Porous Foam Research Articles

Revisiting porous foam Cu host based Li metal anode: The roles of lithiophilicity and hierarchical structure of three-dimensional framework

Lithium (Li) metal anode (LMA) is one of the most promising anodes for high energy density batteries. However, its practical application is impeded by notorious dendrite growth and huge volume expansion. Although the three-dimensional (3D) host can enhance the cycling stability of LMA, further improvements are still necessary to address the key factors limiting Li plating/stripping behavior. Herein, porous copper (Cu) foam (CF) is thermally infiltrated with molten Li-rich Li-zinc (Li-Zn) binary alloy (CFLZ) with variable Li/Zn atomic ratio. In this process, the LiZn intermetallic compound phase self-assembles into a network of mixed electron/ion conductors that are distributed within the metallic Li phase matrix and this network acts as a sublevel skeleton architecture in the pores of CF, providing a more efficient and structured framework for the material. The as-prepared CFLZ composite anodes are systematically investigated to emphasize the roles of the tunable lithiophilicity and hierarchical structure of the frameworks. Meanwhile, a thin layer of Cu-Zn alloy with strong lithiophilicity covers the CF scaffold itself. The CFLZ with high Zn content facilitates uniform Li nucleation and deposition, thereby effectively suppressing Li dendrite growth and volume fluctuation. Consequently, the hierarchical and lithiophilic framework shows low Li nucleation overpotential and highly stable Coulombic efficiency (CE) for 200 cycles in conventional carbonate based electrolyte. The full cell coupled with LiFePO4 (LFP) cathode demonstrates high cycle stability and rate performance. This work provides valuable insights into the design of advanced dendrite-free 3D LMA toward practical application.

Direct Electroplating Ruthenium Precursor on the Surface Oxidized Nickel Foam for Efficient and Stable Bifunctional Alkaline Water Electrolysis.

Water electrolysis to produce hydrogen (H2) using renewable energy is one of the most promising candidates for realizing carbon neutrality, but its reaction kinetics is hindered by sluggish anodic oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Ruthenium (Ru) in its high-valence state (oxide) provides one of the most active OER sites and is less costly, but thermodynamically unstable. The strong interaction between Ru nanoparticles (NPs) and nickel hydroxide (Ni(OH)2) is leveraged to directly form Ru-Ni(OH)2 on the surface of a porous nickel foam (NF) electrode via spontaneous galvanic replacement reaction. The formation of Ru─O─Ni bonds at the interface of the Ru NPs and Ni(OH)2 (Ru-Ni(OH)2) on the surface oxidized NF significantly enhance stability of the Ru-Ni(OH)2/NF electrode. In addition to OER, the catalyst is active enough for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). As a result, it is able to deliver overpotentials of 228 and 15mV to reach 10mA cm-2 for OER and HER, respectively. An industry-scale evaluation using Ru-Ni(OH)2/NF as both OER and HER electrodes demonstrates a high current density of 1500mA cm-2 (OER: 410mV; HER: 240mV), surpassing commercial RuO2 (OER: 600mV) and Pt/C based performance (HER: 265mV).

Experimental and numerical assessment of thermal characteristics of PCM in a U-shaped heat exchanger using porous metal foam and NanoPowder

The utilization of Latent Heat Thermal Energy Storage (LHTES) has gained significant attention to address the disparity between energy supply and demand. One of the key advantages lies in the use of phase change materials (PCM). The purpose of this research is to overcome this obstacle by focusing on enhancing the thermal efficiency of an advanced thermal energy storage system specifically designed for solar domestic and industrial application. to overcome this obstacle by focusing on enhancing the thermal efficiency of an advanced thermal energy storage system specifically designed for solar domestic and industrial application. Through computational and experimental studies, a novel and small LHTES system with parallel U-shaped heat exchanger (USHX) has been created and investigated. To improve performance, two approaches are employed: optimizing thermal efficiency by dispersing nano-sized graphite powders into the paraffin material, and/or incorporating metal foams. The PCM is RT35HC, and the hot/cold heat transfer fluid is H2O, which travels via the U-shaped tube. The model incorporates the enthalpy-porosity technique to account for phase change phenomena. After comparing the numerical outcomes with the experiments herein run, data are shown in terms of liquid fraction, temperature evolution, stored energy, and a dimensionless parameter that characterizes the phase change process. The findings suggest that the proposed methods for enhancing heat transfer can enhance the thermal efficiency of systems. The outcomes illustrate that by addition of all methods, reduces the melting time by 13.39 %, 60.77 %, and 71.93 %, when compared to system with pure PCM.

Effect of Gentamicin Sulfate and Polymeric Polyethylene Glycol Coating on the Degradation and Cytotoxicity of Iron-Based Biomaterials.

The work is focused on the degradation, cytotoxicity, and antibacterial properties, of iron-based biomaterials with a bioactive coating layer. The foam and the compact iron samples were coated with a polyethylene glycol (PEG) polymer layer without and with gentamicin sulfate (PEG + Ge). The corrosion properties of coated and uncoated samples were studied using the degradation testing in Hanks' solution at 37 °C. The electrochemical and static immersion corrosion tests revealed that the PEG-coated samples corroded faster than samples with the bioactive PEG + Ge coating and uncoated samples. The foam samples corroded faster compared with the compact samples. To determine the cytotoxicity, cell viability was monitored in the presence of porous foam and compact iron samples. The antibacterial activity of the samples with PEG and PEG + Ge against Escherichia coli CCM 3954 and Staphylococcus aureus CCM 4223 strains was also tested. Tested PEG + Ge samples showed significant antibacterial activity against both bacterial strains. Therefore, the biodegradable iron-based materials with a bioactive coating could be a suitable successor to the metal materials studied thus far as well as the materials used in the field of medicine.

Hygroscopic assisted solar photo-thermal-electric conversion system for all-day power generation and daytime water collection

In the field of solar thermal electricity, it is difficult to achieve efficient solar energy utilization during the day and continuous power supply day and night at the same time. To address this issue, an integrated system for daytime photothermal power generation combined with waste hot water evaporation and nighttime hygroscopic exothermic power generation has been designed. The system consists of multifunctional composite hydrogel, thermoelectric generator, and hydrophilic porous foam from top to bottom. Among them, the multifunctional composite hydrogel is a crosslinked sodium alginate (SA) loaded with photothermal material polypyrrole (PPy) and hygroscopic material CaCl2, and the hydrophilic porous foam is a PDMS treated by pore-making and oxygen plasma. During the night, CaCl2 and SA in the hydrogel absorb ambient moisture and then release heat, causing the temperature difference between the two sides of the thermoelectric generator to generate electricity with a power of 15.1 mW m−2. During the day, PPy in the hydrogel converts sunlight into heat for the thermoelectric generator to generate electricity with a power of 141.8 mW m−2, and the waste heat of the thermoelectric generator is then used to evaporate the water in the porous PDMS with a rate of 1.311 kg m-2h−1, realizing the multi-stage utilization of solar energy with a high efficiency of 80 %. Therefore, this integrated system can not only use solar energy efficiently, but also generate electricity continuously day and night.

Vibration and buckling analysis of porous metal foam thin-walled beams with closed section

This paper investigates the vibration and buckling analysis of porous metal foam thin-walled box beams. These beams exhibit a unique structural configuration with symmetrical and asymmetrical porosity distributions along their wall thickness, thereby altering the effective mechanical properties. The first-order shear deformable beam theory is employed and the governing equations are derived using the Hamilton’s principle. Numerical results are presented for porous metal foam thin-walled box beams under simply-supported, clamped–clamped and clamped-free boundary conditions. The effects of various porosity parameters, length-to-side and side-to-wall-thickness ratios on the beams’ performance are also examined. A comprehensive comparison between the porous metal foam thin-walled box beams and their counterparts in the form of equivalent homogeneous are presented.

Altering electronic structure of nickel foam supported CoNi-based oxide through Al ions modulation for efficient oxygen evolution reaction

Developing highly active and durable non-precious metal-based electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is crucial in achieving efficient energy conversion. Herein, we reported a CoNiAl0.5O/NF nanofilament that exhibits higher OER activity than previously reported IrO2-based catalysts in alkaline solution. The as-synthesized CoNiAl0.5O/NF catalyst demonstrates a low overpotential of 230 mV at a current density of 100 mA cm−2, indicating its high catalytic efficiency. Furthermore, the catalyst exhibits a Tafel slope of 26 mV dec−1, suggesting favorable reaction kinetics. The CoNiAl0.5O/NF catalyst exhibits impressive stability, ensuring its potential for practical applications. Detailed characterizations reveal that the enhanced activity of CoNiAl0.5O/NF can be attributed to the electronic modulation achieved through Al3+ incorporation, which promotes the emergence of higher-valence Ni metal, facilitating nanofilament formation and improving mass transport and charge transfer processes. The synergistic effect between nanofilaments and porous nickel foam (NF) substrate significantly enhances the electrical conductivity of this catalyst material. This study highlights the significance of electronic structures for improving the activity of cost-effective and non-precious metal-based electrocatalysts for the OER.

Using metal foam and nanoparticle additives with different fin shapes for PCM-based thermal storage in flat plate solar collectors

This research focuses on employing heat transfer enhancement techniques as well as nanoparticles, porous metal foams, and extended surfaces, for the PCM-based thermal energy storage system of a flat plate solar collector. Numerical investigations are carried out for different combinations of the aforementioned techniques, with I-, Y-, and T-shaped fins as the extended surface. The mathematical model is developed with porous media equations, where nanoparticles are embedded in the PCM under the assumption of an equivalent single-phase medium. Results suggest that employing these techniques one by one augments heat transfer performances in terms of reduced melting time. The addition of both metal foam and nanoparticles in the straight wall (case A) reduces melting time by 85.16% when compared to the pure-PCM case, while a 84.38% reduction is reached if only foams are employed. The I-shaped fins (case B) are shown to have an impact too; they provide a 37.07% melting time reduction with only PCM, reaching 89.68% and 86.19% with nanoparticles with foams, respectively. This means that metal foams have a primary role in reducing melting time, where nanoparticles and I-shaped fins become helpful too. Furthermore, by considering all techniques together, the heat storage rate increases by an order of magnitude.

Numerical investigate on the heat transfer performance and mechanical analysis of a water sublimator

Water sublimators play a critical role in efficiently managing the high thermal load of spacecraft in a vacuum environment, ensuring their proper functioning. This article focuses on a novel cold plate water sublimator driven by a porous sublimation tube structure, which is still in the theoretical research stage. Numerical methods are employed to study the evaporation, freezing, and sublimation processes, with validation against experimental data. The average absolute error of the four operating conditions is 1.33 K, and the ice layer thickness error is 8.33 %. Additionally, a method to calculate the effective thermal conductivity of porous aluminum foam is proposed, with a model error of 9 %. The sublimator's heat transfer characteristics are significantly influenced by the porosity of the aluminum foam and sublimation tubes. The impacts on temperature behavior, ice thickness, feed water pressure, and stress are carefully examined. Results reveal aluminum foam porosity of 0.7 and sublimation tube porosity of 0.3. Moreover, the study explores how different heat loads affect the sublimator's operation mode. Heat loads above 2 W/cm2 cause evaporation and dryness within the sublimation tube, while excessively small heat loads lead to ice formation and increased stress on the aluminum foam structure. These findings provide valuable insights for water sublimator design.

Functional LSMO foams for magneto-caloric applications

The ferromagnetic La1-x\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$_{1-x}$$\\end{document}Srx\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$_{x}$$\\end{document}MnO3\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$_3$$\\end{document} (LSMO) manganites are ideal materials for magneto-caloric applications due to their high Curie temperature. Here, we prepare open-cell, porous LSMO foams starting from a commercial polyurethane (PU) foam and commercial LSMO powder with x=0.3.\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$x = 0.3.$$\\end{document} The cut PU foams are then covered by a slurry of LSMO powder mixed with PVA and water, and then, the foams are subjected to a heat-treatment with two steps at 600 ∘\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$^\\circ$$\\end{document}C (burn-off organic material) and 1200 ∘\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$^\\circ$$\\end{document}C (sintering/compacting). The resulting ceramic LSMO foams are then characterized by X-ray, SEM, electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) orientation mapping and magnetic measurements. The foam sample consists of randomly-oriented LSMO grains with an average grain size of 188 nm, being distinctly smaller than bulk samples of the same composition, but considerably larger than LSMO nanowires prepared by electrospinning. The magnetic data reveal a high Curie temperature like the bulk samples, and an entropy change, -ΔSM\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$-\\Delta S_{\ ext{M}}$$\\end{document} slightly higher than that of the bulk samples, which points to a strong influence of the LSMO grain size. Thus, the resulting LSMO foam material is well suited for magneto-caloric applications at room temperature.

Bilayer Porous Electrocatalysts for Stable and Selective Electrochemical Reduction of CO2 to Formate in the Presence of Flue Gas Containing NO and SO2.

The development of stable and selective electrocatalysts for converting CO2 to value-added chemicals or fuels has gained much interest in terms of their potential to mitigate anthropogenic carbon emissions. Most of the electrocatalysts are tested under pure CO2; however, industrial outlet flue gas contains numerous impurities, such as NO and SO2, which poison the electrocatalysts and alter the product selectivity. Developing electrocatalysts that are resistant to such impurities is essential for commercial implementation. Herein, we prepared bilayer porous electrocatalysts, namely, Sn, Bi, and In, on porous Cu foam mesh (Sn/Cu-f, Bi/Cu-f, and In/Cu-f) by a two-step electrodeposition process and employed these electrodes for the electrochemical reduction of CO2 to formate. It was observed that the bilayer porous electrocatalysts exhibited high CO2 reduction activity compared to catalysts coated on a Cu mesh. Among bilayer porous electrocatalysts, Sn/Cu-f and Bi/Cu-f electrocatalysts showed more than 80% faradaic efficiency (FE) toward formate production, with a formate partial current density of around -16 and -10.4 mA cm-2, respectively, at -1.02 V vs RHE. In/Cu-f electrocatalyst showed nearly 40% formate FE with formate partial current density of -15 mA cm-2 at -1.22 V vs RHE. We investigated the effect of NO and SO2 impurities (500 ppm of NO, 800 ppm of SO2, and 500 ppm of NO + 800 ppm of SO2) on these electrocatalysts' selectivity and stability toward formate. It was observed that the Bi/Cu-f electrocatalyst showed 50 h stability with 80 ± 5% formate FE, and Sn/Cu-f showed 18 h stability with above 80 ± 5% efficiency in the presence of NO and SO2 mixed with CO2. Furthermore, we studied the effect of CO2 concentration with Sn/Cu-f and Bi/Cu-f catalysts in the range of 15-100% CO2, for which formate FEs of 45-80% were observed.

Research on image restoration of [formula omitted] porous foam ceramics media using Transformer architecture

Pore structure images of foam ceramics play a crucial role in the field of refractory materials science and engineering, facilitating the observation and analysis of the material’s pore structure and unique characteristics. However, traditional image restoration techniques have limitations in handling background noise, complex texture restoration, deformation, and dislocation correction, as well as automation and intelligence aspects in restoring material pore structure images. The latest Transformer architecture has shown significant potential in image processing, particularly in image restoration research tasks. Nevertheless, its application in restoring pore structure images of materials remains unexplored. This paper aims to address this gap by focusing on the image restoration of foam ceramic pore structure images using a Transformer-based algorithm for super-resolution (SR) processing. Experimental comparisons with state-of-the-art methods demonstrate a remarkable improvement in Peak Signal-to-Noise Ratio (PSNR) and Structural Similarity (SSIM), underscoring the effectiveness of the proposed approach.

Bio-based melamine formaldehyde resins for flame-retardant polyurethane foams

The polyurethane (PU) foams can be functionally tailored by modifying the formulation with different additives. One such additive is melamine (MA) formaldehyde resin for improving their flame-retardant properties. In this work, the glycerol-modified (GMF), sodium alginate (SGMF)- and lignosulfonate-modified melamine formaldehyde (LGMF) were prepared and used as flame retardants reacting with isocyanate to prepare the corresponding rigid polyurethane foams (GMF-PU, SGMF-PU and LGMF-PU). The thermomechanical properties and flame-retardant properties of the foams were characterized. The results showed that the specific compression strength of GMF-PU, SGMF-PU and LGMF-PU increased substantially compared to the foams from physical addition of MA, sodium alginate and lignosulfonate, all of which were greater than that of the foam without any flame retardant (PPU). Meanwhile, the cell wall of the foam pores became thicker and the closed pore ratio increased. The sodium alginate and lignosulfonate played a key role in enhancing foam thermal stability. The limiting oxygen index values and cone calorimetry results indicated the flame-retardant efficiency of GMF-PU, SGMF-PU and LGMF-PU was significantly enhanced relative to PPU. Meanwhile, the heat and smoke release results indicated sodium alginate and lignosulfonate could reduce the amount of smoke generation to different degrees during the combustion of the foam.

Electrochemical characteristics of flexible open-cell supercapacitors employing different electrolyte types: KOH and ionic liquid

A carbonate hydroxide compound with substantial wettability was deposited on a porous Ni foam substrate, employing the Ni-based chemical precursor by a facile hydrothermal method. The resulting Ni2(CO3)(OH)2 electrode exhibits a nanowire structure characterized by a significant surface area. These electrodes represent highly promising materials for faradaic capacitors. They demonstrate high wettability on the electrode surface, facilitating charge and discharge processes on the electrode surface through redox reactions. A flexible hybrid open-cell supercapacitor, designed to operate at 1.5 V, was constructed with the Ni2(CO3)(OH)2 electrode as the positive terminal and graphene as the negative terminal, employing two distinct electrolytes (KOH and ionic liquid named MPPyFSI with 1-Methyl-1-propylpyrrolidinium Bis(fluorosulfonyl)imide structure). The open-cell devices, fabricated with 6 M KOH and MPPyFSI electrolyte, exhibit high energy densities of 39.6 and 24.8 Wh kg−1 and power densities of 1752.1 and 2908.5 W kg−1 at current densities of 2 A g−1, respectively. Furthermore, the energy storage devices utilizing aqueous KOH and MPPyFSI demonstrate excellent stability, maintaining 73.4 and 87.1% of their specific capacity after 5,000 charge/discharge cycles. The mechanical properties of the flexible open-cell device were characterized, and the electrochemical values corresponding to the banding angle of the device were measured.

Amino Acid-Modified Porous Carbon Foams Derived from Wheat Powder with Enhanced Adsorption Performance for VOCs

Amino Acid-Modified Porous Carbon Foams Derived from Wheat Powder with Enhanced Adsorption Performance for VOCs

Pretreatment-free SERS sensing of microplastics using a self-attention-based neural network on hierarchically porous Ag foams

Low-cost detection systems are needed for the identification of microplastics (MPs) in environmental samples. However, their rapid identification is hindered by the need for complex isolation and pre-treatment methods. This study describes a comprehensive sensing platform to identify MPs in environmental samples without requiring independent separation or pre-treatment protocols. It leverages the physicochemical properties of macroporous-mesoporous silver (Ag) substrates templated with self-assembled polymeric micelles to concurrently separate and analyze multiple MP targets using surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). The hydrophobic layer on Ag aids in stabilizing the nanostructures in the environment and mitigates biofouling. To monitor complex samples with multiple MPs and to demultiplex numerous overlapping patterns, we develop a neural network (NN) algorithm called SpecATNet that employs a self-attention mechanism to resolve the complex dependencies and patterns in SERS data to identify six common types of MPs: polystyrene, polyethylene, polymethylmethacrylate, polytetrafluoroethylene, nylon, and polyethylene terephthalate. SpecATNet uses multi-label classification to analyze multi-component mixtures even in the presence of various interference agents. The combination of macroporous-mesoporous Ag substrates and self-attention-based NN technology holds potential to enable field monitoring of MPs by generating rich datasets that machines can interpret and analyze.

Multifunctional and high‐stability RGO/PANI wrapped polyurethane foam for flexible piezoresistive sensor applications

AbstractDue to its excellent durability and steady mechanical qualities, three‐dimensional porous polyurethane foam (PUF) presents a wide range of possibilities for flexible piezoresistive sensors. Its extreme flammability, poor electrical conductivity, and susceptibility to outside factors present serious difficulties, though. In this study, a waterborne polyurethane‐coated flexible PUF sensor that incorporates reduced graphene oxide (RGO) and polyaniline (PANI) through a methodical, step‐by‐step dip‐coating methodology is successfully developed. The final product has a water contact angle of 133°, which improves its ability to adapt to a variety of environmental circumstances. Flexible graphene sheets are incorporated to improve heat resistance and flame retardancy, and PANI and RGO provide strong bonding to the PUF framework, ensuring outstanding structural stability even after 1500 cycles. The flexible foam sensor shows promise for use in flexible piezoresistive sensors and electronic skin due to its remarkable strain monitoring range of up to 70%, quick response time of 0.39 s in sensitivity experiments, and adaptability to different physical activities like walking and gesturing.

Fabrication of porous copper oxide nanostructure on nickel foam electrode by a co-precipitation method for non-enzymatic glucose detection

A novel porous copper oxide nanostructure on nickel foam (CuO/NF) electrode has been successfully prepared through a co-precipitation way. The porous CuO structure and nickel foam can be integrated into a three-dimensional ordered and hierarchal CuO electrode sensor. The porous CuO structure contains many loosely packed nanoparticles and the nanochannels, which are beneficial for providing more active sites for electrocatalytic oxidation–reduction reactions. The Cu(III)/Cu(II) pair plays an essential role, which completes the charge transfer during the electrochemically catalyzed reaction. Two Cu(III) ions obtain two electrons from one molecule of glucose, which completes two electron transfers to produce one molecule of gluconic acid lactone. The results of the actual detection of Fetal Bovine Serum indicate that the CuO/NF electrode produced could be utilized for the determination of actual samples.

Porous S-doped carbon nitride foam with accelerated charge dynamics for synchronous photocatalytic hydrogen production and highly selective oxidation of amines

Porous S-doped carbon nitride foam with accelerated charge dynamics for synchronous photocatalytic hydrogen production and highly selective oxidation of amines

Flexible Iontronic Tactile Sensors Based on Silver Nanowire Electrode with Sandpaper-Roughened Surface and Ionic Liquid Gel Electrolyte with Porous Foam Structure for Wearable Sensing Applications

Flexible Iontronic Tactile Sensors Based on Silver Nanowire Electrode with Sandpaper-Roughened Surface and Ionic Liquid Gel Electrolyte with Porous Foam Structure for Wearable Sensing Applications