• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.127-133
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• 2021

One-dimensional (1D) piezoelectric nanostructures are attractive candidates for energy generation because of their excellent piezoelectric properties attributed to their high aspect ratios and large surface areas. Vertically grown BaTiO₃ nanotube (NT) arrays on conducting substrates are intensively studied because they can be easily synthesized with excellent uniformity and anisotropic orientation. In this study, we demonstrate the synthesis of 1D BaTiO₃ NT arrays on a conductive Ti substrate by electrochemical anodization and sequential hydrothermal reactions. Subsequently, we explore the effect of hydrothermal reaction conditions on the piezoelectric energy conversion efficiency of the BaTiO₃ NT arrays. Vertically aligned TiO₂ NT arrays, which act as the initial template, are converted into BaTiO₃ NT arrays using hydrothermal reaction with various concentrations of the Ba source and reaction times. To validate the electrical output performance of the BaTiO₃ NT arrays, we measure the electricity generated from each NT array packaged with a conductive metal foil and epoxy under mechanical pushings. The generated output voltage signals from the BaTiO₃ NT arrays increase with increasing concentration of the Ba source and reaction time. These results provide a new strategy for fabricating advanced 1D piezoelectric nanostructures by demonstrating the correlation between hydrothermal reaction conditions and piezoelectric output performance.

• Clean Technology
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.177-182
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• 2012

Mesoporous anatase $TiO_2$ nanoparticles have been synthesized by a hydrothermal method using a tri-block copolymer as a soft template. The resulting $TiO_2$ materials have a high specific surface area of $230\;m^2/g$, a predominant pore size of 6.8 nm and a pore volume of 0.404 mL/g. The electrochemical properties of mesoporous anatase $TiO_2$ for lithium ion battery (LIB) anode materials have been investigated by typical coin cell tests. The initial discharge capacity of these materials is 240 mAh/g, significantly higher than the theoretical capacity (175 mAh/g) of LTO ($Li_4Ti_5O_{12}$). Although the discharge capacity decreases with the C-rate increase, the mesoporous $TiO_2$ is very promising for LIB anode because the surface for the Li insertion is presented significantly with mesopores. Nitrogen doping has a certain effect to control the capacity decrease by improving the electron transport in $TiO_2$ framework.