According to one embodiment, an active material is provided. The active material includes a lithium niobium composite oxide represented by a general formula Li.sub.xFe.sub.1yM1.sub.yNb.sub.112M2.sub.zO.sub.29 (1) and having an orthorhombic crystal structure. In the general formula (1), 0x23, 0y1 and 0<z6 are satisfied. Each of M1 and M2 independently includes at least one element selected from a group consisting of Fe, Mg, Al, Cu, Mn, Co, Ni, Zn, Sn, Ti, Ta, V, and Mo.

The present disclosure provides an anisotropic lamellar inorganic fiber aerogel material and a preparation method thereof. The method includes: mixing a polymer solution, an inorganic precursor and a chloride to obtain a spinning precursor solution; blow spinning the spinning precursor solution to obtain a composite fiber aerogel; calcinating the composite fiber aerogel to obtain the anisotropic lamellar inorganic fiber aerogel material. Therefore, the method has advantages of simplicity, easy operation, low cost, high efficiency and easy industrialized production. The inorganic fiber aerogel materials prepared by the above method are composed of multi-layer stacked fibers and have an anisotropic lamellar structure, which can be cut into any desired shape, and stacked to any desired thickness. In addition, the inorganic fiber aerogel materials have good flexibility and compressibility, excellent fire resistance, good high and low temperature resistance and superior thermal insulation, which greatly expands their application field.

Provided are the following: a mixture of visible light-responsive photocatalytic titanium oxide fine particles which can conveniently produce a photocatalyst thin film that exhibits photocatalyst activity even with only visible light (400-800 nm) and that exhibits high transparency; a dispersion liquid of the fine particles; a method for producing the dispersion liquid; a photocatalyst thin film; and a member having the photocatalyst thin film on a surface thereof. The mixture of visible light-responsive photocatalytic titanium oxide fine particles is characterized by containing two kinds of titanium dioxide fine particles: first titanium oxide fine particles, in which a tin component and a transition metal component (excluding an iron group element component) that increases visible light response properties form a solid solution, and second titanium oxide fine particles, in which an iron group element component and a chromium group element component form a solid solution.

Provided are the following: a mixture of visible light-responsive photocatalytic titanium oxide fine particles which can conveniently produce a photocatalyst thin film that exhibits photocatalyst activity even with only visible light (400-800 nm) and that exhibits high transparency; a dispersion liquid of the fine particles; a method for producing the dispersion liquid; a photocatalyst thin film; and a member having the photocatalyst thin film on a surface thereof. The mixture of visible light-responsive photocatalytic titanium oxide fine particles is characterized by containing two kinds of titanium dioxide fine particles: first titanium oxide fine particles, in which a tin component and a transition metal component (excluding an iron group element component) that increases visible light response properties form a solid solution, and second titanium oxide fine particles, in which an iron group element component and a chromium group element component form a solid solution.

A dust core that can significantly reduce the iron loss is provided. The dust core of the present invention includes soft magnetic particles comprising pure iron or an iron alloy and a grain boundary layer existing between adjacent soft magnetic particles. The grain boundary layer has a compound layer comprising M.sub.xFe.sub.2-xSiO.sub.4 (0x1, M: one or more types of metal elements that serve as divalent cations). Such a dust core is obtained by annealing a compact. The compact is obtained by compression-molding a powder for magnetic cores. In the powder for magnetic cores, coating layers that coat the surfaces of soft magnetic particles are each composed of a composite phase in which spinel-type ferrite represented by M.sub.yFe.sub.3-yO.sub.4 (0y1, M: one or more types of metal elements that serve as divalent cations) is dispersed on a surface of a silicone resin or inside the silicone resin. The dust core after annealing exhibits a high specific resistance due to the grain boundary layer having the compound layer and can reduce both the eddy-current loss and the hysteresis loss.

A production method for a magnetic material, which is expressed by a chemical structure formula Fe(Al.sub.1-xMn.sub.x).sub.2O.sub.4, where 0<x<1, and exhibits ferromagnetism, includes: preparing a mixed aqueous solution by dissolving, in distilled water, Fe nitrate, Al nitrate, and an oxide including Mn, the Fe nitrate, the Al nitrate, and the oxide being parent materials; preparing a metal-citric acid complex by mixing citric acid and ethylene glycol with the mixed aqueous solution; obtaining a precursor by boiling the metal-citric acid complex to a gel and drying the gel; and obtaining the magnetic material by sintering the precursor.

Producing Co.sub.xFe.sub.100-x, where x is an integer from 20 to 95, nanoparticles by: (a) providing a first aqueous hydroxide solution; (b) preparing a second aqueous solution containing iron ions and cobalt ions; and (c) depositing measured volumes of the second aqueous solution into the first aqueous solution whereby coprecipitation yields CoFe alloy nanoparticles, wherein step (c) occurs in an essentially oxygen-free environment. The nanoparticles are annealed at ambient temperatures to yield soft nanoparticles with targeted particle size, saturation magnetization and coercivity. The chemical composition, crystal structure and homogeneity are controlled at the atomic level. The CoFe magnetic nanoparticles have M.sub.s of 200-235 emu/g, (H.sub.c) coercivity of 18 to 36 O.sub.e and size range of 5-40 nm. The high magnetic moment CoFe nanoparticles can be employed in drug delivery, superior contrast agents for highly sensitive magnetic resonance imaging, magnetic immunoassay, magnetic labeling, waste water treatment, and magnetic separation.

The present disclosure provides an anisotropic lamellar inorganic fiber aerogel material and a preparation method thereof. The method includes: mixing a polymer solution, an inorganic precursor and a chloride to obtain a spinning precursor solution; blow spinning the spinning precursor solution to obtain a composite fiber aerogel; calcinating the composite fiber aerogel to obtain the anisotropic lamellar inorganic fiber aerogel material. Therefore, the method has advantages of simplicity, easy operation, low cost, high efficiency and easy industrialized production. The inorganic fiber aerogel materials prepared by the above method are composed of multi-layer stacked fibers and have an anisotropic lamellar structure, which can be cut into any desired shape, and stacked to any desired thickness. In addition, the inorganic fiber aerogel materials have good flexibility and compressibility, excellent fire resistance, good high and low temperature resistance and superior thermal insulation, which greatly expands their application field.

Provided is a method for inhibiting extractant degradation in the DSX process through the metal extraction control, the method comprising steps of: (a) adding limestone to a copper solvent extraction-raffinate to precipitate iron (Fe) and aluminum (Al) as a slurry, recovering a clarifying liquid; and (b) adding sulfuric acid to the recovered clarifying liquid to adjust the pH thereof.

The present invention relates to a method of producing a sodium iron(II)-hexacyanoferrate(II) (Na.sub.2-xFe[Fe(CN).sub.6].mH.sub.2O), where x is <0.4) material commonly referred to as Prussian White. The method comprises the steps of acid decomposition of Na.sub.4Fe(CN).sub.6.10H.sub.2O to a powder of Na.sub.2-xFe[Fe(CN).sub.6].mH.sub.2O, drying and enriching the sodium content in the Na.sub.2-xFe[Fe(CN).sub.6].mH.sub.2O powder by mixing the powder with a saturated or supersaturated solution of a reducing agent containing sodium in dry solvent under an inert gas. The steps of acid decomposition and enriching the sodium content are performed under non-hydrothermal conditions.