CAREER: Tunable Isomorphic Architectures

非技术摘要：本项目旨在开发一种通过自组织分子过程控制和可预测制备纳米结构材料的通用方法。控制纳米材料中特征尺寸的能力导致一系列实际应用的显著性能改进，包括电池、燃料电池和太阳能电池。然而，由于缺乏定义明确的纳米材料，每个特征都可以独立调整，因此无法理解这些性能变化。大多数现有的方法无法提供系统的控制，其中一个特征尺寸保持恒定，另一个特征尺寸被精确地逐步调整。获得这种纳米材料可以大大加快改进能源技术的研究和开发。此外，所提出的方法是低成本和可扩展的，以广泛支持更好的能源技术的工业制造，是负担得起的。该项目的综合教育计划旨在激发广大受众对先进纳米材料和能源相关研究的兴趣。部分活动包括涉及代表性不足的学生、经济困难的学生和第一代大学生的教育推广活动。该项目培养学生对科学，技术，工程和数学（STEM）的兴趣，并包括劳动力开发，以满足先进纳米材料和能源技术日益增长的需求。技术摘要：在能量转换和存储中，很少有几个方面像多孔材料的结构和尺寸一样普遍和重要。尽管材料壁和孔的基本和独特的作用，仍然存在一个挑战，系统访问明确的纳米结构与独立控制的孔和壁的尺寸。这些传输途径的连接性涉及额外的效果，其中理想的电化学研究需要一系列具有恒定形态对称性（同构）的系统架构。一类新的可编程材料称为可调同构架构（TIA）将独特地使广泛的调查，隔离电化学设备中的尺寸依赖性。这个职业计划的目标是建立一个制造TIA的平台，其中壁和孔都可以在5到500 nm之间独立调节。这些量身定制的纳米架构将支持基础研究和实现纳米优化设计。该计划独特地推进动力学包埋，以克服平衡嵌段共聚物的基本限制。在这里，动力学捕获的持久性胶束模板（PMT）在添加材料期间保持恒定的尺寸，从而使孔径控制与壁厚控制分离。动力学控制在历史上是难以重现的，这是一个挑战，现在解决了可切换胶束截留，以产生可重现的和均匀的架构，遵循模型预测。该研究成果不仅将推进纳米材料的研究，还将利用一系列有针对性的材料和应用，在纳米结构-性能关系方面产生新的知识。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Non-Technical Abstract:This project aims to develop a general method for the controlled and predictable preparation of nanostructured materials via self-organization molecular process. The ability to control feature sizes in nanomaterials leads to significant performance improvements for a range of practical applications including batteries, fuel cells, and solar cells. Understanding these performance changes, however, has been hampered by a lack of well-defined nanomaterials where each feature could be adjustable independently. Most existing methods fail to deliver systematic control where one feature size is held constant and another is adjusted step-by-step with precision. Access to such nanomaterials can significantly accelerate the research and development of improved energy technologies. Furthermore, the proposed methods are low-cost and scalable to broadly support the industrial manufacturing of better energy technologies that are affordable. An integrated education plan of this project is designed to stimulate interest of broad audiences in advanced nanomaterials and energy-related research. Parts of the activities include educational outreach involving underrepresented students, economically disadvantaged students, and first-generation college students. The project fosters student interest in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) and includes workforce development to address growing needs in advanced nanomaterials and energy technologies.Technical Abstract:Few aspects are as prevalent and important in energy conversion and storage as the structure and dimensions of porous materials. Despite the fundamental and distinct roles of material walls and pores, there remains a challenge for systematic access to well-defined nano-architectures with independent control over the pore and wall dimensions. The connectivity of these transport pathways convolves additional effects, where ideal electrochemical studies require series of systematic architectures with constant morphology symmetry (isomorphic). A new class of programmable materials termed tunable isomorphic architectures (TIA) will uniquely enable broad inquiries that isolate dimension-dependent properties in electrochemical devices. The goal of this career proposal is to establish a platform for the fabrication of TIAs where both the walls and pores are independently tunable from 5 to 500 nm. These tailored nano-architectures will support both fundamental research and the realization of nano-optimized designs. This program uniquely advances kinetic entrapment to overcome the fundamental limitations of equilibrating block copolymers. Here, kinetically-trapped persistent micelle templates (PMT) maintain constant size during the addition of material and thus decouple pore size control from wall-thickness control. Kinetic control is historically difficult to reproduce, a challenge that is now resolved with switchable micelle entrapment to yield reproducible and homogeneous architectures that follow model predictions. The research outcomes will not only advance nanomaterials research, but also generate new knowledge in nanostructure-property relationships using a suite of targeted materials and applications.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.