Please cancel the abstract of this application and replace it with the following amended abstract presented in clean form according to the procedures outlines in MPEP 714(II)(B): It is provided an alkali metal metalate compound with high magnetic exchange bias and ionic conductivity properties having the general formulae (I) A.sub.2[M.sup.1.sub.3-x M.sup.2.sub.x Z.sub.4] with A being one of Li, Na, K; M.sup.1, M.sup.2 being one or more of Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn; Z being S or Se; x being 0-3, preferably 0, 0.01, 0.1, 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, 3; whereby the compounds K.sub.2[Ni.sub.3S.sub.4], K.sub.2[Zn.sub.3S.sub.4], K.sub.2[Mn.sub.3S.sub.4], Na.sub.2[Mn.sub.3Se.sub.4] and K.sub.2[Ni.sub.3Se.sub.4] are exempted.

The invention relates to a mixed-phase oxide for use as an active electrode material. e.g. in lithium-ion or sodium-ion batteries. The mixed-phase oxide comprises Nb and Ti and further comprises M(III) and/or M(II); wherein M(III) is selected from Cr, Al, Ga, and mixtures thereof; M(II) is selected from Zn, Cu, Mg, and mixtures thereof; wherein the mixed-phase oxide comprises an interpenetrating mixture of a first phase and a second phase; wherein the first phase has the crystal structure of TiNb.sub.2O.sub.7 and the second phase has the crystal structure of Zn.sub.2Nb.sub.34O.sub.87.

A sodium-ion battery includes a cathode comprising sodium; and an anode composition comprising a material having the formula: A.sub.aB.sub.bC.sub.cD.sub.dO, where A is an alkali metal, alkaline earth metal, or a combination thereof, where B is titanium, C is vanadium, D is one or more transition metal element other than titanium or vanadium, a+b+c+d1, a0, b+c>0, b0, c0, d>0, and where the material comprises a ilmenite structure, triclinic VFeO.sub.4 structure, cubic Ca.sub.5Co.sub.4(VO.sub.4).sub.6 structure, dichromate structure, orthorhombic -CoV.sub.3O.sub.8 structure, brannerite structure, thortveitite structure, orthorhombic -CrPO.sub.4 structure, or the pseudo rutile structure.

A solid electrolyte, a method of preparing the same, and a secondary battery including the same, wherein the solid electrolyte comprises a metal oxide including lithium, silicon, and boron, and a metal comprising at least one of iron, chromium, lanthanum, or thallium, and the solid electrolyte has a glass structure containing 60 mol % or greater of lithium based on 100 mol % of the total amount of the metal and lithium, silicon, and boron, and wherein the solid electrolyte has a softness of 152 1/BHN or greater, wherein 1/BHN is an inverse of a Brinell hardness number as measured in accordance with ISO 6506.

The present invention concerns specific new compounds of formula Li.sub.(2x)Na.sub.(x)MO.sub.(2y/2)F.sub.(1+y) (where 0x0.2 and 0.6y0,8 and M is a transition metal), cathode material comprising the new compounds, batteries and lithium-cells comprising said new compound or cathode material, a process for the production of the new compound and their use.

Medical tubing can have a chromic material such that the medical tubing is configured to transition from a first state of color to a different, second state of color by application of a stimulus to the medical tubing.

Methods of forming spinel ferrite nanoparticles containing a chromium-substituted copper ferrite as well as properties (e.g. particle size, crystallite size, pore size, surface area) of these spinel ferrite nanoparticles are described. Methods of preventing or reducing microbe growth on a surface by applying these spinel ferrite nanoparticles onto the surface in the form of a suspension or an antimicrobial product are also described.

Provided are a copper-chromium oxide spinel, and a resin composition and a resin molded article containing the copper-chromium oxide spinel. Specifically, provided is a copper-chromium oxide spinel with a particle size distribution spread SPAN=(D90D10)/D50 of 2 or less where, in volume-converted particle size distribution obtained by a laser diffraction and scattering method, particle sizes with a cumulative frequency from a smaller particle size side of 10%, 50%, and 90% are D10, D50, and D90, respectively.

A cold storage material, which has a large specific heat and a small magnetization in an extremely low temperature region and has satisfactory manufacturability, is provided, and a method for manufacturing the same is provided. Further, a refrigerator having high efficiency and excellent cooling performance is provided by filling this refrigerator with the above-described cold storage material. Moreover, a device incorporating a superconducting coil capable of reducing influence of magnetic noise derived from a cold storage material is provided. The cold storage material of embodiments is a granular body composed of an intermetallic compound in which the ThCr.sub.2Si.sub.2-type structure 11 occupies 80% by volume or more, and has a crystallite size of 70 nm or less.

A cold storage material, which has a large specific heat and a small magnetization in an extremely low temperature region and has satisfactory manufacturability, is provided, and a method for manufacturing the same is provided. Further, a refrigerator having high efficiency and excellent cooling performance is provided by filling this refrigerator with the above-described cold storage material. Moreover, a device incorporating a superconducting coil capable of reducing influence of magnetic noise derived from a cold storage material is provided. The cold storage material of embodiments is a granular body composed of an intermetallic compound in which the ThCr.sub.2Si.sub.2-type structure 11 occupies 80% by volume or more, and has a crystallite size of 70 nm or less.