Improved lithium-ion battery anode capacity with a network of easily fabricated spindle-like carbon nanofibers

• Mengting Liu,
• Wenhe Xie,
• Lili Gu,
• Tianfeng Qin,
• Xiaoyi Hou and
• Deyan He

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1289–1295, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.120

• MnO and carbon materials can effectively resolve problems such as the high conductivity of the carbon materials and allows a buffering for the volume expansion or contraction to some degree. Moreover, many studies have shown that N modification can improve the conductivity and Li+ storage performance

• of carbon materials [4][8][15]. Based on these pioneer works, the electrochemical properties of a system consisting of carbon materials, MnO nanostructures and a N element should be further studied for the development of high-performance LIBs. Various MnO–C composites with controlled nanostructures

• carbon materials can be successfully applied for LIB electrodes. Experimental Fabrication of the carbon network All chemicals were of analytical degree and were used without any purification. A typical procedure is as follows. Firstly, 0.45 g of manganese acetate tetrahydrate (Mn(COOH)2·4H2O), together

Reasons and remedies for the agglomeration of multilayered graphene and carbon nanotubes in polymers

• Rasheed Atif and
• Fawad Inam

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1174–1196, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.109

• polymers. Carbon nanotubes CNTs were first discovered by Iijima in 1991, who produced multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) through arc-discharge evaporation [33]. The synthesis of CNTs can be linked to the discovery of fullerene C60 (buckyball) in 1985 [34]. CNTs can be regarded as one dimensional carbon

• materials with aspect ratios greater than 1000 [35]. CNTs have density down to about 1.3 g·cm−3 [2]. The graphite planes in CNTs are rolled up in cylindrical shape with diameters at the nanoscale. The ends of CNTs are capped with hemifullerene [35]. Hemifullerene is more reactive than CNTs itself due to the

Manufacturing and investigation of physical properties of polyacrylonitrile nanofibre composites with SiO₂, TiO₂ and Bi₂O₃ nanoparticles

• Tomasz Tański,
• Wiktor Matysiak and
• Barbara Hajduk

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1141–1155, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.106

• , Silesian University of Technology, Konarskiego 18a Str., 44-100 Gliwice, Poland Centre of Polymer and Carbon Materials, Polish Academy of Sciences, 34 M. Curie-Sklodowska Str., 41-819 Zabrze, Poland 10.3762/bjnano.7.106 Abstract The aim of this study was to produce nanocomposite polymer fibres, consisting

Facile synthesis of water-soluble carbon nano-onions under alkaline conditions

• Gaber Hashem Gaber Ahmed,
• Rosana Badía Laíño,
• Josefa Angela García Calzón and
• Marta Elena Díaz García

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 758–766, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.67

• H2SO4 (n = 1.33) with a quantum yield of 0.54 at λex = 350 nm was used as a reference. C-dots and C-onions were dissolved in Milli-Q water (n = 1.33). Instrumentation HRTEM (JEOL JEM-2100F, 200 kV) was used to determine the size and morphology of the synthesized carbon materials. Powder X-ray

Efficiency improvement in the cantilever photothermal excitation method using a photothermal conversion layer

• Natsumi Inada,
• Hitoshi Asakawa,
• Taiki Kobayashi and
• Takeshi Fukuma

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 409–417, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.36

• . This is because carbon materials (e.g., graphite and CNT) provide a high efficiency in conversion of light to heat [28][29][30] and hence are used in various fields such as printing technology and thermal-type infrared sensing. Since colloidal graphite shows a high absorption efficiency at wide

Characterisation of thin films of graphene–surfactant composites produced through a novel semi-automated method

• Nik J. Walch,
• Alexei Nabok,
• Frank Davis and
• Séamus P. J. Higson

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 209–219, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.19

• –2700 cm−1. This is indicative of graphene flakes with a high number of edge defects [17]. The G band is present in all sp2-hybridised carbon materials, and is caused by stretching of the C–C bond. The reduction in intensity in the graphene spectrum compared with the graphite spectrum is caused by the

Synthesis and applications of carbon nanomaterials for energy generation and storage

• Marco Notarianni,
• Jinzhang Liu,
• Kristy Vernon and
• Nunzio Motta

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 149–196, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.17

Nanostructures for sensors, electronics, energy and environment II

• Nunzio Motta

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1937–1938, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.197

• be exploited in room temperature gas sensing devices. The plasmonic effect, generated by the inclusion of metallic nanoparticles, can be used to overcome certain limitations of the carbon materials, especially in organic solar cells [5]. The optical properties of nanomaterials can also be exploited

Possibilities and limitations of advanced transmission electron microscopy for carbon-based nanomaterials

• Xiaoxing Ke,
• Carla Bittencourt and
• Gustaaf Van Tendeloo

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1541–1557, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.158

• ” referring to charcoal. The use of charcoal, soot and coal dates back to prehistoric times, when nano-structured carbon materials already existed. Analysis of prehistoric cave paintings in Altamira (Spain) and Lascaux (France) has revealed the presence of carbon nanoparticles [14][15][16]. Carbon

From lithium to sodium: cell chemistry of room temperature sodium–air and sodium–sulfur batteries

• Philipp Adelhelm,
• Pascal Hartmann,
• Conrad L. Bender,
• Martin Busche,
• Christine Eufinger and
• Juergen Janek

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1016–1055, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.105

• lithium/oxygen battery” [29]. This cell could be re-charged at room temperature at least three times at potentials as low as 3.8 V. In 2002, Read characterized a Li/O2 cell comprising different carbon materials and different electrolyte formulations [30]. This was the first work to analyze and correlate

• solvent employed in their study (DMSO) is known to be unstable in Li/O2 cells [85][86]. Notwithstanding the above, the understanding of electrode corrosion and the search for stable electrode materials, either modified carbons or non-carbon materials, is of crucial importance for a reliable Li/O2 battery

Low-cost formation of bulk and localized polymer-derived carbon nanodomains from polydimethylsiloxane

• Juan Carlos Castro Alcántara,
• Mariana Cerda Zorrilla,
• Lucia Cabriales,
• Luis Manuel León Rossano and
• Mathieu Hautefeuille

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 744–748, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.76

• of carbon materials, are clearly present. However, the G′ band (ca. 2700 cm−1) is visible in the dark regions while the 2D band (ca. 2700 cm−1) and the G + D band (ca. 2935 cm−1) are characteristics of the shiny areas [10]. The difference in visual appearance may then be also justified by a shift

Chains of carbon atoms: A vision or a new nanomaterial?

• Florian Banhart

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 559–569, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.58

• important in a bulk solid) and, hence, study the interesting properties of linear arrangements of carbon atoms. Review The model of linear sp1-hybridized carbon Linear sp1-hybridized carbon already results from the logical reduction of dimensions in carbon materials. Due to the similarity with the bonding

Raman spectroscopy as a tool to investigate the structure and electronic properties of carbon-atom wires

• Alberto Milani,
• Matteo Tommasini,
• Valeria Russo,
• Andrea Li Bassi,
• Andrea Lucotti,
• Franco Cataldo and
• Carlo S. Casari

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 480–491, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.49

• powerful tool for the characterization of carbon materials and nanostructures due to its sensitivity to the vibration of C–C bonds. For instance, strong electron–phonon coupling and resonance effects allow for the measurement of single carbon nanostructures and together with confinement effects, provides

Materials and characterization techniques for high-temperature polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells

• Roswitha Zeis

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 68–83, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.8

• potentials leads to severe corrosion of theses carbon materials, a drawback well-known from the PAFC research. Carbon nanotubes are a promising alternative for catalyst support because of their higher corrosion resistivity [47]. Matsumoto et al. [48] fabricated a catalyst material by wrapping individual

Carbon nano-onions (multi-layer fullerenes): chemistry and applications

• Juergen Bartelmess and
• Silvia Giordani

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1980–1998, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.207

• Juergen Bartelmess Silvia Giordani Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Nano Carbon Materials, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy 10.3762/bjnano.5.207 Abstract This review focuses on the development of multi-layer fullerenes, known as carbon nano-onions (CNOs). First, it briefly summarizes the most

• . Analogous to carbon nanotubes, CNOs display poor solubility in both aqueous and organic solvents. This is due to aggregation, promoted by strong intermolecular interactions such as van-der-Waals forces. To overcome this tendency to aggregate, functionalization of the surface of the carbon materials is the

• the one of fullerene C60. These encouraging results could be a first step toward in situ remediation of heavy metal contaminants. Electronic applications Capacitors: Carbon materials are commonly used as electrode materials in capacitors, but the first study probing CNOs as electrode materials in

Highly NO₂ sensitive caesium doped graphene oxide conductometric sensors

• Carlo Piloto,
• Marco Notarianni,
• Mahnaz Shafiei,
• Elena Taran,
• Dilini Galpaya,
• Cheng Yan and
• Nunzio Motta

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1073–1081, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.120

• the oxygen defects that act as low energy adsorption sites. To further enhance its gas sensing properties, reduced GO can be doped with alkali metals [18], similarly to what has been done in other carbon materials, to tune up the electronic properties for sensing applications [44]. Different research

Classical molecular dynamics investigations of biphenyl-based carbon nanomembranes

• Andreas Mrugalla and
• Jürgen Schnack

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 865–871, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.98

• the results and our interpretation. The article closes with an outlook. Classical carbon–carbon interaction A realistic classical carbon–carbon interaction must be able to account for the various spn-binding modes. Two potentials, developed by Tersoff and Brenner, have been used for carbon materials

Analytical development and optimization of a graphene–solution interface capacitance model

• Hediyeh Karimi,
• Rasoul Rahmani,
• Reza Mashayekhi,
• Leyla Ranjbari,
• Amir H. Shirdel,
• Niloofar Haghighian,
• Parisa Movahedi,
• Moein Hadiyan and
• Razali Ismail

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 603–609, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.71

• these days. Geim, in 2004, demonstrated that the six-membered rings are the basis of all carbon materials in electrochemical biosensor research [7]. The remarkable electrical properties of graphene such as fast electron transport, tunable energy bandgap, high thermal conductivity, and ballistic

Tensile properties of a boron/nitrogen-doped carbon nanotube–graphene hybrid structure

• Kang Xia,
• Haifei Zhan,
• Ye Wei and
• Yuantong Gu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 329–336, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.37

• unstable. Thus, two adjacent N atoms are avoided in the model. It must be noted that the cut-off distance for the C–C bond has been modified from 1.7 Å to 2.0 Å according to a previous work [24]. Several studies have already demonstrated that a cut-off distance of 1.7 Å for carbon materials, which was used

Design criteria for stable Pt/C fuel cell catalysts

• Josef C. Meier,
• Carolina Galeano,
• Ioannis Katsounaros,
• Jonathon Witte,
• Hans J. Bongard,
• Angel A. Topalov,
• Claudio Baldizzone,
• Stefano Mezzavilla,
• Ferdi Schüth and
• Karl J. J. Mayrhofer

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 44–67, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.5

• [23]. Due to the large versatility of carbon structures, many research groups have focused on a variety of alternative carbon materials [24] as supports for fuel cell applications such as single walled and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs, MWCNTs) [25][26], graphene [27], carbon nanofibers [28

• ], nanohorns [29], ordered mesoporous carbons (OMCs) [30][31], carbon aerogels [32], carbon shells [33][34][35][36], colloid-imprinted carbon supports (CIC) [37] and even boron-doped diamond structures [38][39]. Alternatively, certain non-carbon materials (e.g., oxides, carbides and nitrides of metals such as

• Ti, W, Mo etc.) exhibit promising corrosion resistances under fuel cell conditions. However, most of these non-carbon materials suffer from low conductivities and/or poor platinum dispersion, thus limiting the efficiency of the fuel cell [17]. Despite the demonstration of an improved stability as

Influence of particle size and fluorination ratio of CF_x precursor compounds on the electrochemical performance of C–FeF₂ nanocomposites for reversible lithium storage

• Ben Breitung,
• M. Anji Reddy,
• Venkata Sai Kiran Chakravadhanula,
• Michael Engel,
• Christian Kübel,
• Annie K. Powell,
• Horst Hahn and
• Maximilian Fichtner

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 705–713, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.80

• material in the matrix is a precondition for its electrochemical activity [17][18]. In addition, volume changes that result from phase conversion of the active material during charging and discharging may lead to cracks in the particles and result in poor cyclic stabilities. For this reason, mostly carbon

• materials have been used as conducting matrix as well as to buffer the volume changes. Various methods have been described in the literature to synthesize carbon–metal fluoride nanocomposites. For example, carbon–iron fluoride nanocomposites, which show superior electrochemical performance during the

Size variation of infrared vibrational spectra from molecules to hydrogenated diamond nanocrystals: a density functional theory study

• Mudar A. Abdulsattar

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 262–268, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.28

• extraordinary properties of bulk diamond that include high hardness, inertness and high thermal conductivity. The additional properties added by reduction to the nanoscale make diamonds and related carbon materials a focus for recent investigations [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]. One of the first steps of