Sodium ion batteries (SIBs) and potassium ion batteries (PIBs) are promising as ideal alternatives to Lithium ion batteries (LIBs), because of their rich abundance (Na, K), low cost, high theoretical capacities, and similar redox potentials. However, it usually lead to low capacities and/or fast capacity fading, due to the huge volume expansion and sluggish kinetics in most electrodes (e.g., metal oxide, porous carbon) induced by large Na+ or K+ ions. Therefore, urgent development of nanostructural electrode materials with enhanced charge storage mechanism is highly required to meet the coming era of next-generation batteries (SIBs, PIBs).
　　Ti-based layered materials, such as sodium/potassium titanate and Ti-based MXene (two dimensional transit carbide (nitride), e.g., Ti3C2, Ti2C), have been intensively explored in SIBs and PIBs. They exhibited suitable interlayer spacing for accommodating Na+/K+ ions, low working potentials, exceptional chemical durability, and environmental benignity. Notably, electrochemical performances of these materials are strongly dependent on their nanostructures.
　　Two-dimensional (2D) MXene nanosheets (e.g., Ti3C2) have gained enormous attention, because of their high conductivity, flexible interlayer space, tailored surface chemistry and promising applications in LIBs, SIBs, and PIBs. The hydrofluoric acid etched multilayer MXene nanosheets are terminated by oxygen and fluorine-containing groups. It usually shows severe structural defects, leading to large initial irreversible capacities and limited reversible capacities. Therefore, it is of great significance for improving sodium and potassium storage kinetics of SIBs and PIBs, by designing well-defined layered Ti-based nanostructures with suitable interlayer spacing and stable structure.
　　Ti3C2 MXene derived sodium/potassium titanate nanoribbons synthesized by a simultaneous oxidation and alkalization process (Image by DONG Yanfeng and ZHAO Xuejun)
　　To address this, scientists WU Zhongshuai and BAO Xinhe et al at Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, collaborated with WANG Xiaohui from Institute of Metal Research, developed ultrathin nanoribbons of sodium titanate (M-NTO) and potassium titanate (MKTO) for high-performance SIBs and PIBs.
　　M-NTO and M-KTO were successfully synthesized by a simultaneous oxidation and alkalization process of Ti3C2 MXene. M-NTO has the suitable interlayer spacing (0.90 nm for M-NTO, 0.93 nm for M-KTO), ultrathin thickness (<11 nm), narrow widths of nanoribbons (<60 nm), and open macroporous structures for enhanced ion insertion/extraction kinetics. As a result, it exhibited a large reversible capacity of 191 mAh g-1 at 200 mA g-1 for sodium storage, higher than those of pristine Ti3C2 (178 mAh g-1) and commercial TiC derivatives (86 mAh g-1).
　　Notably, M-KTO displayed long-term stable cyclability over 900 times, which outperforms other Ti-based layered materials reported to date. Moreover, this strategy can be extended for preparing a large number of MXene-derived materials, from the 60+ group of MAX phases, for various applications. This work has been published online in ACS Nano (DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.7b01165). (Text and Image by DONG Yanfeng and ZHAO Xuejun)
　　Funder: National Natural Science Foundation of China, Ministry of Science and Technology of China, Natural Science Foundation of Liaoning Province, DICP and China Postdoctoral Science Foundation.
　　Dr. LU Xinyi
　　Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences,
　　457 Zhongshan Road, Dalian, 116023, China,
　　Tel: 86-411-84379201
　　E-mail: luxinyi@dicp.ac.cn 
　　

　　Sodium ion batteries (SIBs) and potassium ion batteries (PIBs) are promising as ideal alternatives to Lithium ion batteries (LIBs), because of their rich abundance (Na, K), low cost, high theoretical capacities, and similar redox potentials. However, it usually lead to low capacities and/or fast capacity fading, due to the huge volume expansion and sluggish kinetics in most electrodes (e.g., metal oxide, porous carbon) induced by large Na+ or K+ ions. Therefore, urgent development of nanostructural electrode materials with enhanced charge storage mechanism is highly required to meet the coming era of next-generation batteries (SIBs, PIBs).
　　Ti-based layered materials, such as sodium/potassium titanate and Ti-based MXene (two dimensional transit carbide (nitride), e.g., Ti3C2, Ti2C), have been intensively explored in SIBs and PIBs. They exhibited suitable interlayer spacing for accommodating Na+/K+ ions, low working potentials, exceptional chemical durability, and environmental benignity. Notably, electrochemical performances of these materials are strongly dependent on their nanostructures.
　　Two-dimensional (2D) MXene nanosheets (e.g., Ti3C2) have gained enormous attention, because of their high conductivity, flexible interlayer space, tailored surface chemistry and promising applications in LIBs, SIBs, and PIBs. The hydrofluoric acid etched multilayer MXene nanosheets are terminated by oxygen and fluorine-containing groups. It usually shows severe structural defects, leading to large initial irreversible capacities and limited reversible capacities. Therefore, it is of great significance for improving sodium and potassium storage kinetics of SIBs and PIBs, by designing well-defined layered Ti-based nanostructures with suitable interlayer spacing and stable structure.
　　Ti3C2 MXene derived sodium/potassium titanate nanoribbons synthesized by a simultaneous oxidation and alkalization process (Image by DONG Yanfeng and ZHAO Xuejun)
　　To address this, scientists WU Zhongshuai and BAO Xinhe et al at Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, collaborated with WANG Xiaohui from Institute of Metal Research, developed ultrathin nanoribbons of sodium titanate (M-NTO) and potassium titanate (MKTO) for high-performance SIBs and PIBs.
　　M-NTO and M-KTO were successfully synthesized by a simultaneous oxidation and alkalization process of Ti3C2 MXene. M-NTO has the suitable interlayer spacing (0.90 nm for M-NTO, 0.93 nm for M-KTO), ultrathin thickness (<11 nm), narrow widths of nanoribbons (<60 nm), and open macroporous structures for enhanced ion insertion/extraction kinetics. As a result, it exhibited a large reversible capacity of 191 mAh g-1 at 200 mA g-1 for sodium storage, higher than those of pristine Ti3C2 (178 mAh g-1) and commercial TiC derivatives (86 mAh g-1).
　　Notably, M-KTO displayed long-term stable cyclability over 900 times, which outperforms other Ti-based layered materials reported to date. Moreover, this strategy can be extended for preparing a large number of MXene-derived materials, from the 60+ group of MAX phases, for various applications. This work has been published online in ACS Nano (DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.7b01165). (Text and Image by DONG Yanfeng and ZHAO Xuejun)
　　Funder: National Natural Science Foundation of China, Ministry of Science and Technology of China, Natural Science Foundation of Liaoning Province, DICP and China Postdoctoral Science Foundation.
　　Dr. LU Xinyi
　　Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences,
　　457 Zhongshan Road, Dalian, 116023, China,
　　Tel: 86-411-84379201
　　E-mail: luxinyi@dicp.ac.cn 
　　

　　Converting CO2 from a detrimental greenhouse gas into value-added liquid fuels not only contributes to mitigating CO2 emissions, but also reduces dependence on petrochemicals. However, since CO2 is a fully oxidized, thermodynamically stable and chemically inert molecule, the activation of CO2 and its hydrogenation to hydrocarbons or other alcohols are challenging tasks. Most research to date, not surprisingly, is focusing on selective hydrogenation of CO2 to short-chain products, while few studies on long-chain hydrocarbons, such as gasoline-range (C5–C11) hydrocarbons. The key to this process is to search for a high efficient catalyst.
　　CO2 Hydrogenation to Gasoline-range Hydrocarbons Over Na–Fe3O4/Zeolite Multifunctional Catalyst
　　The research team led by Dr. SUN Jian and Prof. GE Qingjie in Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, has succeeded in preparing a high efficient, stable, and multifunctional Na–Fe3O4/HZSM-5 catalyst for the direct production of gasoline from CO2 hydrogenation. This catalyst exhibited 78% selectivity to C5–C11 as well as low CH4 and CO selectivity under industrial relevant conditions. And gasoline fraction are mainly isoparaffins and aromatics thus favouring the octane number. Moreover, the multifunctional catalyst exhibited a remarkable stability for 1,000 h on stream, which definitely has the potential to be a promising industrial catalyst for CO2 utilization to liquid fuels.
　　In-depth characterizations indicate that this catalyst enables RWGS over Fe3O4 sites, olefin synthesis over Fe5C2 sites and oligomerization/aromatization/isomerization over zeolite acid sites. The concerted action of the active sites calls for precise control of their structures and proximity. This study paves a new path for the synthesis of liquid fuels by utilizing CO2 and H2. Furthermore, it provides an important approach for dealing with the intermittency of renewable sources (sun, wind and so on) by storing energy in liquid fuels.
　　This work was recently published on Nature Communications (DOI: 10.1038/ncomms15174). This work was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, and the Hundred-Talent Program of DICP, Chinese Academy of Sciences. (Text and Image by WEI Jian)
　　Dr. LU Xinyi
　　Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences,
　　457 Zhongshan Road, Dalian, 116023, China,
　　Tel: 86-411-84379201
　　E-mail: luxinyi@dicp.ac.cn 
　　Embargo
　　1000 London time (BST) / 0500 US Eastern Daylight Time
　　1800 Japanese time / 1900 Australian Eastern Time
　　

　　Converting CO2 from a detrimental greenhouse gas into value-added liquid fuels not only contributes to mitigating CO2 emissions, but also reduces dependence on petrochemicals. However, since CO2 is a fully oxidized, thermodynamically stable and chemically inert molecule, the activation of CO2 and its hydrogenation to hydrocarbons or other alcohols are challenging tasks. Most research to date, not surprisingly, is focusing on selective hydrogenation of CO2 to short-chain products, while few studies on long-chain hydrocarbons, such as gasoline-range (C5–C11) hydrocarbons. The key to this process is to search for a high efficient catalyst.
　　CO2 Hydrogenation to Gasoline-range Hydrocarbons Over Na–Fe3O4/Zeolite Multifunctional Catalyst
　　The research team led by Dr. SUN Jian and Prof. GE Qingjie in Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, has succeeded in preparing a high efficient, stable, and multifunctional Na–Fe3O4/HZSM-5 catalyst for the direct production of gasoline from CO2 hydrogenation. This catalyst exhibited 78% selectivity to C5–C11 as well as low CH4 and CO selectivity under industrial relevant conditions. And gasoline fraction are mainly isoparaffins and aromatics thus favouring the octane number. Moreover, the multifunctional catalyst exhibited a remarkable stability for 1,000 h on stream, which definitely has the potential to be a promising industrial catalyst for CO2 utilization to liquid fuels.
　　In-depth characterizations indicate that this catalyst enables RWGS over Fe3O4 sites, olefin synthesis over Fe5C2 sites and oligomerization/aromatization/isomerization over zeolite acid sites. The concerted action of the active sites calls for precise control of their structures and proximity. This study paves a new path for the synthesis of liquid fuels by utilizing CO2 and H2. Furthermore, it provides an important approach for dealing with the intermittency of renewable sources (sun, wind and so on) by storing energy in liquid fuels.
　　This work was recently published on Nature Communications (DOI: 10.1038/ncomms15174). This work was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, and the Hundred-Talent Program of DICP, Chinese Academy of Sciences. (Text and Image by WEI Jian)
　　Dr. LU Xinyi
　　Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences,
　　457 Zhongshan Road, Dalian, 116023, China,
　　Tel: 86-411-84379201
　　E-mail: luxinyi@dicp.ac.cn 
　　Embargo
　　1000 London time (BST) / 0500 US Eastern Daylight Time
　　1800 Japanese time / 1900 Australian Eastern Time
　　

　　The 43rd DICP Symposium on Bioanalytical Methods, Techniques and Applications, chaired by Prof. Guowang Xu and Mingliang Ye, was successfully held on April 25-27, 2017 in Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (DICP), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). The symposium has two sessions: 1) highly efficient separation and characterization of biological samples, and 2) new generation metabolomics techniques and their applications in precision medicine. The opening ceremony was chaired by Prof. Shengli Yang (member of Chinese Academy of Engineering). Prof. Rui Cai, the deputy director of DICP, made an opening speech and briefly introduced the institute.
　　 
　　 
　　 
　　More than 60 distinguished scientists were specially invited from abroad and China to report their brand-new research results including analytical method development and applications in the proteomics, metabolomics, life science and other hot fields. These scientists included Prof. Norman Dovichi (University of Notre Dame, U.S.A), Prof. Jeremy Nicholson (Imperial College in London, U. K), Prof. Albert Sickmann (Leibniz Institute of Analytical Science, Germany), Prof. Frantisek Svec (University of California, Berkeley, U.S.A), Prof. Chris X. Le (University of Alberta, Canada), Prof. Yingming Zhao (University of Chicago, U.S.A), Prof. Guibin Jiang (member of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, CAS), Prof. Weihong Tan (member of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hunan University), Prof. Huwei Liu (Peking University), Prof. Maili Liu (Wuhan Institute of Physics and Mathematics, CAS), Prof. Guowang Xu and Prof. Mingliang Ye (DICP, CAS), etc.
　　This symposium was also dedicated to remember Prof. Hanfa Zou who passed away one year ago. This symposium brought together researchers in the fields of analytical chemistry and life science together to share their latest research and praised Prof. Zou’s great impact and legacy on biological analytical chemistry. In the opening ceremony, Prof. Guowang Xu introduced Prof. Zou’ C.V. and his outstanding academic achievements in the separation science and bioanalytical chemistry. In addition, there was a youth forum held at the beginning of this symposium, and more than 30 students of Prof. Zou attended the meeting, they shared with many details of life and work about Prof. Hanfa Zou. Prof. Mingliang Ye introduced the status of DICP 1809 group for the post Zou era and the related memorial events this group organized.
　　This symposium not only reported the latest scientific research results in the field of international analytical chemistry, but also showed the academic levels of our institute. It is also helpful to promote the cooperation with famous scientists at home and abroad. (Text: Hongqiang Qin, Photo: Wansheng Liu).
　　

　　The 43rd DICP Symposium on Bioanalytical Methods, Techniques and Applications, chaired by Prof. Guowang Xu and Mingliang Ye, was successfully held on April 25-27, 2017 in Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (DICP), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). The symposium has two sessions: 1) highly efficient separation and characterization of biological samples, and 2) new generation metabolomics techniques and their applications in precision medicine. The opening ceremony was chaired by Prof. Shengli Yang (member of Chinese Academy of Engineering). Prof. Rui Cai, the deputy director of DICP, made an opening speech and briefly introduced the institute.
　　 
　　 
　　 
　　More than 60 distinguished scientists were specially invited from abroad and China to report their brand-new research results including analytical method development and applications in the proteomics, metabolomics, life science and other hot fields. These scientists included Prof. Norman Dovichi (University of Notre Dame, U.S.A), Prof. Jeremy Nicholson (Imperial College in London, U. K), Prof. Albert Sickmann (Leibniz Institute of Analytical Science, Germany), Prof. Frantisek Svec (University of California, Berkeley, U.S.A), Prof. Chris X. Le (University of Alberta, Canada), Prof. Yingming Zhao (University of Chicago, U.S.A), Prof. Guibin Jiang (member of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, CAS), Prof. Weihong Tan (member of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hunan University), Prof. Huwei Liu (Peking University), Prof. Maili Liu (Wuhan Institute of Physics and Mathematics, CAS), Prof. Guowang Xu and Prof. Mingliang Ye (DICP, CAS), etc.
　　This symposium was also dedicated to remember Prof. Hanfa Zou who passed away one year ago. This symposium brought together researchers in the fields of analytical chemistry and life science together to share their latest research and praised Prof. Zou’s great impact and legacy on biological analytical chemistry. In the opening ceremony, Prof. Guowang Xu introduced Prof. Zou’ C.V. and his outstanding academic achievements in the separation science and bioanalytical chemistry. In addition, there was a youth forum held at the beginning of this symposium, and more than 30 students of Prof. Zou attended the meeting, they shared with many details of life and work about Prof. Hanfa Zou. Prof. Mingliang Ye introduced the status of DICP 1809 group for the post Zou era and the related memorial events this group organized.
　　This symposium not only reported the latest scientific research results in the field of international analytical chemistry, but also showed the academic levels of our institute. It is also helpful to promote the cooperation with famous scientists at home and abroad. (Text: Hongqiang Qin, Photo: Wansheng Liu).