Colloidal Hydroxyapatite/Poly(Acrylic Acid) Hybrids Using Calcium Sucrate and Ammoniumdihydrogen Orthophosphate

This manuscript is concerned with a simple and novel method to synthesize hydroxyapatite-poly(acylic acid) hybrid materials for broad range of applications. In this method, hydroxyapatite nanoparticles are synthesized using calcium sucrate and ammoniumdihydrogen orthophosphate in the presence of poly(acrylic acid). Increase in poly(acrylic acid) concentration in the synthesis medium results in the increase in the hydrodynamic radius of particle size allowing increased hydration. Poly(acylic acid) tends to control both crystallite size and colloidal stability. Increase in poly(acrylic acid) concentration decreases the crystallite size of the products but considerably increases their shelf life as stable colloidal solutions. Thermo gravimetric analysis shows that there are no combustible or volatile impurities present in these samples. This is further supported by FT-IR studies, which show three types of interactions between hydroxyapatite nanoparticles and poly(acrylic acid)

Stoichiometrically optimized eg orbital occupancy of Ni-Co oxide catalysts for Li-air batteries

Li-air battery (LAB) technology is making continuous progress toward its theoretical capacity, which is comparable to gasoline. However, the sluggish reaction at the cathode is still a challenge. We propose a simple strategy to optimize the surface eg occupancy by adjusting the stoichiometric ratios of transition metal-based spinel structures through a controlled hydrothermal synthesis. Three distinct stoichiometries of Ni-Co oxides were used to demonstrate the direct correlation between stoichiometry and catalytic performance. The groundsel flower-like structure having a 1 : 1.4 Ni : Co atomic ratio with high surface area, high defect density, and an abundance of Ni3+ at the surface with semi-filled eg orbitals was found to benefit the structure promoting high catalytic activities in aqueous and aprotic media. The assembled LAB cells employing this cathode demonstrate an exceptional lifespan, operating for 3460 hours and completing 173 cycles while achieving the highest discharge capacity of 13 759 mA h g-1 and low charging overpotentials. The key to this prolonged performance lies in the full reversibility of the cell, attributed to its excellent OER performance. A well-surface adsorbed, amorphous LiO2/Li2O2 discharge product is found to possess high diffusivity and ease of decomposition, contributing significantly to the enhanced longevity of the cell