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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 1,441 records · Page 80

Electronic Structure and Safety Insights into Prussian Blue Analog Cathode Behavior at Elevated Temperatures in Sodium-Ion Batteries

Prussian blue analogs (PBAs) represent promising cathode materials for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) due to their high theoretical capacity, open framework structure, and use of earth-abundant elements. However, the high-temperature structural evolution, water content effects, and thermal safety of PBAs, particularly in charged states, remain poorly understood, hindering their practical deployment. Here, we investigate Na 2 Fe[Fe(CN) 6 ]·2H 2 O using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), ex situ and in situ temperature-dependent X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS), and accelerated rate calorimetry (ARC). TGA and ex situ XAS confirm water loss between 150 and 200 °C, resulting in Fe 2+ oxidation, enhanced local symmetry, and uniform redox behavior that improves electrochemical performance. In situ XAS reveals irreversible structural changes above 240 °C, including ligand loss, Fe site distortion, and increased disorder, while ARC on charged electrodes shows minimal self-heating rates (<0.1 °C/min) up to 300 °C, indicating exceptional thermal stability without lattice oxygen release. These insights elucidate PBA thermal dynamics, demonstrating improved electrochemical performance of water-deficient PBAs and informing future material design and safety assessment for SIB applications.

batteries↗

Crystal and Electronic Structures of A 2 NaIO 6 Periodate Double Perovskites (A = Sr, Ca, Ba): Candidate Wasteforms for I-129 Immobilization

The synthesis, structure, and thermal stability of the periodate double perovskites A 2 NaIO 6 (A= Ba, Sr, Ca) were investigated in the context of potential application for the immobilization of radioiodine. A combination of X-ray diffraction and neutron diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and DFT simulations were applied to determine accurate crystal structures of these compounds and understand their relative stability. The compounds were found to exhibit rock-salt ordering of Na and I on the perovskite B-site; Ba 2 NaIO 6 was found to adopt the Fm- 3 m aristotype structure, whereas Sr 2 NaIO 6 and Ca 2 NaIO 6 adopt the P 2 1 / n hettotype structure, characterized by cooperative octahedral tilting. DFT simulations determined the Fm- 3 m and P 2 1 / n structures of Ba 2 NaIO 6 to be energetically degenerate at room temperature, whereas diffraction and spectroscopy data evidence only the presence of the Fm- 3 m phase at room temperature, which may imply an incipient phase transition for this compound. The periodate double perovskites were found to exhibit remarkable thermal stability, with Ba 2 NaIO 6 only decomposing above 1050 °C in air, which is apparently the highest recorded decomposition temperature so far recorded for any iodine bearing compound. As such, these compounds offer some potential for application in the immobilization of iodine-129, from nuclear fuel reprocessing, with an iodine incorporation rate of 25–40 wt%. The synthesis of these compounds, elaborated here, is also compatible with both current conventional and future advanced processes for iodine recovery from the dissolver off-gas.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Properties of Cerium Hydroxides from Matrix Infrared Spectra and Electronic Structure Calculations

Reactions of laser ablated cerium atoms with hydrogen peroxide or hydrogen and oxygen mixtures diluted in argon and condensed at 4 K produced the Ce(OH) 3 and Ce(OH) 2 molecules and Ce(OH) 2 + cation as major products. Additional minor products were identified as the Ce(OH) 4 , HCeO, and OCeOH molecules. These new species were identified from their matrix infrared spectra with D 2 O 2 , D 2 , and 18 O 2 isotopic substitution and correlating observed frequencies with values calculated by density functional theory. We find that the amounts of Ce(OH) 3 and of the Ce(OH) 2 + cation increase on UV ($λ$ > 220 nm) photolysis, while Ce(OH) 2 , Ce(OH) 4 , and HCeO are photosensitive. The observed major species for Ce are in the +III or +II oxidation state, and the minor product, Ce(OH) 4 , is in the +IV oxidation state. The calculations for the vibrational frequencies with the B3LYP functional agree well with the experiment. The NBO analysis shows significant backbonding to the metal 4f and 5d orbitals for the closed shell species. Most open shell species have the excess spin in the 4f with paired spin in the 5d due to backbonding. The heats of formation of the observed species were derived from the available data from experiment and the calculated reaction energies. The major products in this study are different from similar reactions for Th where the tetrahydroxide was the major species.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Electronic Structure Tuning of Lanthanidocene Photocatalysts for C–F Bond Cleavage

A set of nine new robust, tunable cerium complexes supported by an ansa-bis(cyclopentadienyl) ligand, [Me 2 Si(η 5 -Cp R ) 2 ]CeX ( an Cp R )CeX, are excellent homogeneous visible-light photocatalysts for the monodefluoroalkylation of trifluorotoluene with Mg(CH 2 C 6 H 5 ) 2 THF 2 (R = Me 4 , SiMe 3 , X = N(SiMe 3 ) 2 (N″), X = CH(SiMe 3 ) 2 (R''), Cl, OC 6 H 2 t Bu 2 -2,6,Me-4 (OAr)). The trends in photocatalytic activity within the series are explained by photophysical spectroscopic analyses. The aryloxide complex [Me 2 Si(Cp SiMe3 ) 2 ]CeOAr, which has the highest activity (95% substrate conversion in 27 h), shows the most negative (most reducing) excited-state reduction potential (-2.71 V vs Fc). The precatalyst excited-state lifetimes are also exceptionally long. Detailed photoluminescence, NMR spectroscopic, and kinetic studies on chloride [Me 2 Si(Cp Me4 ) 2 ]CeCl suggest that the "ate" complex [{Me 2 Si(Cp Me4 ) 2 } 2 Ce III ClBn][MgBn] is the active catalyst in the alkylation reaction to form PhCF 2 CH 2 Ph with high selectivity over PhCF 2 H. Finally, the reaction rates are up to 30 times higher than previously reported for organometallic rare-earth photocatalysts for these Ce complexes and comparable to established Ir-based photoredox systems.

catalysts↗