Composite Gel Polymer Electrolyte for Improved Cyclability in Lithium–Oxygen Batteries

Gel polymer electrolytes (GPE) and composite GPE (cGPE) using one-dimensional glass microfillers have been developed for their use in lithium–oxygen batteries. Using glass microfillers, tetraglyme solvent, UV-curable polymer, and lithium salt at various concentrations, the preparation of cGPE yielded free-standing films. These cGPEs, with 1 wt % of microfillers, demonstrated increased ionic conductivity and lithium transference number over GPEs at various concentrations of lithium salt. Improvements as high as 50% and 28% in lithium transference number were observed for 0.1 and 1.0 mol kg^–1 salt concentrations, respectively. Lithium–oxygen batteries containing cGPE similarly showed superior charge/discharge cycling for 500 mAh g^–1 cycle capacity with as high as 86% and 400% increase in cycles for cGPE with 1.0 and 0.1 mol kg^–1 over GPE. Results using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy revealed that the source of the improvement was the reduction of the rate of lithium carbonates formation on the surface of the cathode. This reduction in formation rate afforded by cGPE-containing batteries was possible due to the reduction of the rate of electrolyte decomposition. The increase in solvated to paired Li⁺ ratio at the cathode, afforded by increased lithium transference number, helped reduce the probability of superoxide radicals reacting with the tetraglyme solvent. This stabilization during cycling helped prolong the cycling life of the batteries

Tunable Size and Spectral Properties of Fluorescent NanoGUMBOS in Modified Sodium Deoxycholate Hydrogels

Microstructures of sodium deoxycholate hydrogels were altered considerably in the presence of variable tris(hydroxymethyl)aminomethane (TRIS) concentrations. These observations were confirmed by use of X-ray diffraction, polarized optical microscopy, rheology, and differential scanning calorimetry measurements. Our studies reveal enhanced gel crystallinity and rigidity with increasing TRIS concentrations. The tunable hydrogel microstructures obtained under various conditions have been successfully utilized as templates to synthesize cyanine-based fluorescent nanoGUMBOS (nanoparticles from a group of uniform materials based on organic salts). A systematic variation in size (70–200 nm), with relatively low polydispersity and tunable spectral properties of [HMT][AOT] nanoGUMBOS, was achieved by use of these modified hydrogels. The gel microstructures are observed to direct the size as well as molecular self-assembly of the nanomaterials, thereby tuning their spectral properties. These modified hydrogels were also found to possess other interesting properties such as variable morphologies ranging from fibrous to spherulitic, variable degrees of crystallinity, rigidity, optical activity, and release profiles which can be exploited for a multitude of applications. Hence, this study demonstrates a novel method for modification of sodium deoxycholate hydrogels, their applications as templates for nanomaterials synthesis, as well as their potential applications in biotechnology and drug delivery