Innovative concepts, materials and structures for direct electrochemistry

我们的直接电化学研究计划包括两个创新和相互关联的推力，将同时追求发现新的电极材料和结构的目标：（主题1）绿色基材料或复合材料，使或提供增强的电催化性能。目的是发现用于乙醇电氧化的新催化剂和结构，乙醇是可以从生物来源生产的燃料，因此通过将其用于燃料电池，可以导致低温室气体排放的电源。有几种金属氧化物价格便宜、储量丰富，而且是绿色的。纳米功能金属氧化物（FMO）如CeO_2、SnO_2、TiO_2、MnO_2等由于其独特的性质和功能，成为燃料电池中一类独特的电极材料。在这些应用中，FMO可以作为支撑基质，以改善催化剂的分散性及其对烧结和颗粒聚集的稳定性;或者当与其他催化剂组合时，促进某些电催化反应。我们将优化合成路线，允许以精确的方式对FMO进行定制设计、构建和操作，以主要在它们与Pt催化剂结合时增强特定的功能特性。第二个关键问题涉及必须将FMO插入整个催化剂层内以增强或充分受益于其功能性质的适当方式，即，当FMO在催化剂层中不同地布置时，是否向催化剂的电化学响应添加相同的功能性。 （主题2）生物燃料电池（BFC）的酶电极接口。我们最近在纳米科学和技术方面取得的惊人成就为我们创造了有史以来第一个血管植入式酶生物燃料电池作为生物电子学的体内电源提供了独特的机会。我们将开发创造性的超微纳米尺度结构的生物催化电极。此类结构将由单根碳纤维制成，纤维上覆盖有具有高等电点的碳纳米结构（CN）或过渡金属氧化物（TMO）;这涉及到CN或TMO在单根碳微纤维上的具有挑战性的受控生长。氯化萘或三氧化二萘有望作为“纳米线”在酶和电极表面之间进行快速直接电子转移，从而消除了使用昂贵且不具有生物相容性的传统电子介质的需要。 该研究计划包括与材料和电化学相关的两个主题，为突破创造了机会，如果不是发现的话。这是雄心勃勃和具有挑战性的，但我们有能力和资源成功地开展困难的项目，我们最近在两个主题上取得的惊人成就以及训练有素的HQP将有助于发展重要的研究领域，如绿色燃料电池和酶葡萄糖生物燃料电池。

Our research program on direct electrochemistry consists of two innovative and inter-related thrusts that will be pursued at the same time with the objectives of discovering new electrode materials and structures: (Theme 1) Green-based materials or composites that enable or provide enhanced electrocatalytic performance. -The objective is to discover new catalysts and structures for the electrooxidation of ethanol, fuel that can be produced from biological sources, and so by using it in fuel cells, can lead to low greenhouse gas emission power sources. Several metal oxides are cheap, abundant and green. Owing to particular native properties and functions on their own, some nanostructured functional metal oxide (FMO) such as CeO2, SnO2, TiO2, MnO2 are emerging as a unique class of electrode materials in fuel cells. In such applications, FMO can act as a supporting matrix to improve catalyst dispersion and its stability against sintering and particles aggregation; or promotes certain electrocatalytic reactions when combined with other catalysts. We will optimize synthesis routes that allow tailor-designing, architecturing and manipulation of FMOs in a precise manner to enhance particular functional properties principally when they are combined with Pt catalyst. A second crucial issue concerns the proper way in which FMOs must be inserted within the whole catalyst layer in order to enhance or to fully benefit from its functional properties, i.e., FMO when arranged differently in the catalyst layer whether or not adds the same functionality to the electrochemical response of the catalyst. (Theme 2) Enzymatic electrode interfaces for biofuel cells (BFC).- Our recent striking achievements in nanoscale science and technology present a distinctive opportunity for us to create the first-ever blood vessel implantable enzymatic biofuel cell as in vivo power sources for bioelectronics. We will develop creative ultra-micro-nano scales architectured biocatalytic electrodes. Such architectures will be made of a single carbon fiber sheathed with carbon nanostructures (CNs) or transition metal oxides (TMOs) with high isoelectric point; this involves a challenging controlled growth of the CNs or TMOs onto a single carbon microfiber. The CNs or TMOs are expected to work as 'nano-wires' for fast direct electron transfer (DET) between enzyme and electrode surface, eliminating thus the need to employ conventional electronic mediators that are expensive and not biocompatible. The research program comprising of two themes related to materials and electrochemistry, creates an opportunity for a breakthrough, if not a discovery. It is ambitious and challenging, but we have the ability and resources to successfully undertake difficult projects and our recent striking achievements in the two themes with well-trained HQP will contribute to the development of important research areas such as green-based fuel cells and enzymatic glucose biofuel cells.