Tianyu Yang

Facile Fabrication of Core–Shell‐Structured Ag@Carbon and Mesoporous Yolk–Shell‐Structured Ag@Carbon@Silica by an Extended Stöber Method

Layer upon layer: A facile extended Stober method has been developed for the synthesis of diverse metal-carbon spheres, which includes core-shell-structured Ag@carbon, rattle-type Ag,AgBr@meso-SiO, and yolk-shell-structured Ag@carbon@meso-SiO (see figure).

Hierarchical mesoporous yolk-shell structured carbonaceous nanospheres for high performance electrochemical capacitive energy storage.

Hierarchical mesoporous yolk-shell structured carbon nanospheres (YSCNs) with an ordered mesoporous carbon core and a microporous carbon shell show excellent electrochemical performance with a maximal specific capacitance of 159 F g(-1).

Dumbbell-Shaped Bi-component Mesoporous Janus Solid Nanoparticles for Biphasic Interface Catalysis

There is a strong desire to design and synthesize catalysts that assemble at the oil-water interface to improve the efficiency of biphasic reactions. Anisotropic dumbbell-shaped bi-component mesoporous carbon-organosilica Janus particles with asymmetric wettability are synthesized through a one-step compartmentalized growth of a mesoporous organosilica sphere attached to a mesoporous resorcinol-formaldehyde (RF) sphere. A library was prepared of tunable Janus particles possessing diverse hollow structures with various functionalities. As a proof of concept, the Janus particle-derived catalyst can assemble at the oil-water interface to stabilize Pickering emulsions. Owing to the increased reaction interface area, the Janus catalyst exhibits a more than three-fold increase in catalytic efficiency compared to the Pt loaded carbon sphere catalyst in aqueous hydrogenation reactions.

Fabrication of core–shell, yolk–shell and hollow Fe3O4@carbon microboxes for high-performance lithium-ion batteries

Metal oxide–carbon composites with core–shell, yolk–shell and hollow structures have attracted enormous interest because of their applications in lithium-ion batteries. However, the relationship between structure and battery performance is still unclear. Herein, we report the designed synthesis of unique core–shell, yolk–shell and hollow Fe3O4@carbon microboxes through a one-step Stober coating method, followed by a carbonization process. Different calcination temperatures were investigated to manipulate the various structures, and the impact of layer thickness on the battery performance was also assessed. Our results showed that the core–shell structured Fe3O4@carbon microboxes with nitrogen-doped carbon shells having a thickness of 15 nm exhibited an excellent performance in lithium-ion batteries with a high reversible capacity of 857 mA h g−1 that could be retained after 100 cycles at a current density of 0.1 A g−1.

Lithium Germanate (Li2GeO3): A High-Performance Anode Material for Lithium-Ion Batteries

A simple, cost-effective, and easily scalable molten salt method for the preparation of Li2 GeO3 as a new type of high-performance anode for lithium-ion batteries is reported. The Li2 GeO3 exhibits a unique porous architecture consisting of micrometer-sized clusters (secondary particles) composed of numerous nanoparticles (primary particles) and can be used directly without further carbon coating which is a common exercise for most electrode materials. The new anode displays superior cycling stability with a retained charge capacity of 725 mAh g-1 after 300 cycles at 50 mA g-1 . The electrode also offers excellent rate capability with a capacity recovery of 810 mAh g-1 (94 % retention) after 35 cycles of ascending steps of current in the range of 25-800 mA g-1 and finally back to 25 mA g-1 . This work emphasizes the importance of exploring new electrode materials without carbon coating as carbon-coated materials demonstrate several drawbacks in full devices. Therefore, this study provides a method and a new type of anode with high reversibility and long cycle stability.

Yolk-shell-structured nanoparticles: Synthesis, surface functionalization, and their applications in nanomedicine

Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), known as the third generation of solar cells, are being considered as a promising alternative to expensive conventional silicon-based photovoltaic devices. This interest relates to low material cost, easy and inexpensive methods of fabrication, and relatively high power conversion efficiency for DSSCs. Inspired by the breakthrough work of Gri?½tzel, much effort has been made to further improve the performance in the past decades. As one of the key components, the photoanode not only acts as the backbone for dye adsorption but also assumes the task of charge transport, which determines DSSC performance. The conventional TiO2 nanoparticle (NP)-based photoanode suffers from inefficient charge transfer and light harvesting. To optimize the photoanode architecture, we show the design of novel nanostructured photoanode materials featuring large dye uptake ability, efficient charge transfer, and improved light harvesting. In this chapter, the first part provides a brief introduction to various aspects of DSSCs, including device structure, working principles, and characterization techniques. The second part reviews recent advances in the engineering of photoanode architectures, followed by a brief discussion regarding the stability and commercialization of DSSC technology. Our recent work will then be presented in the next section, focusing on the design of new photoanode materials for enhanced DSSC application. In the end, a relevant conclusion and outlook will be addressed for the future development of low-cost and efficient solar cells.Nanosized particles are promising candidates as delivery vehicles in nanomedicine applications. They can be designed to be colloidally stable under diverse environmental conditions found in the body, they have an excellent drug-loading capacity, and their biodistribution can be controlled through size and shape [1]. One unique nanoparticle (NP) with a yolk-shell structure represents a new generation of smart NPs. The yolk-shell nanoparticles (YSNs) or “nanorattles” have a distinctive core-void-shell structure, generally indicated as A-B. The multilevel structure consists of a shell, a void, and a core and could be used for therapy and diagnosis, as first demonstrated by Xu et al. in 2007 [2]. Controlling the physical and chemical properties of the yolk and shell makes YSNs attractive in the delivery of therapeutics, targeting agents, imaging agents, and hyperthermia agents.