@article {49848, title = {Mechanochemical large-scale rapid synthesis of ultrapure sodium hexafluorophosphate}, journal = {ChemPlusChem}, volume = {90}, year = {2025}, month = {JUL}, type = {Article}, abstract = {

Among the sodium battery electrolytes, sodium hexafluorophosphate (NaPF6) exhibits superior conductivity, anodic stability, and stable cathode electrolyte interface compared to other electrolytes. Therefore, the synthesis of pure NaPF6 through a simple process is very important. Usually, NaPF6 is synthesized using HF. In our approach, NaPF6 is synthesized by grinding dry ammonium hexafluorophosphate (NH4PF6) and sodium metal. Sodium injects an electron into the ammonium ion, which results in the formation of ammonia and hydrogen. The gram scale synthesis is completed in about 30 min. Purification of the product is not needed. The product purity is confirmed by various spectroscopic and electrochemical techniques. Usually, NaPF6 comprises NaF, HF, and solvents as impurities that affect the performance of SIBs. It has been confirmed that the NaPF6 synthesized by our mechanochemical approach in the absence of solvent is devoid of impurities despite the absence of product purification step. Furthermore, the synthesis of pure NaPF6 (250 g) is demonstrated using a grinder used as household item in cooking Indian pancakes, which costs about 300 USD. The duration of the synthesis of 250 g pure NaPF6 is 1 h. The purity of this sample is comparable to that of NaPF6 (5 g) synthesized using mortar and pestle.

}, keywords = {ammonium hexafluorophosphate, Batteries, carbonates, sodium hexafluorophosphate, sodium vanadium phosphate}, issn = {2192-6506}, doi = {10.1002/cplu.202400640}, author = {Senthilkumaran, Marimuthu and Javaregowda, Bharathkumar H. and Rajendran, Prakash Babu and Balasubramanian, Rajalakshmi and Ajithkumar, Thalasseril G. and Ravindranathan, Sapna and Krishnamoorthy, Kothandam} } @article {50168, title = {Effect of imidazolium-based porous polymer binder on the electrochemical performance of lithium sulfur batteries}, journal = {Journal of Power Sources}, volume = {676}, year = {2026}, month = {JUN}, pages = {239914}, type = {Article}, abstract = {

Severe polysulfide shuttle and poor conversion kinetics remain as barriers to make Li-S batteries practically viable. Polymer binders are an important component of a battery electrode although its dosage is very small. Traditionally employed PVDF binder in Li-S batteries has no significant impact in either suppressing the polysulfide shuttle or on their conversion kinetics. Ideally, the binder for a Li-S battery should suppress the polysulfide shuttle, promote the polysulfide conversion and buffer the volume expansion during charge-discharge process. Towards this direction, herein we present a new octyl imidazolium-TFSI based porous polymeric binder (PImz) in combination with CNT/S/Nickel(II) phthalocyanine tetrasulfonic acid tetrasodium salt (Na-NPT) composite. The binder offers strong polysulfide immobilizing capabilities through electrostatic interaction with the imidazolium nitrogen and pore confinement through its porous network, while a small amount of Ni-phthalocyanine could enhance the polysulfide conversion kinetics. Li-S batteries with PImz binder delivered a high specific capacity of 805 mA h/g (0.5 C) with stable performance over 300 cycles. Furthermore, the batteries with high sulfur loading similar to 3 mg/cm(2) delivered a capacity of 820 mA h/g. This newly designed porous polymeric binder is a promising and efficient alternative to the traditionally employed PVDF in terms of synthesis, cost, performance and safety.

}, keywords = {Imidazolium polymer, lithium sulfur battery, Na-NPT electrocatalyst, polysulfides}, issn = {0378-7753}, doi = {10.1016/j.jpowsour.2026.239914}, author = {Senthilkumaran, Marimuthu and Bharathkumar, H. J. and Ramesh, Sivalingam and Basha, K. Anver and Nanaji, Katchala and Babu, Rajendran Prakash} } @article {50020, title = {Metal films from a single source and their application in nanoporous filtration synthesis, electromagnetic interference shielding, and electroadhesion}, journal = {ACS Omega}, volume = {11}, year = {2026}, month = {MAR}, pages = {14203-14211}, type = {Article}, abstract = {

Electroless metal depositions are carried out by a series of reduction steps involving multiple metal ions to obtain a film on synthetic and natural substrates. Herein, we report the use of metal ions from a single element to deposit metal films on various substrates. In a typical metal deposition procedure, Pd2+ ions are anchored on a polycarbonate membrane with vertically aligned pores of 0.6 mu m, which was reduced to its nanoparticles by sodium borohydride. The Pd nanoparticle-modified membrane was then immersed in a Pd plating bath. The Pd2+ ions are reduced by the reducing agent present in the plating bath. The reaction is catalyzed by the Pd nanoparticles. The Pd-modified membrane with vertically aligned Pd tubes were used to convert p-nitrophenol to p-aminophenol, which is an important molecule in the production of acetaminophen. While filtering the reactants through the Pd tubes, due to increased collision between the reactants and the catalyst Pd tubes, 100\% conversion is achieved within 5 min. On the contrary, the conversion is only 10\% if the membrane is placed in a vessel comprising the reactants. Due to the versatile nature of the metal deposition procedure, nickel was deposited on cotton substrates by a similar procedure. The nickel film-coated cotton cloth showed an impressive electromagnetic shielding interference efficiency of -60 dB while the uncoated cotton cloth did not shield electromagnetic radiation. To demonstrate the versatility of the approach, Pd-coated synthetic polymeric substrates are used to electroadhere gels and gel-like substances. Nickel-coated substrates are not suitable for electroadhesion; hence, a conjugated polymer was deposited on the substrate to electroadhere gel-like substances.

}, issn = {2470-1343}, doi = {10.1021/acsomega.4c07730}, author = {Veerasubash, Muthupandi and Birajdar, Sarika Hanamant and Kika, Sharmin Percy and Senthilkumaran, Marimuthu and Deshpande, Karan and Shevate, Rahul and Krishnamoorthy, Kothandam} }