The present invention is to provide a cathode active material used for a lithium ion secondary battery which has a large charge-discharge capacity, and excels in charge-discharge cycle properties, output properties and productivity, and, a lithium ion secondary battery using the same. The cathode active material used for a lithium ion secondary battery comprises a lithium transition metal composite oxide represented by the following Formula (1); Li.sub.1+aNi.sub.bCo.sub.cMn.sub.dM.sub.eO.sub.2+, where, in the formula (1), M is at least one metal element other than Li, Ni, Co, and Mn; and a, b, c, d, e, and satisfy the following conditions: 0.04a0.04, 0.80b<1.00, 0c0.04, 0<d<0.20, b+c+d+e=1, 0.2<<0.2, and c and d in the Formula (1) satisfy c/d0.75.

The invention provides a process for preparing molybdenum and tungsten oxyhalide compounds which are useful in the deposition of molybdenum and tungsten containing films on various surfaces of microelectronic devices. In the process of the invention, a molybdenum or tungsten trioxide is heated in either a solid state medium or in a melt-phase reaction comprising a eutectic blend comprising alkaline and/or alkaline earth metal salts. The molybdenum or tungsten oxyhalides thus formed may be isolated as a vapor and crystallized to provide highly pure precursor compounds such as MoO.sub.2Cl.sub.2.

An aluminum nitride plate satisfies both of a relation 1: c1>97.5% and a relation 2: c2/c1<0.995 where c1 is a c-plane degree of orientation that is defined as a ratio of a diffraction intensity of (002) plane to a sum of the diffraction intensity of (002) plane and a diffraction intensity of (100) plane when the surface layer of the aluminum nitride plate is subjected to an X-ray diffraction measurement, and c2 is a c-plane degree of (002) plane to the sum of the diffraction intensity of (002) plane and the diffraction intensity of (100) plane when a portion other than the surface layer of the aluminum nitride plate is subjected to the X-ray diffraction. Moreover, in the aluminum nitride plate, a difference in nitrogen content between the surface layer and the portion other than the surface layer is less than 0.15% in weight ratio.

The invention is directed towards an electrochemically active cathode material for a battery. The electrochemically active cathode material includes a non-stoichiometric beta-delithiated layered nickel oxide. The non-stoichiometric beta-delithiated layered nickel oxide has a chemical formula. The chemical formula is Li.sub.xA.sub.yNi.sub.1+azM.sub.zO.sub.2.Math.nH.sub.2O where x is from about 0.02 to about 0.20; y is from about 0.03 to about 0.20; a is from about 0.02 to about 0.2; z is from about 0 to about 0.2; and n is from about 0 to about 1. Within the chemical formula, A is an alkali metal. The alkali metal includes potassium, rubidium, cesium, and any combination thereof. Within the chemical formula, M comprises an alkaline earth metal, a transition metal, a non-transition metal, and any combination thereof.

An aluminum nitride plate satisfies a c1>97.5%, a c2>97.0%, a w1<2.5 degrees, and a w1/w2<0.995 where c1 is a c-plane degree of orientation that is defined as a ratio of a diffraction intensity of (002) plane when a surface layer of the aluminum nitride plate is subjected to an X-ray diffraction measurement, and c2 is a c-plane degree of orientation that is defined as a ratio of the diffraction intensity of (002) plane when a portion other than the surface layer of the aluminum nitride plate is subjected to the X-ray diffraction measurement, wherein w1 is a half-value width in an X-ray rocking curve profile of (102) plane of the surface layer and w2 is a half-value width in the X-ray rocking curve profile of (102) plane of the portion other than the surface layer.

To provide a hydrocarbon adsorbent having high hydrocarbon adsorbing properties even after exposed to a high temperature/high humidity reducing atmosphere.

A hydrocarbon adsorbent, which includes a FAU type zeolite having a lattice constant of at least 24.29 and containing copper. Such a hydrocarbon adsorbent may be used for a method for adsorbing hydrocarbons to be exposed to a high temperature/high humidity environment, and may be used particularly for a method for adsorbing hydrocarbons in an exhaust gas of an internal combustion engine, such as an automobile exhaust gas.

Disclosed is a modified carbonaceous material, which includes hexagonal carbon networks in a layered stacking structure and acidic functional groups bonded to the hexagonal carbon networks and mainly existing at edges of the layered carbonaceous structure. Accordingly, the close proximity of acid moiety at the edges can resemble the center of hydrolysis enzymes, resulting in enhancement of hydrolytic efficiency. Additionally, the acid-functionalized carbonaceous material can also be applied in the capture and storage of carbon dioxide due to its unexpectedly higher capacity for CO.sub.2 molecular.

Layered electrode materials, positive electrodes, rechargeable zinc batteries, and methods are provided. A layered electrode material for use in a rechargeable zinc battery includes a plurality of active metal slab layers in a layered configuration. The active metal slab layer includes a plurality of redox active metal centers and a closely-packed anionic sublattice. A plurality of interlamellar spaces separate adjacent active metal slab layers in the layered configuration. The interlamellar space includes at least one pillar species. The layered electrode material has a combined average metal oxidation state in a range of +3 to +4 in an initial charged state. The layered electrode material accepts solvated zinc cations via intercalation into the interlamellar space upon reduction.

Single crystals of a new noncentrosymmetric polar oxysulfide SrZn.sub.2S.sub.2O (s.g. Pmn2.sub.1) grown in a eutectic KF-KCl flux with unusual wurtzite-like slabs consisting of close-packed corrugated double layers of ZnS.sub.3O tetrahedra vertically separated from each other by Sr atoms and methods of making same.

A positive electrode material for lithium secondary batteries capable of easily doping vanadium oxide with molybdenum, and a method of manufacturing the same are disclosed. The method of manufacturing a positive electrode material for lithium secondary batteries includes (a) reacting vanadium oxide with a water-soluble molybdenum-based compound in the presence of a solvent; and (b) thermally treating the reaction product of (a).