No Arabic abstract
Second harmonic generation amplitude and phase measurements are acquired in real time from fused silica:water interfaces that are subjected to ionic strength transitions conducted at pH 5.8. In conjunction with atomistic modeling, we identify correlations between structure in the Stern layer, encoded in the total second-order nonlinear susceptibility, chi(2)tot, and in the diffuse layer, encoded in the product of chi(2)tot and the total interfacial potential, phi(0)tot. chi(2)tot:phi(0)tot correlation plots indicate that the dynamics in the Stern and diffuse layers are decoupled from one another under some conditions (large change in ionic strength), while they change in lockstep under others (smaller change in ionic strength) as the ionic strength in the aqueous bulk solution varies. The quantitative structural and electrostatic information obtained also informs on the molecular origin of hysteresis in ionic strength cycling over fused silica. Atomistic simulations suggest a prominent role of contact ion pairs (as opposed to solvent-separated ion pairs) in the Stern layer. Those simulations also indicate that net water alignment is limited to the first 2 nm from the interface, even at 0 M ionic strength, highlighting waters polarization as an important contributor to nonlinear optical signal generation.
A simple non-local theoretical model is developed considering concentrated ionic surfactant solutions as regular ones. Their thermodynamics is described by the Cahn-Hilliard theory coupled with electrostatics. It is discovered that unstable solutions possess two critical temperatures, where the temperature coefficients of all characteristic lengths are discontinuous. At temperatures below the lower critical temperature ionic surfactant solutions separate into thin layers of oppositely charged liquids spread across the whole system and the electric potential is strictly periodic. At temperatures between the two critical temperatures separation can occur only near the solution surface thus leading to an oscillatory-decaying electric double layer. At temperatures above the higher critical temperature as well as in stable solutions there is no separation and the electric potential decays exponentially.
Electronic polarization and charge transfer effects play a crucial role in thermodynamic, structural and transport properties of room-temperature ionic liquids (RTILs). These non-additive interactions constitute a useful tool for tuning physical chemical behavior of RTILs. Polarization and charge transfer generally decay as temperature increases, although their presence should be expected over an entire condensed state temperature range. For the first time, we use three popular pyridinium-based RTILs to investigate temperature dependence of electronic polarization in RTILs. Atom-centered density matrix propagation molecular dynamics, supplemented by a weak coupling to an external bath, is used to simulate the temperature impact on system properties. We show that, quite surprisingly, non-additivity in the cation-anion interactions changes negligibly between 300 and 900 K, while the average dipole moment increases due to thermal fluctuations of geometries. Our results contribute to the fundamental understanding of electronic effects in the condensed phase of ionic systems and foster progress in physical chemistry and engineering.
Room-temperature ionic liquids (RTILs) constitute a fine-tunable class of compounds. Morpholinium-based cations are new to the field. They are promising candidates for electrochemistry, micellization and catalytic applications. We investigate halogenation (fluorination and chlorination) of the N-ethyl-N-methylmorpholinium cation from thermodynamics perspective. We find that substitutional fluorination is much more energetically favorable than substitutional chlorination, although the latter is also a permitted process. Although all halogenation at different locations are possible, they are not equally favorable. Furthermore, the trends are not identical in the case of fluorination and chlorination. We link the thermodynamic observables to electron density distribution within the investigated cation. The reported insights are based on the coupled-cluster technique, which is a highly accurate and reliable electron-correlation method. Novel derivatives of the morpholinium-based RTILs are discussed, motivating further efforts in synthetic chemistry.
We computed the inter-layer bonding properties of graphite using an ab-initio many body theory. We carried out variational and diffusion quantum Monte Carlo calculations and found an equilibrium inter-layer binding energy in good agreement with most recent experiments. We also analyzed the behavior of the total energy as a function of interlayer separation at large distances comparing the results with the predictions of the random phase approximation.
Solid-state batteries (SSBs) can offer a paradigm shift in battery safety and energy density. Yet, the promise hinges on the ability to integrate high-performance electrodes with state-of-the-art solid electrolytes. For example, lithium (Li) metal, the most energy-dense anode candidate, suffers from severe interfacial chemomechanical issues that lead to cell failure. Li alloys of In/Sn are attractive alternatives, but their exploration has mostly been limited to the low capacity(low Li content)and In rich Li$_x$In (x$leq$0.5). Here, the fundamental electro-chemo-mechanical behavior of Li-In and Li-Sn alloys of varied Li stoichiometries is unravelled in sulfide electrolyte based SSBs. The intermetallic electrodes developed through a controlled synthesis and fabrication technique display impressive (electro)chemical stability with Li$_6$PS$_5$Cl as the solid electrolyte and maintain nearly perfect interfacial contact during the electrochemical Li insertion/deinsertion under an optimal stack pressure. Their intriguing variation in the Li migration barrier with composition and its influence on the observed Li cycling overpotential is revealed through combined computational and electrochemical studies. Stable interfacial chemomechanics of the alloys allow long-term dendrite free Li cycling (>1000 h) at relatively high current densities (1 mA cm$^{-2}$) and capacities (1 mAh cm$^{-2}$), as demonstrated for Li$_{13}$In$_3$ and Li$_{17}$Sn$_4$, which are more desirable from a capacity and cost consideration compared to the low Li content analogues. The presented understanding can guide the development of high-capacity Li-In/Sn alloy anodes for SSBs.