-free electrode catalyst for methanol oxidation
Xiangzhi Cui,Yan Zhu, Zile Hua, Jingwei Feng,  Ziwei Liu, Lisong Chena and Jianlin Shi

DOI: 10.1039/C5EE00240K

10.1039/C5EE00240K


Hierarchical zigzag Na1.25V3O8 nanowires with topotactically encoded superior performance for sodium-ion battery cathodes
Yifan Dong, Shuo Li, Kangning Zhao, Chunhua Han, Wei Chen,  Bingliang Wang, Lei Wang, Boan Xu, Qiulong Wei, Lei Zhang, Xu Xua and Liqiang Mai

DOI: 10.1039/C5EE00036J

10.1039/C5EE00036J


CO2-free electric power circulation via direct charge and discharge using the glycolic acid/oxalic acid redox couple
R. Watanabe, M. Yamauchi, M. Sadakiyo, R. Abe and T. Takeguchi

DOI: 10.1039/C5EE00192G

10.1039/C5EE00192G


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Nanoporous methane storage – an impossible target?

Emma Stephen writes about an EES article in Chemistry World.


Is it possible to design a material to fulfil current methane storage goals? This is the question that a multi-disciplinary research team set out to answer by rapidly screening hundreds of thousands of possible methane storage materials in a computational study. Methane could reduce global dependence on oil so the search is on for nanoporous materials to act as fuel tanks for this tricky-to-store gas; but things are not looking promising.

C4EE03515A GA
Interested to find out more? Read the full article by Emma Stephen in Chemistry World.

Read the original article in Energy and Environmental Science:

The materials genome in action: identifying the performance limits for methane storage
Cory M. Simon, Jihan Kim, Diego A. Gomez-Gualdron, Jeffrey S. Camp, Yongchul G. Chung, Richard L. Martin, Rocio Mercado, Michael W. Deem, Dan Gunter, Maciej Haranczyk, David S. Sholl, Randall Q. Snurr and Berend Smit
Energy Environ. Sci., 2015, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE03515A, Perspective

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HOT Articles in EES

The following HOT articles have been highlighted by the reviewers of the articles as being particularly interesting or significant pieces of research. These are all free to access until 28th February 2015. The order they appear in the list has no meaning or ranking.


Microbial electrochemistry and technology: terminology and classification
Uwe Schröder, Falk Harnisch and Largus T. Angenent  
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE03359K, Perspective


A silole copolymer containing a ladder-type heptacylic arene and naphthobisoxadiazole moieties for highly efficient polymer solar cells
Zhiyun Zhang, Francis Lin, Hsieh-Chih Chen, Hung-Chin Wu, Chin-Lung Chung, Chien Lu, Shih-Hung Liu, Shih-Huang Tung, Wen-Chang Chen, Ken-Tsung Wong and Pi-Tai Chou  
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE03642E, Communication

C4EE03642E GA


Material descriptors for predicting thermoelectric performance
Jun Yan, Prashun Gorai, Brenden Ortiz, Sam Miller, Scott A. Barnett, Thomas Mason, Vladan Stevanović and Eric S. Toberer  
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE03157A, Paper


Understanding the rate-dependent J–V hysteresis, slow time component, and aging in CH3NH3PbI3 perovskite solar cells: the role of a compensated electric field
W. Tress, N. Marinova, T. Moehl, S. M. Zakeeruddin, Mohammad Khaja Nazeeruddin and M. Grätzel  
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE03664F, Paper


Polyoxometalate-functionalized nanocarbon materials for energy conversion, energy storage and sensor systems
Yuanchun Ji, Lujiang Huang, Jun Hu, Carsten Streb and Yu-Fei Song  
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE03749A, Review Article

C4EE03749A GA


Power-to-What? – Environmental assessment of energy storage systems
André Sternberg and André Bardow  
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE03051F, Analysis


Flexible graphene devices related to energy conversion and storage
Xiluan Wang and Gaoquan Shi  
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE03685A, Review Article


Light management in thin film silicon solar cells
F.-J. Haug and C. Ballif  
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE03346A, Review Article


1,2,4-Triazolium perfluorobutanesulfonate as an archetypal pure protic organic ionic plastic crystal electrolyte for all-solid-state fuel cells
Jiangshui Luo, Annemette H. Jensen, Neil R. Brooks, Jeroen Sniekers, Martin Knipper, David Aili, Qingfeng Li, Bram Vanroy, Michael Wübbenhorst, Feng Yan, Luc Van Meervelt, Zhigang Shao, Jianhua Fang, Zheng-Hong Luo, Dirk E. De Vos, Koen Binnemans and Jan Fransaer  
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE02280G, Paper


The materials genome in action: identifying the performance limits for methane storage
Cory M. Simon, Jihan Kim, Diego A. Gomez-Gualdron, Jeffrey S. Camp, Yongchul G. Chung, Richard L. Martin, Rocio Mercado, Michael W. Deem, Dan Gunter, Maciej Haranczyk, David S. Sholl, Randall Q. Snurr and Berend Smit  
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE03515A, Perspective


Bioelectrodes modified with chitosan for long-term energy supply from the body
S. El Ichi, A. Zebda, J.-P. Alcaraz, A. Laaroussi, F. Boucher, J. Boutonnat, N. Reverdy-Bruas, D. Chaussy, M. N. Belgacem, P. Cinquin and D. K. Martin  
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE03430A, Paper


β-cyclodextrin enhanced triboelectrification for self-powered phenol detection and electrochemical degradation
Zhaoling Li, Jun Chen, Jin Yang, Yuanjie Su, Xing Fan, Ying Wu, Chongwen Yu and Zhong Lin Wang  
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE03596H, Communication

Cooperative kinetics of depolarization in CH3NH3PbI3 perovskite solar cells
Luca Bertoluzzi, Rafael S. Sanchez, Linfeng Liu, Jin-Wook Lee, Elena Mas-Marza, Hongwei Han, Nam-Gyu Park, Ivan Mora-Sero and Juan Bisquert  
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE03171G, Communication
C4EE03171G GA

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HOT Articles in EES

The following HOT articles have been highlighted by the reviewers of the articles as being particularly interesting or significant pieces of research. These are all free to access until 31st January 2015. The order they appear in the list has no meaning or ranking.

Automated vehicles and electrification of transport
Gregory James
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE02229G, Opinion

C4EE02229G GA

Band engineering of high performance p-type FeNbSb based half-Heusler thermoelectric materials for figure of merit zT > 1
Chenguang Fu, Tiejun Zhu, Yintu Liu, Hanhui Xie and Xinbing Zhao  
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE03042G, Communication

C4EE03042G GA

Mechanistic insights into solar water oxidation by cobalt-phosphate-modified α-Fe2O3 photoanodes
Gerard M. Carroll, Diane K. Zhong and Daniel R. Gamelin  
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE02869D, Paper

C4EE02869D GA

Theory, practice and prospects of X-ray and neutron scattering for lignocellulosic biomass characterization: towards understanding biomass pretreatment
Gang Cheng, Xin Zhang, Blake Simmons and Seema Singh  
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE03147D, Review Article

C4EE03147D GA

Peanut shell hybrid sodium ion capacitor with extreme energy–power rivals lithium ion capacitors
Jia Ding, Huanlei Wang, Zhi Li, Kai Cui, Dimitre Karpuzov, Xuehai Tan, Alireza Kohandehghan and David Mitlin  
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE02986K, Paper

C4EE02986K GA

Adipic acid production from lignin
Derek R. Vardon, Mary Ann Franden, Christopher W. Johnson, Eric M. Karp, Michael T. Guarnieri, Jeffrey G. Linger, Michael J. Salm, Timothy J. Strathmann and Gregg T. Beckham  
DOI: 10.1039/C4EE03230F, Paper

C4EE03230F GA

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