Electrochromism is a phenomenon in which a material displays changes in color or opacity in response to an electrical stimulus. [2] In this way, a smart window made of an electrochromic material can block specific wavelengths of ultraviolet, visible or (near) infrared light. The ability to control the transmittance of near-infrared light can increase the energy efficiency of a building, reducing the amount of energy needed to cool during summer and heat during winter. [1] [3]
As the color change is persistent and energy needs only to be applied to effect a change, electrochromic materials are used to control the amount of light and heat allowed to pass through a surface, most commonly "smart windows". One popular application is in the automobile industry where it is used to automatically tint rear-view mirrors in various lighting conditions.
The phenomenon of electrochromism occurs in some transition metal oxides which conduct both electrons and ions, such as tungsten trioxide (WO3). [4] These oxides have octahedral structures of oxygen which surround a central metal atom and are joined together at the corners. This arrangement produces a three-dimensional nanoporous structure with "tunnels" between individual octahedral segments. These tunnels allow dissociated ions to pass through the substance when they are motivated by an electric field. Common ions used for this purpose are H+ and Li+. [5] [6]
The electric field is typically induced by two flat, transparent electrodes which sandwich the ion-containing layers. As a voltage is applied across these electrodes, the difference in charge between the two sides causes the ions to penetrate the oxide as the charge-balancing electrons flow between the electrodes. These electrons change the valency of the metal atoms in the oxide, reducing their charge, as in the following example of tungsten trioxide: [7]
This is a redox reaction since the electroactive metal accepts electrons from the electrodes, forming a half-cell. [7] Strictly speaking, the electrode as a chemical unit comprises the flat plate as well as the semiconducting substance in contact with it. However, the term "electrode" often refers to only the flat plate(s), more specifically called the electrode "substrate". [8]
Photons that reach the oxide layer can cause an electron to move between two nearby metal ions. The energy provided by the photon causes the movement of an electron which in turn causes optical absorption of the photon. [9] For example, the following process occurs in tungsten oxide for two tungsten ions a and b: [10]
Electrochromic materials, also known as chromophores, affect the optical color or opacity of a surface when a voltage is applied. [7] [11] Among the metal oxides, tungsten oxide (WO3) is the most extensively studied and well-known electrochromic material. [12] Others include molybdenum, [13] titanium [14] and niobium oxides, [15] although these are less effective optically.
Viologens are a class of organic materials [16] [17] that are being intensively investigated for electrochromic applications. [18] These 4,4′-bipyridine compounds display reversible color changes between a colorless and a deep-blue color due to redox reactions. Researchers can "tune" them to a deep blue or intense green. [11]
As organic materials, viologens are seen as promising alternatives for electronic applications, compared to metal-based systems, which tend to be expensive, toxic, and a problem to recycle. [16] Possible advantages of viologens include their optical contrast, coloration efficiency, redox stability, ease of design, and potential to scale up for large-area preparation. [18]
Viologens have been used with phenylenediamine by Gentex Corporation, which has commercialized auto-dimming rearview mirrors [18] and smart windows in Boeing 787 aircraft. [11] Viologen has been used in conjunction with titanium dioxide (TiO2, also known as titania) in the creation of small digital displays. [19] [20] A variety of conducting polymers are also of interest for displays, including polypyrrole, PEDOT, and polyaniline. [21]
Many methods have been used to synthesize tungsten oxide, including chemical vapor deposition (CVD), sputtering, thermal evaporation, spray pyrolysis (from a vapor or sol-gel), and hydrothermal synthesis (from a liquid). [22] In industry, sputtering is the most common method for the deposition of tungsten oxide. For material synthesis, sol-gel process is widely used due to its advantages of simple process, low cost, and easy control. [23]
In the sol-gel process of tungsten trioxide, WCl
6 is dissolved in alcohol and then oxidized by purging O
2 into its solution:
The formation of H
2 is performed by the reaction of alcohol and chlorine that used for the reduction of WO
3 to obtain a blue solution of HWO
3:
WO
3 nanoparticles can also be obtained by precipitation of ammonium tungstate para pentahydrate, (NH
4)
10W
12O
41⋅5H
2O, or nitric acid, HNO
3, under acidic conditions from aqueous solutions. [24]
Multiple layers are needed for a functional smart window with electrochromic characteristics. [3] The first and last are transparent glass made of silica (SiO
2), the two electrodes are needed to apply the voltage, which in turn will push (or pull) Li+
ions from the ion storage layer, through the electrolyte into the electrochromic material (or vice versa). Applying a high voltage (4 V or more) will push lithium-ions into the electrochromic layer, deactivating the electrochromic material. The window is fully transparent now. By applying a lower voltage (2.5 V for example) the concentration of Li-ions in the electrochromic layer decreases, thus activating (N)IR-active tungsten oxide. [25] [3] This activation causes reflection of infrared light, thus lowering the greenhouse effect, which in turn reduces the amount of energy needed for air conditioning. [26] Depending on the electrochromic material used, different parts of the spectrum can be blocked, this way UV, visible and IR light can be independently reflected at the will of a user. [3]
Several electrochromic devices have been developed. Electrochromism is commonly used in the production of electrochromic windows or "smart glass", [3] [1] and more recently electrochromic displays on paper substrate as anti-counterfeiting systems integrated into packaging. [27] NiO materials have been widely studied as counter electrodes for complementary electrochromic devices, particularly for smart windows. [28] [29]
ICE 3 high speed trains use electrochromic glass panels between the passenger compartment and the driver's cabin. The standard mode is clear, and can be switched by the driver to frosted. [30] Electrochromic windows are used in the Boeing 787 Dreamliner in the form of a dimmable panel between the exterior window and interior dust cover, [31] allowing crew and passengers to control the transparency of the windows. [32]
An electrode is an electrical conductor used to make contact with a nonmetallic part of a circuit. Electrodes are essential parts of batteries that can consist of a variety of materials depending on the type of battery.
Tungsten is a chemical element; it has symbol W and atomic number 74. Tungsten is a rare metal found naturally on Earth almost exclusively as compounds with other elements. It was identified as a new element in 1781 and first isolated as a metal in 1783. Its important ores include scheelite and wolframite, the latter lending the element its alternative name.
Smart glass, also known as switchable glass, dynamic glass, and smart-tinting glass, is a type of glass that can change its optical properties, becoming opaque or tinted, in response to electrical or thermal signals. This can be used to prevent sunlight and heat from entering a building during hot days, improving energy efficiency. It can also be used to conveniently provide privacy or visibility to a room.
Tungsten(VI) oxide, also known as tungsten trioxide is a chemical compound of oxygen and the transition metal tungsten, with formula WO3. The compound is also called tungstic anhydride, reflecting its relation to tungstic acid H2WO4. It is a light yellow crystalline solid.
Vanadium(IV) oxide or vanadium dioxide is an inorganic compound with the formula VO2. It is a dark blue solid. Vanadium(IV) dioxide is amphoteric, dissolving in non-oxidising acids to give the blue vanadyl ion, [VO]2+ and in alkali to give the brown [V4O9]2− ion, or at high pH [VO4]4−. VO2 has a phase transition very close to room temperature (~68 °C (341 K)). Electrical resistivity, opacity, etc, can change up several orders. Owing to these properties, it has been used in surface coating, sensors, and imaging. Potential applications include use in memory devices, phase-change switches, passive radiative cooling applications, such as smart windows and roofs, that cool or warm depending on temperature, aerospace communication systems and neuromorphic computing. It occurs in nature, as the mineral, Paramontroseite.
An electrochromic device (ECD) controls optical properties such as optical transmission, absorption, reflectance and/or emittance in a continual but reversible manner on application of voltage (electrochromism). This property enables an ECD to be used for applications like smart glass, electrochromic mirrors, and electrochromic display devices.
Molybdenum dioxide is the chemical compound with the formula MoO2. It is a violet-colored solid and is a metallic conductor. The mineralogical form of this compound is called tugarinovite, and is only very rarely found. The discovery and early studies of molybdenum dioxide date back to the late 18th and early 19th centuries. One of the notable figures in the history of molybdenum dioxide is the Hungarian chemist Jakob Joseph Winterl (1732–1809). Winterl, who was a professor of chemistry and botany at the University of Budapest, made significant contributions to the understanding of molybdenum compounds. In 1787, he proposed that copper was a compound of nickel, molybdenum, silica, and a volatile substance, showcasing his interest in molybdenum chemistry.
Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-tetramethacrylate or PEDOT-TMA is a p-type conducting polymer based on 3,4-ethylenedioxylthiophene or the EDOT monomer. It is a modification of the PEDOT structure. Advantages of this polymer relative to PEDOT are that it is dispersible in organic solvents, and it is non-corrosive. PEDOT-TMA was developed under a contract with the National Science Foundation, and it was first announced publicly on April 12, 2004. The trade name for PEDOT-TMA is Oligotron. PEDOT-TMA was featured in an article entitled "Next Stretch for Plastic Electronics" that appeared in Scientific American in 2004. The U.S. Patent office issued a patent protecting PEDOT-TMA on April 22, 2008.
An electrocatalyst is a catalyst that participates in electrochemical reactions. Electrocatalysts are a specific form of catalysts that function at electrode surfaces or, most commonly, may be the electrode surface itself. An electrocatalyst can be heterogeneous such as a platinized electrode. Homogeneous electrocatalysts, which are soluble, assist in transferring electrons between the electrode and reactants, and/or facilitate an intermediate chemical transformation described by an overall half reaction. Major challenges in electrocatalysts focus on fuel cells.
Pseudocapacitors store electrical energy faradaically by electron charge transfer between electrode and electrolyte. This is accomplished through electrosorption, reduction-oxidation reactions, and intercalation processes, termed pseudocapacitance.
A potassium-ion battery or K-ion battery is a type of battery and analogue to lithium-ion batteries, using potassium ions for charge transfer instead of lithium ions. It was invented by the Iranian/American chemist Ali Eftekhari in 2004.
Sodium-ion batteries (NIBs, SIBs, or Na-ion batteries) are several types of rechargeable batteries, which use sodium ions (Na+) as their charge carriers. In some cases, its working principle and cell construction are similar to those of lithium-ion battery (LIB) types, but it replaces lithium with sodium as the intercalating ion. Sodium belongs to the same group in the periodic table as lithium and thus has similar chemical properties. However, in some cases, such as aqueous batteries, SIBs can be quite different from LIBs.
Aluminium-ion batteries are a class of rechargeable battery in which aluminium ions serve as charge carriers. Aluminium can exchange three electrons per ion. This means that insertion of one Al3+ is equivalent to three Li+ ions. Thus, since the ionic radii of Al3+ (0.54 Å) and Li+ (0.76 Å) are similar, significantly higher numbers of electrons and Al3+ ions can be accepted by cathodes with little damage. Al has 50 times (23.5 megawatt-hours m-3) the energy density of Li and is even higher than coal.
Research in lithium-ion batteries has produced many proposed refinements of lithium-ion batteries. Areas of research interest have focused on improving energy density, safety, rate capability, cycle durability, flexibility, and cost.
In materials science, MXenes are a class of two-dimensional inorganic compounds along with MBenes, that consist of atomically thin layers of transition metal carbides, nitrides, or carbonitrides. MXenes accept a variety of hydrophilic terminations. The first MXene was reported in 2011.
In materials and electric battery research, cobalt oxide nanoparticles usually refers to particles of cobalt(II,III) oxide Co
3O
4 of nanometer size, with various shapes and crystal structures.
Magnesium batteries are batteries that utilize magnesium cations as charge carriers and possibly in the anode in electrochemical cells. Both non-rechargeable primary cell and rechargeable secondary cell chemistries have been investigated. Magnesium primary cell batteries have been commercialised and have found use as reserve and general use batteries.
Calcium (ion) batteries are energy storage and delivery technologies (i.e., electro–chemical energy storage) that employ calcium ions (cations), Ca2+, as the active charge carrier. Calcium (ion) batteries remain an active area of research, with studies and work persisting in the discovery and development of electrodes and electrolytes that enable stable, long-term battery operation. Calcium batteries are rapidly emerging as a recognized alternative to Li-ion technology due to their similar performance, significantly greater abundance, and lower cost.
Lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxides (abbreviated NMC, Li-NMC, LNMC, or NCM) are mixed metal oxides of lithium, nickel, manganese and cobalt with the general formula LiNixMnyCo1-x-yO2. These materials are commonly used in lithium-ion batteries for mobile devices and electric vehicles, acting as the positively charged cathode.
Gilbert Daniel Nessim is a chemistry professor at Bar-Ilan University specializing in the synthesis of 1D and 2D nanomaterials for electronic, mechanic, and energy applications.