One-pot strategy for obtaining magnetic PMMA particles through ATRP using Fe(CO)5 as co-initiator

Bionic Capsule Lithium-Ion Battery Anodes for Efficiently Inhibiting Volume Expansion

Magnetite (Fe3O4) has a large theoretical reversible capacity and rich Earth abundance, making it a promising anode material for LIBs. However, it suffers from drastic volume changes during the lithiation process, which lead to poor cycle stability and low-rate performance. Hence, there is an urgent need for a solution to address the issue of volume expansion. Taking inspiration from how glycophyte cells mitigate excessive water uptake/loss through their cell wall to preserve the structural integrity of cells, we designed Fe3O4@PMMA multi-core capsules by microemulsion polymerization as a kind of anode materials, also proposed a new evaluation method for real-time repair effect of the battery capacity. The Fe3O4@PMMA anode shows a high reversible specific capacity (858.0 mAh g-1 at 0.1 C after 300 cycles) and an excellent cycle stability (450.99 mAh g-1 at 0.5 C after 450 cycles). Furthermore, the LiNi0.8Co0.1Mn0.1O2/Fe3O4@PMMA pouch cells exhibit a stable capacity (200.6 mAh) and high-capacity retention rate (95.5 %) after 450 cycles at 0.5 C. Compared to the original battery, the capacity repair rate of this battery is as high as 93.4 %. This kind of bionic capsules provide an innovative solution for improving the electrochemical performance of Fe3O4 anodes to promote their industrial applications.

Green Preparation of Aminated Magnetic PMMA Microspheres via EB Irradiation and Its Highly Efficient Uptake of Ce(III)

The modification of polymers can significantly improve the ability to remove rare earth ions from wastewater, but so far few studies have focused on the irradiation-induced grafting method. In this study, a novel magnetic chelating resin for Ce(III) uptake was first synthesized by suspension polymerization of PMMA@Fe₃O₄ microspheres followed by irradiation-induced grafting of glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) and subsequent amination with polyethyleneimine (PEI). The FT-IR, SEM, TG and XRD characterization confirmed that we had successfully fabricated magnetic PMMA-PGMA-PEI microspheres with a well-defined structure and good thermal stability. The obtained adsorbent exhibited a satisfactory uptake capacity of 189.81 mg/g for Ce(III) at 318.15 K and an initial pH = 6.0. Additionally, the impact of the absorbed dose and GMA monomer concentration, pH, adsorbent dosage, contact time and initial concentration were thoroughly examined. The pseudo-second order and Langmuir models were able to describe the kinetics and isotherms of the adsorption process well. In addition, the thermodynamic data indicated that the uptake process was spontaneous and endothermic. Altogether, this research enriched the Ce(III) trapping agent and provided a new method for the removal rare earth pollutants.