This work introduces the polymeric eutectogel (P-ETG) solid composite electrolytes (SCEs) developed from the encapsulation of a liquid deep eutectic solvent (DES) electrolyte within a solid amide-based polymer backbone. Compared to their silica-based eutectogel counterparts, the P-ETGs can be efficiently processed by means of UV curing from liquid precursors and possess superior mechanical flexibility. The P-ETGs are characterized by a good electrochemical stability (up to 4.5 V vs Li) and high ionic conductivity up to 0.78 mS cm–1. The potentiality of P-ETG for application in Li/Li-ion batteries is substantiated by stable cycling results of Li/P-ETG/LiFePO4 cells over 100 cycles at C/5 to 1C rates. The fire-hazards analysis reveals the improved safety of P-ETGs in contrast to the conventional liquid electrolytes (1 M LiPF6 in EC/DEC).

This study reports the low temperature and low pressure conversion (up to 160 °C, p = 3.5 bar) of CO2 and H2 to CO using plasmonic Au/TiO2 nanocatalysts and mildly concentrated artificial sunlight as the sole energy source (up to 13.9 kW·m-2 = 13.9 suns). To distinguish between photothermal and non-thermal contributors, we investigated the impact of the Au nanoparticle size and light intensity on the activity and selectivity of the catalyst. A comparative study between P25 TiO2-supported Au nanocatalysts of a size of 6 nm and 16 nm displayed a 15 times higher activity for the smaller particles, which can only partially be attributed to the higher Au surface area. Other factors that may play a role are e.g., the electronic contact between Au and TiO2 and the ratio between plasmonic absorption and scattering. Both catalysts displayed ≥84% selectivity for CO (side product is CH4). Furthermore, we demonstrated that the catalytic activity of Au/TiO2 increases exponentially with increasing light intensity, which indicated the presence of a photothermal contributor. In dark, however, both Au/TiO2 catalysts solely produced CH4 at the same catalyst bed temperature (160 °C). We propose that the difference in selectivity is caused by the promotion of CO desorption through charge transfer of plasmon generated charges (as a non-thermal contributor).