Preparing MAX phase structures includes forming a gel including a transition metal M, a Group 3A or Group 4A metal or semimetal A, and an acidic chelating agent or gelling agent X. X includes one or both of carbon and nitrogen. Preparing the MAX phase structures further includes shaping the gel to yield a shaped gel and heating the shaped gel to yield carbonaceous MAX phase structures with a composition represented by M.sub.n+1AX.sub.n, wherein n is 1, 2, 3, or 4. The MAX phase structures can be thick films, microspheres, or microwires.

The present disclosure provides a lithium-rich carbonate precursor, a preparation method therefor, and an application thereof. The lithium-rich carbonate precursor has a solid spherical structure, and the chemical formula of the lithium-rich carbonate precursor is Ni.sub.xCo.sub.yMn.sub.(1−x−y)CO.sub.3. The precursor has the advantages of having controllable particle size, uniform particle size distribution, high sphericity, high tap density, good fluidity, and excellent electrochemical performance and energy density.

A composite nanomaterial of ZnO impregnated by, e.g., a green copper phthalocyanine compound (CuPc) can be an efficient solar light photocatalyst for water remediation. The composite may include hollow shell microspheres and hollow nanospheres of CuPc-ZnO. CuPc may function as a templating and/or structure modifying agent, e.g., for forming hollow microspheres and/or nanospheres of ZnO particles. The composite can photocatalyze the degradation of organic pollutants such as crystal violet (CV) and 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid as well as microbes in water under solar light irradiation. The ZnO-CuPc composite can be stable and recyclable under solar irradiation.

The solid electrolyte material of the present disclosure includes Li, Ca, Y, Sm, X, and O, where Xis at least one selected from the group consisting of F, Cl, Br, and I; and the molar ratio of O to the sum of Y and Sm in a surface area of the solid electrolyte material is higher than the molar ratio of O to the sum of Y and Sm in the entire solid electrolyte material.

The present invention relates to an anode active material, a method of manufacturing the anode active material, and an anode and a secondary battery including the anode active material, the anode active material including secondary carbon particles formed by flocculation of a plurality of primary carbon particles having an average particle diameter (D.sub.50) in a range from 5 to 200 nm, wherein the secondary carbon particles have an average particle diameter (D.sub.50) in a range from 0.5 to 20 μm.

A process for preparing a titanic acid salt, titanic acid, and titanium oxide having a controllable particle size and a hierarchical structure, wherein the process includes the steps of: preparing a titanium-containing peroxo-complex solution; adding a basic metal compound to the titanium-containing peroxo-complex solution to form a mixture solution; adding one of polyvinyl alcohol, hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose, and polyethylene glycol to the mixture solution to form a precursor dispersion; and subjecting the precursor dispersion to a solvothermal reaction to obtain the titanic acid salt having a hierarchical structure. The process for preparing a titanic acid salt, titanic acid, and titanium oxide having a controllable particle size and a hierarchical structure, can not only realize the regulation of morphology and particle diameter of constituent units in the hierarchical structure, but also can achieve the regulation of particle size in the hierarchical structure.

A method can include reducing a silica starting material to produce a first quantity of at least metallurgical grade silicon and a second quantity of silica comprising elemental carbon doping, wherein the silica starting material is reduced in the presence of a carbonaceous reducing agent. A silica material can be a silica material as prepared according to the method.

The sodium ferrite particle powder according to the present invention is characterized in that at least one metal or more selected from the metal group consisting of silicon, aluminum, titanium, manganese, cobalt, nickel, magnesium, copper and zinc is contained in an amount of 0.05 to 20% by weight in terms of the oxide, and the molar ratio of Na/Fe is 0.75 to 1.25.

The present invention relates to a novel method for preparing lithium oxide. In the present invention, the particle size and shape of lithium oxide may be controlled during the preparing process. In addition, the present invention relates to lithium oxide with controlled particle size and shape prepared by this preparing method.

The solid electrolyte material of the present disclosure is made of Li, Ca, Y, Gd, X, and O, where X is at least one selected from the group consisting of F, Cl, Br, and I; and the molar ratio of O to the sum of Y and Gd is greater than O and 0.51 or less.