Proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFC) play a key role for sustainable energy; however, catalyst degradation remains one of the main challenges for competing with traditional energy technologies. The Pt/C commercially available electrocatalysts are susceptible to Pt dissolution and carbon support corrosion. In this context, we design a Pt–NbOx catalyst supported on TiN...
This article evaluates the thermal and energy performance of mortar blocks containing local agricultural waste. The mortar blocks were cast by the replacement of ordinary Portland cement (OPC) with varying amounts of date palm ash (DPA) in the range of 10–30%. Experiments and simulations were carried out to assess the thermal characteristics and energy performance of the...
Reducing our overwhelming dependence on fossil fuels requires groundbreaking innovations in increasing our efficiency in energy consumption for current technologies and moving towards renewable energy sources. Thermoelectric materials can help in achieving both goals. Moreover, because of recent advances in high-performance computing, researchers more increasingly rely on...
Good thermoelectric performance is being sought to face major problems related to energy, especially in the concern of the usage of energy on environmental impact. In this work, we investigate the underlying mechanism to enhance the thermoelectric performance of bismuth selenide (Bi2Se3) by employing density functional theory (DFT) followed by the Boltzmann transport equation...
Mechanical milling and a gas-selective polymer were used to protect MgH2 from oxidation and improve its dehydrogenation properties. MgH2 and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) were simultaneously ball-milled for 5 and 20 h, respectively, to prepare an air-resistant nanostructured composite. The properties of the nanostructured composite were studied by XRD, SEM, and FTIR methods...
In this work, we report the preparation of TiO2 nanoparticles with a high surface area, from 120 to 168 m2 g−1 by the hydrothermal-microemulsion route and hydrothermal temperature effect over particle size, porosity, and photovoltaic parameter. The TiO2 samples were characterized by Raman, BET, TEM, SEM-FE, I–V curves, and EIS. The increase of hydrothermal temperature correlates...
Nanostructuring approach on TiNiSn-based half-Heusler (HH) thermoelectric materials (TE) has been well established as the most prominent paradigm for achieving high figure of merit (ZT). Herein, we have extended this approach on our previously reported bulk nanocomposite (BNC), containing HH and Full Heusler (FH) with little traces of Ti6Sn5 phase in a stoichiometric composition...
Among novel nanostructured materials, transition metal chalcogenides (i.e., sulfides and selenides) emerged as promising candidates due to their unique electrochemical properties. The following study presents a facile synthesis approach of Bi2S3 nanostructures using solvent mixtures of ethanol and water with different volume ratios and ammonium sulfide as a sulfur precursor. The...
We examined the electronic property of Sb-doped Na0.785CoO2 using density functional calculations based on GGA+U formalism. We demonstrated that Sb dopants were the most stable when replacing Co ions within the complex Na0.875CoO2 lattice structure. We also showed that the SbCo dopants adopted the + 5 oxidation state introducing two electrons into the host Na0.875CoO2 compound...
The phase composition, structure, morphology, and thermal conductivity of Bi2Te3−xSex-based semiconductor solid solution after photon treatment (PT) were studied by X-ray diffractometry, SEM, TEM, and the laser flash techniques. It was revealed that PT leads to recrystallization of the subsurface layers of the solid solution with the formation of a heterogeneous nanocrystalline...
In this paper, hydrothermal method was used to provide stable colloidal suspension of spherical carbon nanoparticles (CNPs) with good uniformity of size and shape. XRD analyses showed the formation of crystalline structure of carbon material. CNPs Raman spectrum indicates the high quality with a low content of structural defects and high graphitic degree. The formation of CNPs is...
In here, we report on the pulse electrodeposition of nickel–chromium–phosphorous (Ni–Cr–P) coatings on AISI 1020 low carbon steel using an aqueous electrolyte consisting of NiCl2, CrCl3, and NaH2PO2. We evaluated the effectiveness of Ni–Cr–P coatings for polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell metallic bipolar plates. Coatings deposited at pH 3.0 and room temperature show nearly...
This review report summarizes different synthesis methods of PEM-based fuel cell catalysts with a focus on ultra-low loading of Pt catalysts. It also demonstrates fuel cell performances with ultra-low loading of Pt catalysts which have been reported so far, and suggests a combination method of synthesis for an efficient fuel cell performance at a low loading of Pt catalyst. Here...
Pt/CeO2 catalysts were prepared with 0.5 and 1 wt% of Pt loadings by an alcohol-reduction process using a solution of ethylene glycol and water as a reducing agent and solvent. The obtained catalysts were characterized by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy. Transmission electron micrographs showed Pt nanoparticles with...
Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) thin films were deposited from a single cationic bath by Successive Ionic Layer Adsorption and Reaction (SILAR) method. Regular SILAR route for CZTS had the drawback of preferential adsorption of copper and tin cations in comparison with zinc. This resulted in Cu3SnS4 (CTS) and Cu2S phases rather than phase pure CZTS films. A modified SILAR route, with a separate...