La Doping Research Articles

Enhanced performance of Mg and La co-doped TiO2(98%)−ZrO2(2%) photoanode for dye-sensitized solar cells

Abstract This study explores the effects of magnesium (Mg) and lanthanum (La) doping on the performance of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) utilizing TiO2(98%)−ZrO2(2%) (TZ, TZM, and TZL) photoanodes. The photoanodes were fabricated using a spin-coating sol–gel method, followed by calcination at 400°C. The structural, morphological, crystallographic, and optical properties of the proposed photoanode composites were characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, and ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy. The crystallite sizes of the synthesized thin films varied from 21.16 to 59.04 nm for the TZ, TZM, and TZL compositions. The current–voltage measurements of DSSCs based on TZL8 photoanode, cobalt sulfide-doped graphene counter electrode, and N719 dye revealed the highest efficiency of nearly 5.052%. The assembled DSSCs exhibited an open-circuit voltage of 0.74 V, a short-circuit current density of 9.964 mA/cm2, and a fill factor of 0.685. The enhancement in open-circuit voltage and short-circuit current density could be attributed to the improved electronic and microstructures of the proposed photoanodes.

Enhanced piezoelectric properties of BiFeO3-BaTiO3 lead-free ceramics by shifting phase boundary via simultaneous adjusting component and quenching technique

The morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) is particularly crucial for high piezoelectric performance of perovskite ferroelectrics. This study focus on the shift of MPB and its impacts on the piezoelectric properties of (1-x)Bi0.997La0.003FeO3-xBaTiO3 ferroelectric ceramic. Although appropriate La doping reduces leakage current, the phase boundary is moved towards tetragonal (T) phase. By adjusting BaTiO3 component, the concentration of rhombohedral (R) and T phase is restored back to almost equality at x = 0.295, achieving optimal piezoelectric properties (d33 = 179 pC/N, kp = 33.06%). Furthermore, through applying quenching on 0.30 ≤ x ≤ 0.32 samples occupied mainly by T phase, a higher d33 value of 205 pC/N and a remarkable amplification of d33 (about 40%) are both realized at x = 0.32, which is ascribed to the shift phase boundary close to 1:1. These results confirm the importance of phase boundary movement and provide an effective approach for performance enhancement of BiFeO3-BaTiO3 system.

Doping effects in strontium hexaferrite: Theoretical and experimental analysis

Hexagonal ferrites based on SrFe12O19 (SFO) are vital materials in the field of permanent magnets, valued for their cost-effectiveness and reliable magnetic properties, making them a more affordable alternative to rare-earth permanent magnets. This study focuses on understanding the doping effects of commonly used elements in SFO system. DFT calculation results show that doping La or La-Co can enhance the phase stability of SFO, in which Co has a preference for the 4f1 sites of Fe. The total magnetic moment was observed to slightly decrease with La doping, whereas it exhibited an increasing trend with La-Co and La-Ca-Co co-doping and the largest increase of 6.5 % can be obtained in Sr2LaCaFe44Co4O76 (SLCFCO). The increase in the total magnetic moment is mainly attributed to the smaller antiferromagnetic moment of Co than that of Fe on 4f1 sites, as well as the reduction in the antiferromagnetic Fe moments at 4f1 and 4f2 sites. The total density of states indicates a transition from semiconductor behavior to a metallic character both in the La-Co and La-Ca-Co doped versions. The experimental results validate the theoretical predictions, confirming enhancements in magnetic performance. The saturation magnetization increased from 63.86 Am2/kg in SrFe11.7O19 (SFO) to 67.53 Am2/kg in Sr0.4La0.4Ca0.2Fe10.5Co0.5O19 composition. These findings provide a vital understanding of tuning the magnetic and electronic properties in doped SFO, which will enable the development of advanced applications in magnetic materials.

Corrosion behaviors of La doped in-situ synthesized nano TiB2/6061 composites

The microstructure and corrosion behaviors of the in-situ synthesized nano TiB2/6061 composites with La doping were investigated by scanning electron microscope, potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy in 3.5 wt% NaCl solution. The results indicated that La can make a significant improvement of corrosion resistance for TiB2/6061 composites. The corrosion potential of La-TiB2/6061 composites has increased by 11.31% compared with the composites without La. With La doping, the dispersive distribution of TiB2 particles suppressed the extending of corroded pits, the refined grains promoted the formation of oxide film in passive environment.

Insights into Photothermocatalytic Dry Reforming of Methane on Ru/La‐Al2O3 using Carbonate Species and Reactive Oxygen Species to Enhance the Fuel Production Rates and Completely Prevent Coking

AbstractPhotothermocatalytic dry reforming of methane (DRM) offers a promising strategy for converting solar energy into fuel. However, the high light intensity required for high fuel production rates and thermodynamically more favorable coking side reactions limit this strategy. Herein, a nanocomposite of La‐doped Al2O3 supporting Ru nanoparticles (NPs) (Ru/La‐Al2O3) is synthesized. At relatively low light intensity (80.2 kW m−2), Ru/La‐Al2O3 obtains high production rates of CO and H2 per gram of Ru (rRu, CO and rRu, H2, 8410.19 and 7181.94 mmol gRu−1 min−1) with light‐to‐fuel efficiency (η, 26.6%), and completely prohibits coking. In striking contrast, the reference catalyst without La doping (Ru/Al2O3) exhibits lower rRu, CO, rRu, H2, η and produces large amounts of coke. The improved photothermocatalytic performance stems from the fact that reactive oxygen species and carbonate species are involved in the oxidation of carbon species (rate‐determining steps of DRM) through two different reaction pathways, which significantly increases catalytic activity and prevents the carbon species from polymerizing into coke. Additionally, light not only enhances the DRM on Ru NPs and the oxidation reaction between carbonate species and carbon species but also promotes the dissociation of CH4 and desorption of H2, which improves the catalytic activity and product selectivity of Ru/La‐Al2O3.

Optimizing ZnSe nanorods with La doping for structural, electrical, and dielectric properties in device applications

Nano-materials, pure Zinc Selenide (ZnSe), and rare earth (Lanthanum) doped ZnSe (Zn1-xLaxSe, x = 0.00, 0.02, 0.04, 0.06) were synthesized via a facile and low-cost hydrothermal method. X-ray diffraction (XRD) demonstrated that the nanoparticles grow in cubic crystal phase with high degree crystallinity, and the measured crystallite size of La-doped ZnSe ranges from 31.95 to 31.11 nm. Mitigation in crystallite size was observed with the inclusion of La and enhancement in the lattice constant ‘a’ from 5.6565 Å to 5.6818 Å. Morphological study (FESEM) depicts synthesized materials' morphologies as nanorods. The FESEM images indicate the random distribution of the nanorods across the crystal lattice, regardless of the accumulation of the nanorods, showing lumps in the synthesized material sample. The estimated grain size of pure ZnSe nanorods ranges from 137.6 to 496.9 nm. Electrical features revealed that direct current (DC) electrical conductivity ‘σdc’ enhances with temperature, affirming the semiconducting behavior of the materials. Increased lanthanum content enhances the ‘σdc’ from 3.08 × 10–5 (Ω cm)-1 to 5.94 × 10–5 (Ω cm)-1 at 303 K while lessening the activation energy value from 0.134 to 0.104 eV. Dielectric features, including relative permittivity (ε'), loss factor or dielectric loss (ε''), tangent loss (tanδ), as well as AC conductivity (σac), indicate a direct proportionality with temperature, and elevated values of all the dielectric parameters are noted with La-doping. An increase in dielectric constant with doping concentration displayed that the prepared nanocrystals have valuable dielectric and capacitive behavior. The outcomes of electrical and dielectric features display that the prepared nanorods have vital characteristics for developing optoelectronic devices, solar cells, photocatalysts, and light-emitting diode applications.

Optimizing the crystal structure and electrochemical properties of Na4MnCr(PO4)3 by trace La doping

Na4MnCr(PO4)3, a manganese-based NASICON-type phosphate cathode material, is attracted considerable attention due to its high voltage and energy density. However, its practical application is hindered by poor electronic conductivity and inferior sodium ion diffusion kinetics. In this study, trace La3+ is utilized to optimize the lattice structure of Na4MnCr(PO4)3 due to its unique energy level structure. La3+ doping significantly enhances the local environment of the Mn-O bond and stabilizes the lattice structure by improving covalency, thereby mitigating Mn dissolution during charge–discharge cycles. Additionally, the large ionic radius of La3+ promotes the sodium ion transport kinetics by expanding the cell volume and facilitating rapid sodium storage. As a result, the optimal Na4MnCr0.995La0.005(PO4)3/C sample demonstrates an impressive initial discharge specific capacity of 124.5 mAh g−1 at 0.1C and superior cycling stability with a capacity retention of 70.2 % after 500 cycles at 5C. Furthermore, density functional theory calculations indicate that La3+ doping can enhance conductivity and reduce the energy barrier for sodium ion diffusion. This study presents an effective and cost-efficient doping strategy for modifying high-energy density NASICON-type phosphate cathode materials, showing promising potential in the field of sodium ion batteries.

Synergistic modulation of SrTiO3-TiO2 colossal permittivity system by internal lattice defects and phase composition: Experimental and theoretical investigations

The SrTiO3–TiO2 composite ceramics with different contents of La doping were fabricated by traditional solid-state sintering methods. The performance of the colossal permittivity ceramics was enhanced by the synergistic design of the internal defect structure and phase composition. When the doping content is 2%, SrTiO3–TiO2 composite ceramics possessed a colossal permittivity (ԑr ∼ 1.1 × 105), low dielectric loss (tanδ ∼ 0.050) and favorable thermal stability (−70 °C-150 °C, ΔC/C25°C ≤ ±15%). Phase structure analysis suggested that a TiO2 secondary phase was induced at the grain boundaries of SrTiO3 phase with the addition of La3+ ions. XPS and dielectric behavior analyses revealed that oxygen vacancies and lattice defects formed by inhomogeneous ion-doping act to modulate the dielectric behavior in ceramics. The IBLC interfacial effects in relation to semiconductor grains and insulation grain boundaries are the main contributors to the colossal permittivity (CP) properties of ceramics, and the contribution of the IBLC effects becomes more prominent with increasing doping content. On the basis of first-principles analysis, the ceramic lattice undergoes severe deformation when the La content is increased, and the gathering of electrons at oxygen vacancies and defects is evident. As a result, it leads to enhanced grain semiconducting properties and interfacial effects, which facilitate colossal permittivity and low dielectric loss for ceramics. The results are prospective in the application of CP ceramics.

Revealing the mechanism of bifunctional PtLa electrocatalyst for highly efficient methanol oxidation, hydrogen evolution, and coupling reaction

The development of clean energy solutions, such as fuel cells and hydrogen energy, is crucial for addressing the global energy shortage. Platinum (Pt)-based catalysts are widely used in fuel cells and hydrogen energy generation (for example, via water electrolysis). However, reducing the amount of Pt used while maintaining the catalytic performance of such catalysts is essential. Herein, PtLa catalysts (PtxLay/C) doped with rare earth element lanthanum (La) with different Pt/La atomic ratios were synthesized using a simple chemical reduction method, resulting in Pt65La35/C, Pt78La22/C, Pt97La3/C, and Pt100/C. These PtxLay/C catalysts exhibited excellent electrocatalytic activity and stability in methanol oxidation reaction (MOR), hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), and their coupling reaction as MOR||HER under alkaline conditions. The mechanism by which La doping enhances the electrocatalytic properties and stability of Pt-based catalysts was investigated using X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy (AC-STEM), in-situ Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and operando Raman spectroscopy. For HER, La doping facilitated the adsorption and activation of H2O at Pt sites, improving water dissociation and *OH desorption and reducing Pt poisoning by *OH. This enhances both the catalytic performance and stability of PtxLay/C for HER. Pt78La22/C exhibited a considerably lower overpotential of only 111 mV at 100 mA cm−2 compared to commercial 20 wt% Pt/C (Pt/C-Johnson Matthey (JM)), which requires 153 mV. For MOR, La promotes CO bond cleavage and reduces CO adsorption at the Pt sites, thereby enhancing both the performance and stability of the catalysts. The mass activity (MA) of Pt78La22/C for MOR is 4.44 A mg−1Pt, which is 12.33 times higher than that of Pt/C-JM (0.36 A/mgPt), and surpasses those of Pt65La35/C, Pt97La3/C, and Pt100/C (2.93, 0.24, and 2.91 A mg−1Pt, respectively). Additionally, Pt78La22/C exhibited outstanding catalytic performance for MOR||HER, with a current density of 20 mA cm−2 at 1.030 V, demonstrating good stability with negligible voltage changes after a 15 h chronoamperometry (CA) testing. This study provides a new strategy for synthesizing Pt-based catalysts with enhanced efficiency and low-energy input for HER||MOR.

Adsorption Performance and Photocatalytic Activity of La-TiO2@kaolin Composites

Abstract La-TiO2@kaolin(LTK) composites were prepared via sol-gel method with kaolin, lanthanum nitrate and tetrabutyl titanate as raw materials. The samples were characterized by XRD, SEM/EDS, and UV-Vis. The visible light photocatalytic reduction activity and adsorption performance of samples for Cr(VI) were studied. The results showed that La doping can refine TiO2 grains, stabilize phase structure of anatase TiO2, and expand its absorption spectrum, thereby enhancing its photocatalytic reduction activity. Due to the composite of kaolin, the dispersion of TiO2 is improves and it is endowed with a large specific surface area lead to enhance its adsorption ability for Cr(VI). The adsorption equilibrium process of LTK for Cr(VI) conforms to the Langmuir equation model. The coupling effect of doping and composite modification improves the adsorption and visible light catalytic reduction activity of Cr(VI) over composite material samples. The adsorption-photocatalytic removal rate of LTK for Cr(VI) under visible light irradiation for 6 hours reached the highest of 96.5%. The apparent first-order kinetic constant of its photocatalytic reduction reaction was 2.6 times that of pure TiO2.

The synergistic effect of La dopant/willow catkins template on SnO2 monotubes for efficient detection of triethylamine

The detection of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as triethylamine (TEA) is essential for maintaining air quality and human health. This study explores the synergistic effects of lanthanum (La) doping and the use of willow catkins as a template for the performance of SnO₂ gas sensors for TEA detection. The morphology and structure of the as-synthesized samples were investigated, and a series of experiments were conducted to explore the TEA sensing characterization of SnO2-based sensors. The results of gas sensing demonstrated that the response of La2-SnO₂ sensors is up to about 178 at 100 ppm TEA, showing a 45 % increase compared to pure SnO₂ with a detection limit as low as 5 ppb. The fabricated sensors demonstrated a rapid response time of 60 s and a recovery time of 98 s at 100 ppm TEA concentration. Moreover, the sensors showed stable and repeatable responses over multiple cycles, indicating excellent reproducibility and long-term stability. The enhanced TEA sensing performance can be attributed to the abundant oxygen vacancies and promising tubular structure, which not only offer more active sites to absorb oxygen species but also promote the adsorption-desorption process of gas molecules. This study highlights the potential of La-doped SnO₂ sensors fabricated using a sustainable willow catkins template as a promising candidate for practical TEA detection applications.

Inspection and comparative analysis of light and thermal response dynamics of Cu/V₂O₅/n-Si and Cu/La-V₂O₅/n-Si MIS diodes

Schottky Barrier Diodes (SBDs) are pivotal in modern electronics for their quick switching and low forward voltage drop, enabled by metal-semiconductor junctions. SBDs are renowned for their performance, primarily due to their metal-semiconductor intersection. This study focuses on Cu/V2O5/n-Si and Cu/La-V2O5/n-Si SBDs, examining the impact of lanthanum doping on their performance. Transition Metal Oxides (TMOs) like Vanadium Pentoxide (V2O5) offer unique electronic, magnetic and optical properties making them suitable for various applications. The fabrication process involved sol-gel spin coating and DC magnetron sputtering to create a thin V2O5 layer on n-type silicon wafers, followed by copper contact deposition. Galvanizing temperatures ranged 300° C to 500° C to study the structural, optical, and morphological changes in V2O5 thin films. Key findings include the significant reduction in ideality factor (n) with increasing annealing temperatures for Cu/V2O5/n-Si SBDs, reaching as low n value of 5.26 at 500°C, indicating improved device performances. For Cu/La-V2O5/n-Si SBDs, the ideality factor consistently decreased with higher light intensities, showcasing enhanced performance due to La doping. Barrier height (ɸB) also varied, with higher values observed for La-doped V2O5, enhancing charge recombination and increasing oxygen vacancies. Photodiode parameters were significantly enhanced by doping of the La. The Cu/La-V2O5/n-Si SBDs demonstrated high photosensitivity (PS = 3327.5 %), photo responsivity (R = 33.39 mA/W) and detectivity (D* = 9.82 × 10¹⁰ Jones), making them highly efficient for optoelectronic applications. Overall, this study highlights the potential of Cu/La-V2O5/n-Si SBDs for high-efficiency, optoelectronic applications, with optimized doping concentrations and annealing conditions significantly improving their performance.

Optimizing the composition of (Ce,La)(Co,Fe)5for permanent magnet applications using density functional theory.

In this work, we calculated physical quantities, including the magnetocrystalline anisotropy constant (Ku) and magnetization (Ms), for disordered (Ce,La)(Co,Fe)5systems. Based on the results, we propose CeCo4.7Fe0.3as the optimum composition for high-performance permanent magnets. The calculations employed the full-potential Korringa-Kohn-Rostoker Green's function method, and dealt with the compositional disorder of the systems within the coherent potential approximation. It was found that the La doping reducesKuat 0 K but increases the Curie temperature (TC), which leads to improvement of the magnetic properties at high temperatures. CeCo4.7Fe0.3had the largest magnetic anisotropy ofKu= 15.14 MJ/m3, which is larger than that of CeCo5(Ku= 14.77 MJ/m3).TCof CeCo4.7Fe0.3estimated by the mean-field approximation was 1005 K, which exceeds that of CeCo5(965 K). Further, our calculations showed that while doping of Fe destabilizes the system, CeCo4.7Fe0.3is stable against decomposition into the simple substances. We also show calculated data that are informative for exploring high-performance permanent magnet materials in this paper.

Study on the effect of rare earth elements La, Ce, Y and Sc doping on the mechanical properties of aluminum–lithium alloys

In this paper, the effects of rare earth elements La, Ce, Sc, and Y on the bond strength of the aluminum–lithium alloy δ’ (Al3Li)/Al interface are investigated using first-principles calculations. The results show that the interfacial energy decreases after substitutional doping of Al atoms on both sides of the interface by rare earth elements, respectively, with values ranging from −2.0664 eV/Å2 to −1.9720 eV/Å2. The interfacial energy decreased by 2.0841 eV/Å2 and 2.0709 eV/Å2 when Ce and Sc elements replaced Al in the matrix, respectively. Uniaxial interfacial tensile simulations of Al/ Al3Li showed that the strain elongation of the material increased from 24 % to 42 % for the pure interface after doping with Sc elements at the interface. The same tensile tests yielded a maximum elongation at break of 3.25 % for Al-Li alloy after artificial aging at 0.6 % Sc content. Observation of the microstructure of the materials before and after rare earth doping using TEM reveals that the content of nanoscale Al3(Sc, Li) composite particles increases with the increase of Sc content after artificial aging at 185 °C for 10 h. Moreover, the presence of Al3Sc refines the precipitated phase of the alloy and improves the plastic toughness of the material.

Preparation and Electrorheological Behavior of Rare‐Earth La Ion Doping MIL‐125 Nanoparticles

Herein, rare‐earth element (lanthanum)‐doped MIL‐125 is synthesized via the solvothermal method. The morphology, physicochemical structure, specific surface area, and other characteristics of the synthesized material are characterized via scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X‐ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, Brunauer Emmett Teller, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, element mapping, etc. It is observed that appropriate La doping enhances the dielectric mismatch and conductive mismatch levels of the material. This enhancement leads to a stronger interface polarization capability, thereby influencing the material's dielectric properties. Ultimately, the electrorheological fluids with La‐doped MIL‐125 as the dispersive phase show an obvious electrorheological effect.

Rapid and highly sensitive gas sensing with La-doped SnO2 hollow nanospheres towards NO2 detection at room temperature

The constant challenges associated with metal oxide semiconductor (MOS) gas sensors, such as high operating temperature, low gas-sensing response, and prolonged recovery time towards NO2 restrain their practical application. Herein, we put forward a novel thought via utilizing the synergistic interplay between La doping modification and chip rapid heating treatment to solve these drawbacks. Wherein, the 3 at% La-doped SnO2 nanospheres treated at 200℃ by rapid chip heating (referred to as 3LS-200 NSs) exhibited exceptional performance. At room temperature, these nanospheres demonstrated a highly sensitive response of 3008–20 ppm NO2 within a rapid response time of 9 seconds. Furthermore, this sensor exhibited a low detection limit of 200 ppb and long-term stability. The oxygen vacancy content of 3LS-200 NSs increased by 10.8 % compared with that prepared by normal heating treatment (3LS-200NH NSs) with slow heating rate. The exceptional gas sensing properties of 3LS-200 NSs towards NO2 can be primarily attributed to the increase of oxygen vacancies, resulting in a reduced bandgap and the Fermi level shift of 0.07 eV toward the conduction band edge, hence enhancing surface electron transfer capability. This work presents a simple and energy-efficient strategy for commercial NO2 detection.

Tunable quantum transport in topological semimetal candidates LaxSr1-xMnSb2

The magnetic semimetal SrMnSb2 contains a nonsymmorphic crystal symmetry that could protect Dirac crossings, offering the coexistence of a quasi-two-dimensional characteristic, magnetic order and nontrivial topology in bulk single crystals. Here, we report the evolution of Fermi surfaces by probing quantum oscillations in the La x Sr1-x MnSb2 single crystals. Hall measurements reveal that the conduction process changes from a hole-dominated multiband nature to a single hole-band nature after La doping. Compared with parent-SrMnSb2, the Fermi surface corresponding to F α is slightly enlarged and the small Fermi surface corresponding to F γ appears with a tunable feature in La-doped crystals. The topological semimetal candidates La x Sr1-x MnSb2 provide a fine-tuning platform for potential applications in the future.

Effect of lanthanum doped SnO2 on the performance of mixed-cation mixed-halide perovskite layer

Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have attracted significant attention due to their higher efficiencies and lower fabrication costs. But for the better performance of PSCs, a high-quality electron transport layer (ETL) is crucial. Various ETLs have been employed and among them Tin (IV) oxide (SnO2) has emerged as a promising candidate for electron selective layer in PSCs due to its superior optical and electrical characteristics. However, there is still improvement needed in terms of poor surface morphology and conductivities of SnO2. When SnO2 is used in conjunction with absorber layer in ambient conditions, stability, and charge carrier recombinations at SnO2/perovskite interface remains a serious challenge as well. This study presents the doping of lanthanum (La III), a rare earth element, into SnO2 ETLs to improve the quality and performance of the perovskite layer deposited on top of ETL in ambient condition. With the optimized 4% La (III) doping, SnO2 ETLs become more crystalline with lower parasitic light absorption and surface morphology improves significantly. The improvement in morphology due to doping facilitates larger crystal growth of perovskite in ambient environment. Moreover, Photoluminescence reveals that with optimized level of doping, interfacial charge recombinations are significantly mitigated ensuring smooth injection of electrons into ETL because of superior perovskite film quality. The mixed-cation mixed-halide perovskite film deposited on 4% La:SnO2 ETL show better resistance towards moisture ingress and will substantially contribute to develop long-life of planar PSCs.

Enhancing the performance of spinel La-doped CoFe2O4 oxygen carriers for chemical looping hydrogen generation

Chemical-looping hydrogen generation (CLHG) is a clean and efficient method for sustainable hydrogen production. The industrial advancement of the CLHG technology hinges on the development of highly active and selective oxygen carriers (OCs). In this study, the performances of three spinel OCs (ZnFe2O4, CoFe2O4, and NiFe2O4) were investigated in a fixed-bed reactor. CoFe2O4 demonstrated the best reactivity and highest hydrogen yield. In addition, doping CoFe2O4 with varying amounts of La further improved its performance. The highest hydrogen yield (393mL/g) was observed for CoFe2O4 doped with 10 % by mass of La. The characterization results indicated that La not only facilitated the formation of oxygen vacancies but also accelerated lattice oxygen transfer. Furthermore, an optimized La doping level was found to boost the crystallinity of the oxygen carrier, leading to improved cycling performance. The insights gained from probing the performance of La-doped CoFe2O4 OCs are expected to contribute to the development of novel OCs for scaled-up CLHG technology.

Study on the high-strength and high-conductivity modification mechanisms of C7035 copper alloy induced by La and Sc doping

The effects of multi-element doping on mechanical and electrical properties of C7035 copper alloy were investigated by first principles calculation and experiment based on density functional theory (DFT). The results show that the addition of lanthanum (La) significantly improves the electrical conductivity of copper alloy, mainly because the precipitated phase of lanthanum (La) has high electrical conductivity, and promotes the formation of high-density twins in 0 Cu matrix. The electrical conductivity of the C7035 alloy doped with La reaches 80.19 % of IACS, which is 44.17 % higher than that of the alloy without La. In addition, the incorporation of scandium (Sc) increased the yield strength of the alloy to 635.63 MPa, an improvement of 25.65 %, due to the excellent mechanical properties of the ScCu₄ precipitated phase. The highly conductive NiSi precipitated phase is formed by the copper alloy doped with La and Sc simultaneously. Compared with the undoped alloy, the yield strength and conductivity of the co-doped alloy are 672.27 MPa, 62.7 %, 32.89 % and 12.73 % respectively. In summary, the coupling doping of La and Sc improves the mechanical and electrical properties of C7035 copper alloy, which provides theoretical guidance for the design of high-strength and high-conductivity copper alloys.