Separator is a very important set of lithium-ion batteries. At present, low porosity and poor thermal stability are two major disadvantages of separator. In this work, we first apply electrospinning method to prepare the Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) nanofiber separator, which has the advantages of electrospinning method and PTFE materials. The effect of the PTFE nanofiber separator is investigated by scanning electron microscope, Capillary Flow Porometer, thermogravimetric-differential scanning calorimeter, linear sweep voltammeter, AC impedance, and charge/discharge cycling tests. The results demonstrate that the PTFE nanofiber separator has a special fiber structure made from PTFE particles gathering one by one along the fibers. Moreover, the PTFE nanofiber separator exhibits several advantages, including suitable pore diameter, uniform pore size distribution, high porosity, and electrolyte uptake, which enhance the ionic conductivity. The thermal stability of the PTFE nanofiber separator is much better than that of the conventional polyolefin separator. The Li/LiCoO 2 cell equipped with PTFE nanofiber separator exhibits excellent rate performance and first charge-discharge specific capacity of 142 and 131 mA h g 21 , respectively, accompanied by relatively stable cycle performance at 0.2 C rate. It is supposed to be a candidate for application in lithium-ion batteries. V C 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci.2018, 135, 46508.

Developing cost-effective Ir-based anode catalysts for proton exchange membrane (PEM) water electrolysis has been recognized as an efficient and pragmatic approach, however, many challenges remain to lower Ir content while...

In this work, a thin and smooth PEI/Dopamine coating layer was immobilized onto the PP separator skeleton via co‐deposition of dopamine and polyethyleneimine (PEI, 600 Da). The PEI/Dopamine decorated separator was characterized by SEM, FT‐IR/ATR, XPS, UV, EDX, DSC, contact angle and electrochemical methods. The PEI/Dopamine decorated separator showed stable thermal performance. The pure water contact angle was reduced after PEI/Dopamine coating modification. The electrolyte uptake was improved by reason of the boosted compatibility between separator and liquid electrolyte. Meanwhile, the high absorption rate of electrolytes and the introduction of polar functional groups promote the desolvation of lithium ions and the dissociation of lithium salts, thereby improving the ionic conductivity. Batteries assembled with PEI/Dopamine decorated separator displayed more stable cycle performance and the C‐rate performance was greatly enhanced. These results demonstrate that PEI/Dopamine decorated separator is expected to be an ideal choice for high power lithium‐ion batteries.

A low-cost CoFe2O4/biomass carbon (CFO@BC/Zn) hybrid from Co-enriched Sulfate Reducing Bacteria (Co-SRB) as an electrocatalyst for OER. The electrocatalyst exhibits a low potential of 1.53 V at a current density 10 mA cm−2 and Tafel slope of 86 mV dec−1.