Centre for Electrochemical Technologies

Chronic wounds present a significant challenge to society and have a negative impact on the quality of life and daily activities of patients. This review aimed to identify the cost-effectiveness of the currently used care alternatives for the treatment of chronic wounds. This study serves to identify cost-effectiveness boundaries and provide a basis for determining the cost-effectiveness of the proposed care alternatives. A systematic literature search was conducted in compliance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. Articles published on Web of Science and PubMed from June 2013 to June 2023 were included. A comparative analysis was performed using the data adjusted for inflation and transformed for the same time horizon. The median time to heal was approximately 2.5 months in the first quartile of studies ending at 1.3 months and the third quartile ending at 3.7 months. The average cost of complete chronic wound healing for all care alternatives in the study sample was $6435, with a median cost of $5814. This systematic review covers a diverse range of treatment alternatives, their health effects and costs and highlights the complex landscape of cost-effectiveness in the treatment of chronic wounds. Trial Registration: PROSPERO database under registration number: CRD42023434074.

In the ICARUS project, European partners collaborate to develop and scale innovative technologies for recovering and refining secondary raw materials from silicon photovoltaic (PV) manufacturing. The production of photovoltaic modules generates significant quantities of waste, particularly silicon kerf, graphite, and silica residues from ingot and wafer manufacturing. ICARUS aims to transform these waste streams into high‐value secondary materials suitable for reintegration into the PV value chain and other industrial applications. Four industrial pilot‐scale processes are developed, targeting the purification and reuse of these materials. Results from the pilots demonstrate both the technical feasibility and economic potential of substituting these recovered materials for virgin and critical raw materials. This work provides a viable pathway toward a more resource‐efficient and circular PV manufacturing industry.

HighlightsFeS electrodes were prepared both at laboratory and semi-industrial scale.Multi-layer pouch cells with FeS electrodes were assembled and tested.Sulfur shuttling and gas generation are the main issues to be addressed.

The development of efficient, stable, and cost-effective bifunctional electrocatalysts-particularly those based on earth-abundant elements-is essential for the advancement and large-scale deployment of rechargeable zinc-air batteries (ZABs).In this work, we report the synthesis and electrochemical evaluation of FeMnOx-graphene composites as bifunctional catalysts for the oxygen reduction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reactions (OER).Three catalysts were prepared using a patented process by Gnanomat SL with different graphene nanoplatelets of different physicochemical properties and characterized through XRD, XPS, TGA, and BET analyses.All samples exhibited poor crystallinity and, according to XPS analysis, showed similar surface phases attributed to Fe2O3 and M3O4.Meanwhile, the graphene support influenced the final surface area and oxide dispersion of the composite.Electrochemical testing using a three-electrode system revealed that FeMn-graphene composites, synthesized with high-surface-area graphene, exhibit promising bifunctional activity for both the ORR and OER.Full-cell ZAB testing confirmed improved charge-discharge performance and excellent cycling stability over 500 hours at 10 mA cm-2.These findings highlight the potential of FeMnOx-graphene composites as sustainable and efficient bifunctional air electrodes, providing an attractive alternative to bifunctional catalysts based on critical elements like Co.

The objective of this paper is to cluster the main challenges and gaps for the safe integration of batteries in vessels, and for the improvement of the operation and performance of energy storage in the maritime sector. To do this, a benchmarking methodology was developed that compares technical and non-technical topics relevant to the identification and classification of EU-funded R&D projects with NEMOSHIP project. Firstly, the most relevant projects were selected considering the main topics of NEMOSHIP and their relationship with waterborne, electromobility, stationary or energy storage applications in general. Secondly, a weighting criterion is established for each project by evaluating the information available for each topic. In addition, the different technological trends, decisions, and roadmaps established in the most relevant and selected projects of the methodology are analysed. Finally, general conclusions and a compilation of lessons learned are presented from both a technical and non-technical perspective.

Abstract The pursuit of high‐energy lithium‐ion cells has led to an increase in the fraction of nickel in the LiNi x Mn y Co z O 2 (NMC, with x+y+z=1) layered oxide, a state‐of‐the‐art cathode material in electric vehicles. NMC is usually processed using organic solvents that are non‐sustainable. Nevertheless, increasing the Ni fraction entails a decrease in the electrode stability and the processability of this material in water. In this work, high‐nickel NMC materials have been subjected to water processing. In an initial stage, water sensitivity of the materials has been studied. Then, the formulation has been adapted to enhance the NMC fraction without penalizations in the electrochemical performance and compared to an organic solvent‐based formulation. The recipe developed, consisting of 93 % of NMC, has been successfully upscaled to a semi‐industrial coating line. The pH buffering has been observed as a critical step to mitigate lithium leaching and implement this process in an industrial environment. The obtained electrodes have been tested in single‐layer pouch cells using silicon‐based negative electrodes, also processable in water‐based slurries. The resulting cells provide limited cycling life due to the low cyclability of the negative electrode but evidence that it is industrially viable to manufacture high‐energy cells consisting only of water‐processed electrodes.

Abstract Developing new battery configurations is a time‐consuming process, electrochemical models can be employed to expedite the process by predicting the performance of battery designs. An electrochemical pseudo‐two‐dimensional modeling framework is created for both LNMO|LiPF6 in EC/PC/sulfolane|Gr and LNMO|PVdF GPE with 1.15 M LiPF6 in EC/PC/FEC/sulfolane|Gr configurations with gelifiable electrodes, leveraging the experimental characterization of battery components for enhanced accuracy. Parametrization experiments include quasi‐open circuit potential, galvanostatic intermittent titration technique, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, microscopy and the four‐point resistance method. The modeling framework is initiated at full coin cell level and subsequently extended to encompass monolayered, 200 mAh and 500 mAh multilayered pouch cells. Experimental validation, through voltage‐capacity measurements, ensures the accuracy of the models. The discharge curves indicate that cells incorporating GPE show similar performance with liquid electrolytes. The impact of increasing current rates on performance is examined by scrutinizing the polarization trends during discharge and the Li‐ion concentration in the electrolyte phase. Elevated C‐rates induce heightened polarization, detrimentally influencing performance. Importantly, the developed model for full coin cells can be seamlessly expanded to encompass 500 mAh multilayered pouch cells without requiring additional component characterization. This versatility allows the modeling framework to be a valuable tool for evaluating the performance of battery configurations at higher levels.

Transitioning to more ambitious electrode formulations facilitates developing high-energy density cells, potentially fulfilling the demands of electric car manufacturers. In this context, the partial replacement of the prevailing anode active material in lithium-ion cells, graphite, with silicon-based materials enhances its capacity. Nevertheless, this requires adapting the rest of the components and harmonizing the electrode integration in the cell to enhance the performance of the resulting high-capacity anodes. Herein, starting from a replacement in the standard graphite anode recipe with 22% silicon suboxide at laboratory scale, the weight fraction of the electrochemically inactive materials was optimized to 2% carbon black/1% dispersant/3% binder combination before deriving an advantage from including single-wall carbon nanotubes in the formulation. In the second part, the recipe was upscaled to a semi-industrial electrode coating and cell assembly line. Then, 1 Ah lithium-ion pouch cells were filled and tested with different commercial electrolytes, aiming at studying the dependency of the Si-based electrodes on the additives included in the composition. Among all the electrolytes employed, the EL2 excelled in terms of capacity retention, obtaining a 48% increase in the number of cycles compared to the baseline electrolyte formulation above the threshold capacity retention value (80% state of health).

Abstract Shape memory epoxy vitrimers and their composites are candidate materials for multiple engineering applications due to the commercial availability of their precursors combined with their functionality, mechanical properties, and recyclability. However, the manufacturing of vitrimer composites through conventional mould‐casting limits the flexibility in the design of complex parts. In this work feedstock inks are formulated based on reduced graphene oxide and hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) to 3D‐print epoxy vitrimer‐based composites by direct ink writing (DIW). The introduction of hBN platelets (up to 22 vol.%) and their alignment during printing enhances the fracture resistance of the material and induces directional thermal transport. The in‐plane thermal conductivities (3 W m−1 K−1) are nearly one order of magnitude higher than the matrix material. The high conductivity results in faster actuation times and can be combined with the printing process to build structures designed to manage heat flow.