One-Pot sono electrodeposition of poly(pyrrole)/Prussian blue nanocomposites: Effects of the ultrasound amplitude in the electrode interface and electrocatalytical properties

Contamination-Free Reference Electrode Using Prussian Blue for Small Oxygen Sensors

In recent years, significant attention has been directed toward advancing compact, point-of-care testing (POCT) devices to better deliver patient care and alleviate the burden on the medical care system. Common POCTs, such as blood oxygen sensors, leverage electrochemical sensing in their design. However, conventional electrochemical devices typically use Ag/AgCl reference electrodes, which are likely to release trace amounts of silver ions that contaminate the working electrode, causing rapid deterioration of the devices. This study proposes an effective reference electrode using graphene-coated porous silica spheres (G/PSS) with embedded Prussian blue (PB), denoted PB/G/PSS, designed specifically for small oxygen sensors. PB is a redox species that is an improvement over Ag/AgCl since it is significantly less water-soluble than AgCl. Since PB is an insulator, we dispersed PB in G/PSS, well-conductive mesoporous matrices, to ensure contact between PB clusters and the electrolytes. Moreover, the monodispersed, spherically shaped PB/G/PSS is an advantageous medium for fabricating POCT devices by screen printing. In this study, the open-circuit potential of the PB/G/PSS electrode remained stable within 30 mV for 31 days. The small oxygen sensor assembled through screen printing using PB/G/PSS demonstrated stable operation for several days or more. In contrast, a similar sensor with Ag/AgCl reference electrode rapidly deteriorated within a day. This PB/G/PSS reference electrode with improved stability is expected to be an excellent alternative to the Ag/AgCl system for small electrochemical-based POCT devices.

Development of a new biocathode for a single enzyme biofuel cell fuelled by glucose

In this study, we reported the development of Prussian blue (PB), poly(pyrrole-2-carboxylic acid) (PPCA), and glucose oxidase (GOx) biocomposite modified graphite rod (GR) electrode as a potential biocathode for single enzyme biofuel cell fuelled by glucose. In order to design the biocathode, the GR electrode was coated with a composite of PB particles embedded in the PPCA shell and an additional layer of PPCA by cyclic voltammetry. Meanwhile, GOx molecules were covalently attached to the carboxyl groups of PPCA by an amide bond. The optimal conditions for the biocathode preparation were elaborated experimentally. After optimization, the developed biocathode showed excellent electrocatalytic activity toward the reduction of H₂O₂ formed during GOx catalyzed glucose oxidation at a low potential of 0.1 V vs Ag/AgCl, as well as good electrochemical performance. An electrocatalytic current density of 31.68 ± 2.70 μA/cm² and open-circuit potential (OCP) of 293.34 ± 15.70 mV in O₂-saturated 10 mM glucose solution at pH 6.0 were recorded. A maximal OCP of 430.15 ± 15.10 mV was recorded at 98.86 mM of glucose. In addition, the biocathode showed good operational stability, maintaining 95.53 ± 0.15% of the initial response after 14 days. These results suggest that this simply designed biocathode can be applied to the construction of a glucose-powered single enzyme biofuel cell.

Ultrasound-assisted electrodeposition and synthesis of alloys and composite materials: A review

The development of electrodeposited materials with improved technological properties has been attracting the attention of researchers and companies from different industrial sectors. Many studies have demonstrated that the electrodeposition and synthesis of alloys and composite materials assisted by ultrasound may promote the de-agglomeration of particles in the electrolytic solution due to microturbulence, microjets, shock waves, and breaking of Van der Waals forces. The sonoelectrochemical technique, in which the ultrasound probe acts as a working electrode, also has been used for the formation of nanostructures in greater quantity, in addition to accelerating the electrolysis process and eliminating the reaction products on the electrode surface. Regarding the morphological aspects, the acoustic cavitation promotes the formation of smooth and uniform surfaces with incorporated particles homogeneously distributed. These changes have a direct impact on the composition and physical properties of the material, such as corrosion resistance, magnetization, wear, and microhardness. Despite the widespread use of acoustic cavitation in the synthesis of nanostructured materials, the discussion of how process variables such as acoustic power, frequency, and type of ultrasound device, as well as their effects still are scarce. In this sense, this review discusses the influence of ultrasound technology on obtaining electrodeposited coatings. The trends and challenges in this research field were reviewed from 2014 to 2019. Moreover, the effects of process variables in electrodeposition and how these ones change the technological properties of these materials were evaluated.

Ultrasound assisted wet media milling synthesis of nanofiber-cage LiFePO4/C

To meet the objectives of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change nations are adopting policies to encourage consumers to purchase electric vehicles. Electrification of the automobile industry reduces greenhouse gases but active metals for the cathode-LiCoO₂ and LiNiO₂-are toxic and represent an environmental challenge at the end of their lifetime. LiFePO₄ (LFP) is an attractive alternative that is non-toxic, thermally stable, and durable but with a moderate theoretical capacity and a low electrical conductivity. Commercial technologies to synthesize LFP are energy-intensive, produce waste that incurs cost, and involve multiple process steps. Here we synthesize LFP precursor with lignin and cellulose in a sonicated grinding chamber of a wet media mill. This approach represents a paradigm shift that introduces mechanochemistry as a motive force to react iron oxalate and lithium hydrogen phosphate at ambient temperature. Ultrasound-assisted wet media milling increases carbon dispersion and reduces the particle size simultaneously. The ultrasound is generated by a 20 kHz,500 W automatic tuning ultrasound probe. The maximum discharge rate of the LFP synthesized this way was achieved with cellulose as a carbon source, after 9 h milling, at 70% ultrasound amplitude. After 2.5 h of milling, the particle size remained constant but the crystal size continued to drop and reached 29 nm. Glucose created plate-like particles, and cellulose and lignin produced spindle-shaped particles. Long mill times and high ultrasound amplitude generate smoother particle surfaces and the powder densifies after a spray drying step.

Recent developments in the sonoelectrochemical synthesis of nanomaterials

In recent years, the synthesis and use of nanoparticles have been of special interest among the scientific communities due to their unique properties and applications in various advanced technologies. The production of these materials at industrial scale can be difficult to achieve due to high cost, intense labour and use of hazardous solvents that are often required by traditional chemical synthetic methods. Sonoelectrochemistry is a hybrid technique that combines ultrasound and electrochemistry in a specially designed electrochemical setup. This technique can be used to produce nanomaterials with controlled sizes and shapes. The production of nanoparticles by sonoelectrochemistry as a technique offers many advantages: (i) a great enhancement in mass transport near the electrode, thereby altering the rate, and sometimes the mechanism of the electrochemical reactions, (ii) a modification of surface morphology through cavitation jets at the electrode-electrolyte interface, usually causing an increase of the surface area and (iii) a thinning of the electrode diffusion layer thickness and therefore ion depletion. The scalability of sonoelectrochemistry for producing nanomaterials at industrial scale is also very plausible due to its "one-pot" synthetic approach. Recent advancements in sonoelectrochemistry for producing various types of nanomaterials are briefly reviewed in this article. It is with hope that the presentation of these studies therein can generate more interest in the field to "catalyze" future investigations in novel nanomaterial development and industrial scale-up studies.

Current Innovations of Metal Hexacyanoferrates-Based Nanocomposites toward Electrochemical Sensing: Materials Selection and Synthesis Methods

Mixed valence transition metal hexacyanoferrates (MeHCF)-Prussian blue and its analogs receive enormous research interest in the electrochemical sensing field. In recent years, conducting materials such as conducting polymer, carbon nanomaterial, and noble metals have been used to form nanocomposites with MeHCF. The scope of this review offers the reasons behind the preparation of various MeHCF based nanocomposite toward electrochemical detection. We primarily focus on the current progress of the development of MEHCF-based nanocomposites. The synthesis methods for these nanocomposites are also reviewed and discussed.

Self-Templating Synthesis of Cobalt Hexacyanoferrate Hollow Structures with Superior Performance for Na-Ion Hybrid Supercapacitors

Prussian blue (PB) and its analogues (PBA), especially with hollow structures, have attracted growing attention from the researchers of energy storage field. Herein, we have developed a facile self-templating method to synthesize hollow-structured cobalt hexacyanoferrate (CoHCF) with controllable morphologies by using water-soluble precursors as templates. The method is versatile and can be extended to synthesize various PB/PBA hollow structures with tunable composition and morphology. Profiting from the unique hollow structure, the CoHCF hollow prisms manifest exceptional electrochemical performance in the Na₂SO₄ aqueous electrolyte, including a high specific capacitance (284 F g^-1 at 1 A g^-1), a high rate capability, and an excellent cycling stability (92% retention after 5000 cycles). A hybrid supercapacitor device assembled with the CoHCF hollow prisms and activated carbon shows a high specific density of 47 W h kg^-1 at a specific power of 1000 W kg^-1 and stable cycling performance.

In Situ Coupling of Ultrasound to Electro- and Photo-Deposition Methods for Materials Synthesis

This short review provides the current state-of-the-art of in situ coupling of ultrasound to chemical deposition methods. Synergetic action of ultrasound and light radiation or electrical fields may result in new powerful methodologies, which include sonophotodeposition and sonoelectrodeposition processes. The effect of ultrasound is explained on the basis of different physical mechanisms emerging from cavitation phenomenon. Some possible mechanisms of the interactions between ultrasound and photochemical and electrochemical processes are discussed here. The application of sonophotodeposition and sonoelectrodeposition as green energy sources in the syntheses of different nanomaterials is also reviewed.