More Like this

1. Sodium-based solid electrolytes and interfacial stability. Towards solid-state sodium batteries

   https://doi.org/doi.org/10.1016/j.mtcomm.2022.104009  

   Edelman, D A.; Brandt, T. G.; Temeche, E.; Laine, R. M. (July 2022, Materials today communications)

   Electrochemical energy storage is a cost-effective, sustainable method for storing and delivering energy gener- ated from renewable resources. Among electrochemical energy storage devices, the lithium-ion battery (LIB) has dominated due to its high energy and power density. The success of LIBs has generated increased interest in sodium-ion battery (NaB) technology amid concerns of the sustainability and cost of lithium resources. In recent years, numerous studies have shown that sodium-ion solid-state electrolytes (NaSEs) have considerable potential to enable new cell chemistries that can deliver superior electrochemical performance to liquid-electrolyte-based NaBs. However, their commercial implementation is hindered by slow ionic transport at ambient and chemical/ mechanical incompatibility at interfaces. In this review, various NaSEs are first characterized based on individual crystal structures and ionic conduction mechanisms. Subsequently, selected methods of modifying interfaces in sodium solid-state batteries (NaSSBs) are covered, including anode wetting, ionic liquid (IL) addition, and composite polymer electrolytes (CPEs). Finally, examples are provided of how these techniques improve cycle life and rate performance of different cathode materials including sulfur, oxide, hexacyanoferrate, and phosphate-type. A focus on interfacial modification and optimization is crucial for realizing next-generation batteries. Thus, the novel methods reviewed here could pave the way toward a NaSSB capable of with- standing the high current and cycle life demands of future applications. 

   more » « less
2. Sodium Surface Lattice Plasmons

   https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpcc.1c05833  

   Rawashdeh, Abdelsalam; Lupa, Sylvia; Welch, William; Yang, Ankun (November 2021, The Journal of Physical Chemistry C)
3. Reactive Uptake of Hydroperoxymethyl Thioformate to Sodium Chloride and Sodium Iodide Aerosol Particles

   https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpca.2c03222  

   Jernigan, Christopher M.; Cappa, Christopher D.; Bertram, Timothy H. (June 2022, The Journal of Physical Chemistry A)
4. Structural water and disordered structure promote aqueous sodium-ion energy storage in sodium-birnessite

   https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-12939-3  

   Shan, Xiaoqiang; Guo, Fenghua; Charles, Daniel S.; Lebens-Higgins, Zachary; Abdel Razek, Sara; Wu, Jinpeng; Xu, Wenqian; Yang, Wanli; Page, Katharine L.; Neuefeind, Joerg C.; et al (December 2019, Nature Communications)
5. No escape: The influence of substrate sodium on plant growth and tissue sodium responses

   https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.8138  

   Santiago‐Rosario, Luis Y.; Harms, Kyle E.; Elderd, Bret D.; Hart, Pamela B.; Dassanayake, Maheshi (September 2021, Ecology and Evolution)

   Abstract As an essential micronutrient for many organisms, sodium plays an important role in ecological and evolutionary dynamics. Although plants mediate trophic fluxes of sodium, from substrates to higher trophic levels, relatively little comparative research has been published about plant growth and sodium accumulation in response to variation in substrate sodium. Accordingly, we carried out a systematic review of plants' responses to variation in substrate sodium concentrations.We compared biomass and tissue‐sodium accumulation among 107 cultivars or populations (67 species in 20 plant families), broadly expanding beyond the agricultural and model taxa for which several generalizations previously had been made. We hypothesized a priori response models for each population's growth and sodium accumulation as a function of increasing substrate NaCl and used Bayesian Information Criterion to choose the best model. Additionally, using a phylogenetic signal analysis, we tested for phylogenetic patterning of responses across taxa.The influence of substrate sodium on growth differed across taxa, with most populations experiencing detrimental effects at high concentrations. Irrespective of growth responses, tissue sodium concentrations for most taxa increased as sodium concentration in the substrate increased. We found no strong associations between the type of growth response and the type of sodium accumulation response across taxa. Although experiments often fail to test plants across a sufficiently broad range of substrate salinities, non‐crop species tended toward higher sodium tolerance than domesticated species. Moreover, some phylogenetic conservatism was apparent, in that evolutionary history helped predict the distribution of total‐plant growth responses across the phylogeny, but not sodium accumulation responses.Our study reveals that saltier plants in saltier soils proves to be a broadly general pattern for sodium across plant taxa. Regardless of growth responses, sodium accumulation mostly followed an increasing trend as substrate sodium levels increased. 

   more » « less