Xixia Zhao

Carbon quantum dot-induced self-assembly of ultrathin Ni(OH) 2 nanosheets: A facile method for fabricating three-dimensional porous hierarchical composite micro-nanostructures with excellent supercapacitor performance

Significant efforts have been directed towards the preparation and application of porous hierarchically structured materials owing to their large surface area, rich active sites, and enhanced mass transport and diffusion. In this study, a simple and cost-effective method for the carbon quantum dot (CQD)-induced assembly of two-dimensional ultrathin Ni(OH)2 nanosheets into a three-dimensional (3D) porous hierarchical structure was developed. The electrostatic forces between the CQDs and cations drove the self-assembly of the 3D CQDs/Ni(OH)2 hierarchical structures. As a new type of structure-directing agent, the CQDs played dual roles in tuning the morphology of the products and improving the supercapacitor performance. The multilevel CQDs/Ni(OH)2 micro-nanostructures had a large specific surface area and rich porosity. Owing to their unique structures and the conductivity of the CQDs, an optimized asymmetric supercapacitor using the CQDs/Ni(OH)2 exhibited a maximum specific capacity of 161.3 F·g–1 and a high energy density of 57.4 Wh·kg–1. This study introduces a potential method for the fabrication of many other 3D hierarchical structures with great potential for applications in various fields.

A facile approach to fabricate superhydrophobic and corrosion resistant surface

In the present study, we have fabricated superhydrophobic CuO nanostructured surfaces by a simple solution-immersion process and a subsequent chemical modification with various thiol groups. The morphology of the CuO nanostructures on the copper foil could be easily controlled by simply changing the reaction time. The influences of reaction time and the thiol groups on hydrophobic properties have been discussed in detail. It is shown that the chemically modified CuO nanostructured surfaces present remarkable superhydrophobic performance and non-sticking behaviour. Furthermore, a lower corrosion current density (icorr) and a higher corrosion potential (Ecorr) of the prepared superhydrophobic surface was observed in comparison with the bare Cu foil by immersing in a 3.5 wt% NaCl solution, indicating a good corrosion resistance capability. Our work provides a general, facile and low-cost route towards the preparation of superhydrophobic surface, which has potential applications in the fields of self-cleaning, anti-corrosion, and oil–water separation.

Ultrathin Metal–Organic Framework Nanosheet-Derived Ultrathin Co3O4 Nanomeshes with Robust Oxygen-Evolving Performance and Asymmetric Supercapacitors

Ultrathin metal-organic framework (MOF) nanosheets possessing inherent advantages of both two-dimensional (2D) features and MOFs are attracting intensive research interest. The direct manufacture of MOF nanosheets is still a challenge up to now. Here, we have developed a novel bottom-up approach to synthesize zeolitic imidazolate framework-67 (ZIF-67) nanosheets, which can be in situ converted into Co3O4 ultrathin nanomeshes after thermal treatment. Interestingly, the obtained Co3O4 nanomeshes are rich in oxygen defects, providing fruitful active sites for the faradaic reaction. The modified electrode exhibits a large specific capacitance (1216.4 F g-1 at 1 A g-1), as well as a high rate capability (925.5 F g-1 at 20 A g-1). Moreover, an asymmetric supercapacitor made of Co3O4//activated carbon shows an energy density of 46.5 Wh kg-1 at 790.7 W kg-1. Furthermore, the 2D Co3O4 ultrathin nanomeshes show an outstanding performance for the oxygen evolution reaction with an overpotential of 230 mV at the onset potential and a small Tafel slope of 74.0 mV dec-1. The present method presents a facile avenue to the preparation of other 2D ultrathin metal oxide nanostructures with various applications in energy catalysis and conversion.

Rational Design of Co(II) Dominant and Oxygen Vacancy Defective CuCo2O4@CQDs Hollow Spheres for Enhanced Overall Water Splitting and Supercapacitor Performance

The hierarchical CuCo2O4@carbon quantum dots (CQDs) hollow microspheres constructed by 1D porous nanowires have been successfully prepared through a simple CQDs-induced hydrothermal self-assembly technique. XPS analysis shows the CuCo2O4@CQDs possesses the Co(II)-rich surface associated with the oxygen vacancies, which can effectively boost the Faradaic reactions and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) activity. For example, the as-synthesized 3D porous CuCo2O4@CQDs electrode exhibits high activity toward overall electrochemical water splitting, for example, an overpotential of 290 mV for OER and 331 mV for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in alkaline media have been achieved at 10 mA cm-2, respectively. Furthermore, an asymmetric supercapacitor (ASC) (CuCo2O4@CQDs//CNTs) delivers a high energy density of 45.9 Wh kg-1 at 763.4 W kg-1, as well as good cycling ability. The synergy of Co(II)-rich surface, oxygen vacancies, and well-defined 3D hollow structures facilitates the subsequent surface electrochemical reactions. This work presents a facile method to fabricate energetic nanocomposites with highly reactive, durable, and universal functionalities.