CAREER: Synthesis of New Materials in Mixed Molten Metal Solvents

技术说明本项目的目标是在混合熔融金属溶剂中合成新材料。它侧重于两类材料，金属间化合物和亚氧化物。熔融金属中的合成允许较低的反应温度，这可能会导致不寻常的新亚稳相的形成。这项拟议的研究将调查将两种不同的金属组合起来作为合成金属间化合物和亚氧化物的混合溶剂的效果。新的金属间化合物将通过在低熔点的金属混合物中结合元素反应物来合成，例如钙锌共晶或铈镍共晶。这些产品将使用X射线结晶学进行结构表征，并将对它们进行潜在的氢气存储应用和磁性排序测试。在探索氧化物前驱体合成次氧化物化合物的过程中，熔融金属助熔剂不仅起到了溶剂的作用，而且还起到了还原氧化物反应物的作用。强还原金属(如钠、镁、钙、铝或镧)和较惰性金属(如锡、铟、镓或铋)的助熔剂混合物将以不同的比例制备，以控制给定氧化物反应物的还原程度。通过控制助熔剂混合物的电化学功率，可以定制具有所需比例的离子和导电结构部分的亚价产品，从而设计特定的电子性质，如带隙和功函数。所得到的材料将使用X射线结晶学、固体核磁共振和光学测量进行表征。非技术解释预计，这笔赠款带来的一些智力进步将使一系列具有新结构和潜在用途的新材料成为可能，如储氢合金、磁性化合物和光学传感器。这项研究是佛罗里达州立大学(FSU)材料科学发展重点的一部分，因此将对学生和科学界产生更广泛的影响。通过这个项目和在外国语大学开设材料科学课程，不同技能水平的学生(高中、本科生、研究生和博士后)将在这个高度跨学科的领域接受培训。这将使他们能够与不同领域(如化学、物理、材料科学和工程学)的科学家进行富有成效的互动，并更好地了解现代科学和技术日益复杂的性质。

TECHNICAL EXPLANATIONThe goal of this project is to synthesize new materials in mixed molten metal solvents. It focuses on two classes of materials, intermetallics and suboxides. Synthesis in molten metals allows for low reaction temperatures, which can result in the formation of unusual new metastable phases. The proposed research will investigate the effects of combining two different metals to act as a mixed solvent for the synthesis of intermetallics and suboxides. New intermetallic phases will be synthesized by combining elemental reactants in low melting metal mixtures such as a calcium-zink eutectic or a cerium-nickel eutectic. The products will be structurally characterized using X-ray crystallography, and they will be tested for potential hydrogen storage applications and magnetic ordering. In the exploration of suboxide compound synthesis from oxide precursors, the molten metal flux will act not only as a solvent, but also as a reducing agent toward the oxide reactants. Flux mixtures of a strongly reducing metal (such as sodium, magnesium, calcium, aluminum, or lanthanum) and a more inert metal (such as tin, indium, gallium, or bismuth) will be prepared in varying ratios to control the extent of reduction of a given oxide reactant. By controlling the electrochemical power of the flux mixture, it may be possible to tailor a subvalent product with a desired ratio of ionic and conducting structural moieties, and thereby design specific electronic properties such as band gap and work function. The resulting materials will be characterized using X-ray crystallography, solid state Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, and optical measurements. NON-TECHNICAL EXPLANATIONIt is anticipated that a number of intellectual advances resulting from this grant will make possible a wide range of new materials, with new structures and potential uses such as hydrogen storage alloys, magnetic compounds, and optical sensors. This research is part of the developing focus on materials science at Florida State University (FSU), and will thereby result in a broader impact on students and the scientific community. Through this project and the related establishment of a materials science curriculum at FSU, students at a variety of skill levels (high school, undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral) will be trained in this highly interdisciplinary field. This will enable them to interact productively with scientists in a variety of areas (such as chemistry, physics, materials science, and engineering), and to better understand the increasingly complex nature of modern science and technology.