Editors’ Choice—Visualizing the Impact of the Composite Cathode Microstructure and Porosity on Solid-State Battery Performance

The kinetics of composite cathodes for solid-state batteries (SSBs) relies heavily on their microstructure. Spatial distribution of the different phases, porosity, interface areas, and tortuosity factors are important descriptors that need accurate quantification for models to predict the electrochemistry and mechanics of SSBs. In this study, high-resolution focused ion beam-scanning electron microscopy tomography was used to investigate the microstructure of cathodes composed of a nickel-rich cathode active material (NCM) and a thiophosphate-based inorganic solid electrolyte (ISE). The influence of the ISE particle size on the microstructure of the cathode was visualized by 3D reconstruction and charge transport simulation. By comparison of experimentally determined and simulated conductivities of composite cathodes with different ISE particle sizes, the electrode charge transport kinetics is evaluated. Porosity is shown to have a major influence on the cell kinetics and the evaluation of the active mass of electrochemically active particles reveals a higher fraction of connected NCM particles in electrode composites utilizing smaller ISE particles. The results highlight the importance of homogeneous and optimized microstructures for high performance SSBs, securing fast ion and electron transport

Designing Cathodes and Cathode Active Materials for Solid‐State Batteries

Solid-state batteries (SSBs) currently attract great attention as a potentially safe electrochemical high-energy storage concept. However, several issues still prevent SSBs from outperforming today\u27s lithium-ion batteries based on liquid electrolytes. One major challenge is related to the design of cathode active materials (CAMs) that are compatible with the superionic solid electrolytes (SEs) of interest. This perspective, gives a brief overview of the required properties and possible challenges for inorganic CAMs employed in SSBs, and describes state-of-the art solutions. In particular, the issue of tailoring CAMs is structured into challenges arising on the cathode-, particle-, and interface-level, related to microstructural, (chemo-)mechanical, and (electro-)chemical interplay of CAMs with SEs, and finally guidelines for future CAM development for SSBs are proposed

Environmental and Molecular Mutagenesis Meeting Report Assessing Human Germ-Cell Mutagenesis in the Post-Genome Era: A Celebration of the Legacy of William Lawson (Bill) Russell

ABSTRACT Although numerous germ-cell mutagens have been identified in animal model systems, to date, no human germ-cell mutagens have been confirmed. Because the genomic integrity of our germ cells is essential for the continuation of the human species, a resolution of this enduring conundrum is needed. To facilitate such a resolution, we organized a workshop at The Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine on September [28][29][30] 2004. This interactive workshop brought together scientists from a wide range of disciplines to assess the applicability of emerging molecular methods for genomic analysis to the field of human germ-cell mutagenesis. Participants recommended that focused, coordinated human germ-cell mutation studies be conducted in relation to important societal exposures. Because cancer survivors represent a unique cohort with well-defined exposures, there was a consensus that studies should be designed to assess the mutational impact on children born to parents who had received certain types of mutagenic cancer chemotherapy prior to conceiving their children. Within this high-risk cohort, parents and children could be evaluated for inherited changes in (a) gene sequences and chromosomal structure, (b) repeat sequences and minisatellite regions, and (c) global gene expression and chromatin. Participants also recommended studies to examine trans-generational effects in humans involving mechanisms such as changes in imprinting and methylation patterns, expansion of nucleotide repeats, or induction of mitochondrial DNA mutations. Workshop participants advocated establishment of a bio-bank of human tissue samples that could be used to conduct a multiple-endpoint, comprehensive, and collaborative effort to detect exposure-induced heritable alterations in the human genome. Appropriate animal models of human germ-cell mutagenesis should be used in parallel with human studies to provide insights into the mechanisms of mammalian germ-cell mutagenesis. Finally, participants recommended that 4 scientific specialty groups be convened to address specific questions regarding the potential germ-cell mutagenicity of environmental, occupational, and lifestyle exposures. Strong support from relevant funding agencies and engagement of scientists outside the fields of genomics and germ-cell mutagenesis will be required to launch a full-scale assault on some of the most pressing and enduring questions in environmental mutagenesis: Do human germ-cell mutagens exist, what risk do they pose to future generations, and are some parents at higher risk than others for acquiring and transmitting germ-cell mutations?

Ireland and economic globalization The experiences of a small open economy

Der vorliegende Beitrag untersucht anhand der Republik Irland die Erfahrungen, die eine kleine offene Volkswirtschaft mit der wirtschaftlichen Globalisierung gemacht hat. Dabei werden zwei Annahmen aus der Globalisierungsliteratur ueberprueft: (1) Im gleichen Masse, wie die wirtschaftliche Globalisierung zunimmt, reduziert sich die Moeglichkeit des Staates, den nationalen Arbeitsmarkt und die Institutionen zu beeinflussen. (2) Globalisierung fuehrt notwendigerweise zu einer steigenden Unsicherheit sowohl auf dem Arbeitsmarkt als auch bei der Entscheidung, ob und wie viel Kinder gewuenscht werden. Am Beispiel der juengsten irischen Geschichte argumentieren die Autoren, dass Staaten wichtige Akteure sind, wenn es um die Ausgestaltung der Globalisierung geht, und dass der Staat in Kombination mit Wirtschaftszyklen Arbeitsmarkt und Geburtenrate beeinflusst. Im ersten Kapitel erfolgt ein kurzer historischer Ueberblick, der den Uebergang Irlands zu einer offenen, nach aussen orientierten Oekonomie seit 1950 umreisst. Im naechsten Kapitel werden die Risiken der Globalisierung unter besonderer Beruecksichtigung des Arbeitsmarktes behandelt. Die Autoren beleuchten in diesem Zusammenhang zwei konkurrierende Hypothesen ueber die Verteilung der Risiken auf dem Arbeitsmarkt: zum einen das 'Segmentationsargument' und zum anderen das 'Individualisierungs- oder Transzendenzargument'. Im vierten Kapitel werden die verwendeten Daten vorgestellt. In Kapitel fuenf werden die zuvor behandelten Hypothesen empirisch ueberprueft. Abschliessend gehen die Autoren nochmals auf die Bedeutung des Staates beim Globalisierungsprozess ein und zeigen auf, dass sich die soziale und oekonomische Sicherheit in Irland seit der wirtschaftlichen Oeffnung verbessert hat. (ICD)German title: Irland und die wirtschaftliche Globalisierung: die Erfahrungen einer kleinen offenen VolkswirtschaftAvailable from http://alia.soziologie.uni-bielefeld.de/ / FIZ - Fachinformationszzentrum Karlsruhe / TIB - Technische InformationsbibliothekSIGLEDEGerman

The complexity of convergence:a multi-dimensional analysis of compulsory income management and social investment in New Zealand and Australia

New Zealand and Australia have both adopted compulsory income management and an actuarially-based “social investment” approach since 2012, suggesting the two countries engaged in “policy transfer” and that their policy settings have converged over the past decade. Focusing on four of the six types of policy convergence identified by Hay [Hay, C. 2004. “Common Trajectories, Variable Paces, Divergent Outcomes? Models of European Capitalism Under Conditions of Complex Economic Interdependence.” Review of International Political Economy 11 (2): 231–262.] typology, we tease out differing levels of input, policy, paradigm and legitimatory rhetoric convergence and divergence between these policies. Our findings challenge initial assumptions that policy in the two countries became more similar after 2012 and highlight the need for multi-dimensional analyses examining varied types of convergence across different countries, policies and timeframes.</p

The trope of the vulnerable child in conditional welfare discourses: An Australian case study

Conditional welfare policies are frequently underpinned by pejorative representations of those they target. Vulnerable children, under physical or moral threat from their welfare-dependent parents, are a mainstay of these constructions, yet the nuances of this trope have received little focused attention. Through a discourse analysis of parliamentary debates at the introduction of compulsory income management (CIM) to Australia, this article explores the complexities of the vulnerable child trope. It shows how the figure of the child was leveraged to justify hard-line welfare reforms in Australia, and offers a deeper and more intersectional understanding of how social and economic marginalisation is reproduced through welfare discourse