title: Bioinspired peony-like beta-Ni(OH)2 nanostructures with enhanced electrochemical activity and superhydrophobicity.
abstract: Constructing complex nanostructures has become increasingly important in the development of hydrogen storage, self-cleaning materials, and the formation of chiral branched nanowires. Several approaches have been developed to generate complex nanostructures, which have led to novel applications. Combining biology and nanotechnology through the utilization of biomolecules to chemically template the growth of complex nanostructures during synthesis has aroused great interest. Herein, we use a biomolecule-assisted hydrothermal method to synthesize beta-phase Ni(OH)(2) peony-like complex nanostructures with second-order structure nanoplate structure. The novel beta-Ni(OH)(2) nanostructures exhibit high-power Ni/MH battery performance, close to the theoretical capacity of Ni(OH)(2), as well as controlled wetting behavior. We demonstrate that this bioinspired route to generate a complex nanostructure has applications in environmental protection and green secondary cells. This approach opens up opportunities for the synthesis and potential applications of new kinds of nanostructures.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, PR China. hqcao@mail.tsinghua.edu.cn
authors.forename: Huaqiang
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Cao
authors.forename: He
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.forename: Kaiyu
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Jamie H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Warner
mesh_terms: D001120:Arginine / Q000737:chemistry; D040761:Biomimetic Materials; D011211:Electric Power Supplies; D004563:Electrochemistry / Q000379:methods*; D006859:Hydrogen / Q000737:chemistry; D057927:Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; D006878:Hydroxides / Q000737:chemistry*; D053768:Metal Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000737:chemistry*; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000379:methods*; D053770:Nanowires / Q000737:chemistry; D009532:Nickel / Q000737:chemistry*; D013499:Surface Properties
chemical_list: D006878:Hydroxides; C037473:nickel hydroxide; C022838:nickel chloride; D009532:Nickel; D006859:Hydrogen; D001120:Arginine