Speciation of Transition Metal Dissolution in Electrolyte from Common Cathode Materials.

Significant capacity loss has been observed across extended cycling of lithium-ion batteries cycled to high potential. One of the sources of capacity fade is transition metal dissolution from the cathode active material, ion migration through the electrolyte, and deposition on the solid-electrolyte interphase on the anode. While much research has been conducted on the oxidation state of the transition metal in the cathode active material or deposited on the anode, there have been limited investigations of the oxidation state of the transition metal ions dissolved in the electrolyte. In this work, X-ray absorption spectroscopy has been performed on electrolytes extracted from cells built with four different cathode active materials (LiMn2 O4 (LMO), LiNi0.5 Mn1.5 O4 (LNMO), LiNi0.8 Mn0.1 Co0.1 O2 (NMC811), and (x Li2 MnO3 *(1-x) LiNia Mnb Coc O2 , with a+b+c=1) (LMRNMC)) that were cycled at either high or standard potentials to determine the oxidation state of Mn and Ni in solution. Inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry has been performed on the anodes from these cells to determine the concentration of deposited transition metal ions. While transition metal ions were found dissolved in all electrolytes, the oxidation state(s) of Mn and Ni were determined to be dependent on the cathode material and independent of cycling potential.

XANES analysis of phosphate glasses melted with Tb4O7 and SnO: evaluating the impact of valence states on structural, thermal, and luminescent properties.

Barium phosphate glasses were prepared with 0.5 mol% Tb4O7 added alongside SnO up to 5 mol% with the purpose of evaluating the resulting terbium and tin oxidation states and their impact on glass structural, thermal, and luminescent properties. Following material synthesis by melt-quenching, the composition-structure-property investigation was pursued encompassing measurements by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray absorption near-edge spectroscopy (XANES), Raman spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), dilatometry, and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. While XRD confirmed the amorphous nature of the glasses, results from XANES indicated that terbium occurs as terbium(III) with a predisposition for tin to exist as tin(IV) which decreased at high SnO content. The structural as well as the thermal properties appeared to be mostly impacted by the presence of tin(IV). Specifically, glass depolymerization was indicated to be induced by Sn4+ ions, and their concentration was observed to correlate with glass transition and softening temperatures. On the other hand, the tin(II) remnants were observed to exert an impact on the luminescent properties shifting light emission from the green towards the blue-green (cyan). It is indicated that Tb4O7 reacting to produce Tb2O3 supports the oxidation of tin(II) to tin(IV) which in turn dominates the physical properties. However, this was somewhat circumvented at the highest SnO content wherein tin(IV) appeared to be lower.

Ten-Fold Solvent Kinetic Isotope Effect for the Nonradiative Relaxation of the Aqueous Ferrate(VI) Ion.

Hypervalent iron intermediates have been invoked in the catalytic cycles of many metalloproteins, and thus, it is crucial to understand how the coupling between such species and their environment can impact their chemical and physical properties in such contexts. In this work, we take advantage of the solvent kinetic isotope effect (SKIE) to gain insight into the nonradiative deactivation of electronic excited states of the aqueous ferrate(VI) ion. We observe an exceptionally large SKIE of 9.7 for the nanosecond-scale relaxation of the lowest energy triplet ligand field state to the ground state. Proton inventory studies demonstrate that a single solvent O-H bond is coupled to the ion during deactivation, likely due to the sparse vibrational structure of ferrate(VI). Such a mechanism is consistent with that reported for the deactivation of f-f excited states of aqueous trivalent lanthanides, which exhibit comparably large SKIE values. This phenomenon is ascribed entirely to dissipation of energy into a higher overtone of a solvent acceptor mode, as any impact on the apparent relaxation rate due to a change in solvent viscosity is negligible.

Bridge-Mediated Metal-to-Metal Electron and Hole Transfer in a Supermolecular Dinuclear Complex: A Computational Study Using Quantum Electron-Nuclear Dynamics.

Bimetallic electron donor-acceptor complexes can facilitate electron and energy transfer with excellent structural control through synthetic design. In this work, we investigate the photochemical dynamics in a Ru-Cu bimetallic complex after photoexcitation of the Ru-centered charge transfer state. The physical underpinnings of the metal-to-metal directional charge transfer process are unraveled via analyses of the quantum electronic dynamics and electron-nuclear trajectories. The effects of molecular vibrations in the photoexcited state on the charge transfer processes are also analyzed.

Photochemical and Photophysical Dynamics of the Aqueous Ferrate(VI) Ion.

Ferrate(VI) has the potential to play a key role in future water supplies. Its salts have been suggested as "green" alternatives to current advanced oxidation and disinfection methods in water treatment, especially when combined with ultraviolet light to stimulate generation of highly oxidizing Fe(V) and Fe(IV) species. However, the nature of these intermediates, the mechanisms by which they form, and their roles in downstream oxidation reactions remain unclear. Here, we use a combination of optical and X-ray transient absorption spectroscopies to study the formation, interconversion, and relaxation of several excited-state and metastable high-valent iron species following excitation of aqueous potassium ferrate(VI) by ultraviolet and visible light. Branching from the initially populated ligand-to-metal charge transfer state into independent photophysical and photochemical pathways occurs within tens of picoseconds, with the quantum yield for the generation of reactive Fe(V) species determined by relative rates of the competing intersystem crossing and reverse electron transfer processes. Relaxation of the metal-centered states then occurs within 4 ns, while the formation of metastable Fe(V) species occurs in several steps with time constants of 250 ps and 300 ns. Results here improve the mechanistic understanding of the formation and fate of Fe(V) and Fe(IV), which will accelerate the development of novel advanced oxidation processes for water treatment applications.

Catalytic Thermal Decomposition of NO2 by Iron(III) Nitrate Nonahydrate-Doped Poly(Vinylidene Difluoride).

The products of thermal decomposition of iron nitrate nonahydrate doped into poly(vinylidene difluoride) are examined using Mössbauer spectroscopy. Very little of the expected nitrogen dioxide product is observed, which is attributed to Fe3+ catalysis of the decomposition of NO2. The active site of the catalysis is shown to be Fe(OH)3 in the polymer matrix, which is, unexpectedly, reduced to Fe(OH)2. Thermodynamic calculations show that the reduction of Fe3+ is exergonic at sufficiently high temperatures. A reaction sequence, including a catalytic cycle for decomposition of NO2, is proposed that accounts for the observed reaction products. The role of the polymer matrix is proposed to inhibit transport of gas-phase products, which allows them to interact with Fe(OH)3 doped in the polymer.

Mechanisms of the Cu(I)-Catalyzed Intermolecular Photocycloaddition Reaction Revealed by Optical and X-ray Transient Absorption Spectroscopies.

The [2 + 2] photocycloaddition provides a simple, single-step route to cyclobutane moieties that would otherwise be disfavored or impossible due to ring strain and/or steric interactions. We have used a combination of optical and X-ray transient absorption spectroscopies to elucidate the mechanism of the Cu(I)-catalyzed intermolecular photocycloaddition reaction using norbornene and cyclohexene as model substrates. We find that for norbornene the reaction proceeds through an initial metal-to-ligand charge transfer (MLCT) state that persists for 18 ns before the metal returns to the monovalent oxidation state. The Cu K-edge spectrum continues to evolve until ∼5 µs and then remains unchanged for the 50 µs duration of the measurement, reflecting product formation and ligand dissociation. We hypothesize that the MLCT transition and reverse electron transfer serve to sensitize the triplet excited state of one of the norbornene ligands, which then dimerizes with the other to give the product. For the case of cyclohexene, however, we do not observe a charge transfer state following photoexcitation and instead find evidence for an increase in the metal-ligand bond strength that persists for several ns before product formation occurs. This is consistent with a mechanism in which ligand photoisomerization is the initial step, which was first proposed by Salomon and Kochi in 1974 to explain the stereoselectivity of the reaction. Our investigation reveals how this photocatalytic reaction may be directed along strikingly disparate trajectories by only very minor changes to the structure of the substrate.

Detection of high-valent iron species in alloyed oxidic cobaltates for catalysing the oxygen evolution reaction.

Iron alloying of oxidic cobaltate catalysts results in catalytic activity for oxygen evolution on par with Ni-Fe oxides in base but at much higher alloying compositions. Zero-field 57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy and X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) are able to clearly identify Fe4+ in mixed-metal Co-Fe oxides. The highest Fe4+ population is obtained in the 40-60% Fe alloying range, and XAS identifies the ion residing in an octahedral oxide ligand field. The oxygen evolution reaction (OER) activity, as reflected in Tafel analysis of CoFeOx films in 1 M KOH, tracks the absolute concentration of Fe4+. The results reported herein suggest an important role for the formation of the Fe4+ redox state in activating cobaltate OER catalysts at high iron loadings.

Interplays of electron and nuclear motions along CO dissociation trajectory in myoglobin revealed by ultrafast X-rays and quantum dynamics calculations.

Ultrafast structural dynamics with different spatial and temporal scales were investigated during photodissociation of carbon monoxide (CO) from iron(II)-heme in bovine myoglobin during the first 3 ps following laser excitation. We used simultaneous X-ray transient absorption (XTA) spectroscopy and X-ray transient solution scattering (XSS) at an X-ray free electron laser source with a time resolution of 80 fs. Kinetic traces at different characteristic X-ray energies were collected to give a global picture of the multistep pathway in the photodissociation of CO from heme. In order to extract the reaction coordinates along different directions of the CO departure, XTA data were collected with parallel and perpendicular relative polarizations of the laser pump and X-ray probe pulse to isolate the contributions of electronic spin state transition, bond breaking, and heme macrocycle nuclear relaxation. The time evolution of the iron K-edge X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) features along the two major photochemical reaction coordinates, i.e., the iron(II)-CO bond elongation and the heme macrocycle doming relaxation were modeled by time-dependent density functional theory calculations. Combined results from the experiments and computations reveal insight into interplays between the nuclear and electronic structural dynamics along the CO photodissociation trajectory. Time-resolved small-angle X-ray scattering data during the same process are also simultaneously collected, which show that the local CO dissociation causes a protein quake propagating on different spatial and temporal scales. These studies are important for understanding gas transport and protein deligation processes and shed light on the interplay of active site conformational changes and large-scale protein reorganization.

Template-stabilized oxidic nickel oxygen evolution catalysts.

Earth-abundant oxygen evolution catalysts (OECs) with extended stability in acid can be constructed by embedding active sites within an acid-stable metal-oxide framework. Here, we report stable NiPbOx films that are able to perform oxygen evolution reaction (OER) catalysis for extended periods of operation (>20 h) in acidic solutions of pH 2.5; conversely, native NiOx catalyst films dissolve immediately. In situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy and ex situ X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy reveal that PbO2 is unperturbed after addition of Ni and/or Fe into the lattice, which serves as an acid-stable, conductive framework for embedded OER active centers. The ability to perform OER in acid allows the mechanism of Fe doping on Ni catalysts to be further probed. Catalyst activity with Fe doping of oxidic Ni OEC under acid conditions, as compared to neutral or basic conditions, supports the contention that role of Fe3+ in enhancing catalytic activity in Ni oxide catalysts arises from its Lewis acid properties.

The Nature of the Long-Lived Excited State in a NiII Phthalocyanine Complex Investigated by X-Ray Transient Absorption Spectroscopy.

The nature of the photoexcited state of octabutoxy nickel(II) phthalocyanine (NiPcOBu8 ) with a 500 ps lifetime was investigated by X-ray transient absorption (XTA) spectroscopy. Previous optical, vibrational, and computational studies have suggested that this photoexcited state has a ligand-to-metal charge transfer (LMCT) nature. By using XTA, which provides unambiguous information on the local electronic and nuclear configuration around the Ni center, the nature of the excited state of NiPcOBu8 was reassessed. Using X-ray probe pulses from a synchrotron source, the ground- and excited-state X-ray absorption spectra of NiPcOBu8 were measured. Based on the results, we identified that the excited state exhibits spectral features that are characteristic of a Ni1, 3 (3dz2 ,3dx2-y2 ) state rather than a LMCT state with a transiently reduced Ni center. This state resembles the (d,d) state of nickel(II) tetramesitylphorphyrin. The XTA features are rationalized based on the inherent cavity sizes of the macrocycles. These results may provide useful guidance for the design of photocatalysts in the future.

Excited state electron and energy relays in supramolecular dinuclear complexes revealed by ultrafast optical and X-ray transient absorption spectroscopy.

The kinetics of photoinduced electron and energy transfer in a family of tetrapyridophenazine-bridged heteroleptic homo- and heterodinuclear copper(i) bis(phenanthroline)/ruthenium(ii) polypyridyl complexes were studied using ultrafast optical and multi-edge X-ray transient absorption spectroscopies. This work combines the synthesis of heterodinuclear Cu(i)-Ru(ii) analogs of the homodinuclear Cu(i)-Cu(i) targets with spectroscopic analysis and electronic structure calculations to first disentangle the dynamics at individual metal sites by taking advantage of the element and site specificity of X-ray absorption and theoretical methods. The excited state dynamical models developed for the heterodinuclear complexes are then applied to model the more challenging homodinuclear complexes. These results suggest that both intermetallic charge and energy transfer can be observed in an asymmetric dinuclear copper complex in which the ground state redox potentials of the copper sites are offset by only 310 meV. We also demonstrate the ability of several of these complexes to effectively and unidirectionally shuttle energy between different metal centers, a property that could be of great use in the design of broadly absorbing and multifunctional multimetallic photocatalysts. This work provides an important step toward developing both a fundamental conceptual picture and a practical experimental handle with which synthetic chemists, spectroscopists, and theoreticians may collaborate to engineer cheap and efficient photocatalytic materials capable of performing coulombically demanding chemical transformations.

Ligand Mediation of Vectorial Charge Transfer in Cu(I)diimine Chromophore-Acceptor Dyads.

In this work, we present the photoinduced charge separation dynamics of four molecular dyads composed of heteroleptic Cu(I)bis(phenanthroline) chromophores linked directly to the common electron acceptor naphthalene diimide. The dyads were designed to allow us to (1) detect any kinetic preference for directionality during photoinduced electron transfer across the heteroleptic complex and (2) probe the influence of excited-state flattening on intramolecular charge separation. Singular value decomposition of ultrafast optical transient absorption spectra demonstrates that charge transfer occurs with strong directional preference, and charge separation occurs up to 35 times faster when the acceptor is linked to the sterically blocking ligand. Further, the charge-separated state in these dyads is stabilized by polar solvents, resulting in dramatically longer lifetimes for dyads with minimal substitution about the Cu(I) center. This unexpected but exciting observation suggests a new approach to the design of Cu(I)bis(phenanthroline) chromophores that can support long-lived vectorial charge separation.

Synthesis, structure, and excited state kinetics of heteroleptic Cu(i) complexes with a new sterically demanding phenanthroline ligand.

In this report we describe the synthesis of a new phenanthroline ligand, 2,9-di(2,4,6-tri-isopropyl-phenyl)-1,10-phenanthroline (bL2) and its use as the blocking ligand in the preparation of two new heteroleptic Cu(i)diimine complexes. Analysis of the CuHETPHEN single crystal structures shows a distinct distortion from an ideal tetrahedral geometry around the Cu(i) center, forced by the secondary phenanthroline ligand rotating to accommodate the isopropyl groups of bL2. The increased steric bulk of bL2 as compared to the more commonly used 2,9-dimesityl-1,10-phenanthroline blocking ligand prohibits intramolecular ligand-ligand interaction, which is unique among CuHETPHEN complexes. The ground state optical and redox properties of CuHETPHEN complexes are responsive to the substitution on the blocking ligand even though the differences in structure are far removed from the Cu(i) center. Transient optical spectroscopy was used to understand the excited state kinetics in both coordinating and non-coordinating solvents following visible excitation. Substitution of the blocking phenanthroline ligand has a significant impact on the 3MLCT decay and can be used to increase the excited state lifetime by 50%. Electronic structure calculations established relationships between ground and excited state properties, and general entatic state concepts are discussed for copper photosensitizers. This work contributes to the growing library of CuHETPHEN complexes and broadens the fundamental understanding of their ground and excited state properties.

Transient Melting and Recrystallization of Semiconductor Nanocrystals Under Multiple Electron-Hole Pair Excitation.

Ultrafast optical pump, X-ray diffraction probe experiments were performed on CdSe nanocrystal (NC) colloidal dispersions as functions of particle size, polytype, and pump fluence. Bragg peak shifts related to heating and peak amplitude reduction associated with lattice disordering are observed. For smaller NCs, melting initiates upon absorption of as few as ∼15 electron-hole pair excitations per NC on average (0.89 excitations/nm3 for a 1.5 nm radius) with roughly the same excitation density inducing melting for all examined NCs. Diffraction intensity recovery kinetics, attributable to recrystallization, occur over hundreds of picoseconds with slower recoveries for larger particles. Zincblende and wurtzite NCs revert to initial structures following intense photoexcitation suggesting melting occurs primarily at the surface, as supported by simulations. Electronic structure calculations relate significant band gap narrowing with decreased crystallinity. These findings reflect the need to consider the physical stability of nanomaterials and related electronic impacts in high intensity excitation applications such as lasing and solid-state lighting.

In situ characterization of cofacial Co(IV) centers in Co4O4 cubane: Modeling the high-valent active site in oxygen-evolving catalysts.

The Co4O4 cubane is a representative structural model of oxidic cobalt oxygen-evolving catalysts (Co-OECs). The Co-OECs are active when residing at two oxidation levels above an all-Co(III) resting state. This doubly oxidized Co(IV)2 state may be captured in a Co(III)2(IV)2 cubane. We demonstrate that the Co(III)2(IV)2 cubane may be electrochemically generated and the electronic properties of this unique high-valent state may be probed by in situ spectroscopy. Intervalence charge-transfer (IVCT) bands in the near-IR are observed for the Co(III)2(IV)2 cubane, and spectroscopic analysis together with electrochemical kinetics measurements reveal a larger reorganization energy and a smaller electron transfer rate constant for the doubly versus singly oxidized cubane. Spectroelectrochemical X-ray absorption data further reveal systematic spectral changes with successive oxidations from the cubane resting state. Electronic structure calculations correlated to experimental data suggest that this state is best represented as a localized, antiferromagnetically coupled Co(IV)2 dimer. The exchange coupling in the cofacial Co(IV)2 site allows for parallels to be drawn between the electronic structure of the Co4O4 cubane model system and the high-valent active site of the Co-OEC, with specific emphasis on the manifestation of a doubly oxidized Co(IV)2 center on O-O bond formation.

Scalable Ligand-Mediated Transport Synthesis of Organic-Inorganic Hybrid Perovskite Nanocrystals with Resolved Electronic Structure and Ultrafast Dynamics.

Colloidal perovskite nanocrystals support bright, narrow PL tunable over the visible spectrum. However, bandgap tuning of these materials remains limited to laboratory-scale syntheses. In this work, we present a polar-solvent-free ligand-mediated transport synthesis of high-quality organic-inorganic perovskite nanocrystals under ambient conditions with photoluminescence quantum yields up to 97%. Our synthesis employs a ligand-mediated transport mechanism that circumvents the need for exquisite external control (e.g., temperature control, inert-gas protection, dropwise addition of reagents) required by other methods due to extremely fast reaction kinetics. In the ligand-mediated transport mechanism, multiple equilibria cooperatively dictate reaction rates and enable precise control over NC size. These small nanocrystals exhibit high photoluminescence quantum yields due to quantum confinement. Nanosecond transient absorption spectroscopy experiments reveal a fluence-independent PL decay originating from exciton recombination. Two-dimensional electronic spectroscopy resolves multiple spectral features reflecting the electronic structure of the nanocrystals. The resolved features exhibit size-dependent spectral positions, further indicating the synthesized nanocrystals are quantum-confined.

Influence of iron doping on tetravalent nickel content in catalytic oxygen evolving films.

Iron doping of nickel oxide films results in enhanced activity for promoting the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Whereas this enhanced activity has been ascribed to a unique iron site within the nickel oxide matrix, we show here that Fe doping influences the Ni valency. The percent of Fe3+ doping promotes the formation of formal Ni4+, which in turn directly correlates with an enhanced activity of the catalyst in promoting OER. The role of Fe3+ is consistent with its behavior as a superior Lewis acid.

X-ray Spectroscopic Characterization of Co(IV) and Metal-Metal Interactions in Co4O4: Electronic Structure Contributions to the Formation of High-Valent States Relevant to the Oxygen Evolution Reaction.

The formation of high-valent states is a key factor in making highly active transition-metal-based catalysts of the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). These high oxidation states will be strongly influenced by the local geometric and electronic structures of the metal ion, which are difficult to study due to spectroscopically active and complex backgrounds, short lifetimes, and limited concentrations. Here, we use a wide range of complementary X-ray spectroscopies coupled to DFT calculations to study Co(III)4O4 cubanes and their first oxidized derivatives, which provide insight into the high-valent Co(IV) centers responsible for the activity of molecular and heterogeneous OER catalysts. The combination of X-ray absorption and 1s3p resonant inelastic X-ray scattering (Kß RIXS) allows Co(IV) to be isolated and studied against a spectroscopically active Co(III) background. Co K- and L-edge X-ray absorption data allow for a detailed characterization of the 3d-manifold of effectively localized Co(IV) centers and provide a direct handle on the t2g-based redox-active molecular orbital. Kß RIXS is also shown to provide a powerful probe of Co(IV), and specific spectral features are sensitive to the degree of oxo-mediated metal-metal coupling across Co4O4. Guided by the data, calculations show that electron-hole delocalization can actually oppose Co(IV) formation. Computational extension of Co4O4 to CoM3O4 structures (M = redox-inactive metal) defines electronic structure contributions to Co(IV) formation. Redox activity is shown to be linearly related to covalency, and M(III) oxo inductive effects on Co(IV) oxo bonding can tune the covalency of high-valent sites over a large range and thereby tune E(0) over hundreds of millivolts. Additionally, redox-inactive metal substitution can also switch the ground state and modify metal-metal and antibonding interactions across the cluster.