Abstract: Provided is a vapor-based heat transfer apparatus (e.g. a vapor chamber or a heat pipe), comprising: a hollow structure having a hollow chamber enclosed inside a sealed envelope or container made of a thermally conductive material, a wick structure in contact with one or a plurality of walls of the hollow structure, and a working liquid within the hollow structure and in contact with the wick structure, wherein the wick structure comprises a graphene material.

Abstract: Provided is a vapor-based heat transfer apparatus (e.g. a vapor chamber or a heat pipe), comprising: a hollow structure having a hollow chamber enclosed inside a sealed envelope or container made of a thermally conductive material, a wick structure in contact with one or a plurality of walls of the hollow structure (interior wall of the hollow chamber), and a working liquid within the hollow chamber and in contact with the wick structure, wherein the wick structure comprises flakes of exfoliated graphite worms or expanded graphite. Preferably, these flakes are substantially parallel to one another and perpendicular to the hollow chamber wall surface (e.g. aligned parallel to the heat flow direction from the heat source).

Abstract: Provided is a vapor-based heat transfer apparatus (e.g. a vapor chamber or a heat pipe), comprising: a hollow structure having a hollow chamber enclosed inside a sealed envelope or container made of a thermally conductive material, a wick structure in contact with one or a plurality of walls of the hollow structure, and a working liquid within the hollow structure and in contact with the wick structure, wherein the wick structure comprises a graphene material and the hollow structure walls comprise an evaporator wall having a first surface plane and a condenser wall having a second surface plane, wherein multiple sheets of the graphene material in the wick structure are aligned to be substantially parallel to one another and perpendicular to at least one of the first surface plane and the second surface plane. Also provided is a process for producing this apparatus.

Abstract: The disclosure provides multi-functional particulates for a lithium battery, wherein at least one of the particulates has a diameter from 100 nm to 50 ?m and comprises a conducting polymer network composite comprising one or a plurality of primary particles of an anode active material that are encapsulated by, embedded in, dispersed in, or bonded by an electrically and ionically conducting network of cross-linked polymer chains having a lithium ion conductivity from 10?8 to 5×10?2 S/cm and an electron conductivity from 10?8 to 103 S/cm, wherein the primary particles have a diameter or thickness from 0.5 nm to 20 ?m. Also provided is a method of producing such particulates.

Abstract: Provided is method of producing graphene-embraced anode particulates for a lithium battery, the method comprising: (A) providing anode active material-decorated carbon or graphite particles, wherein the carbon or graphite particles have a diameter or thickness from 500 nm to 50 ?m and the anode active material, in a form of particles or coating having a diameter or thickness from 0.5 nm to 2 ?m, is bonded to surfaces of the carbon or graphite particles; and (B) embracing the anode active material-decorated carbon or graphite particles with a shell comprising multiple graphene sheets to produce the graphene-embraced anode particulates.

Abstract: The invention provides multi-functional particulates for a lithium battery, at least one of the particulates comprising a core and a thin encapsulating layer that encapsulates or embraces the core, wherein the encapsulating shell comprises multiple graphene sheets and have a thickness from 0.5 nm to 10 ?m and the core comprises conducting polymer gel network-encapsulated anode active material primary particles, wherein one or a plurality of primary particles of an anode active material, having a diameter or thickness from 0.5 nm to 20 ?m, is encapsulated by or embedded in an electrically and/or ionically conducting polymer gel network.

Abstract: Provided is a powder mass of multiple porous graphene balls, wherein at least one of the porous graphene balls comprises multiple graphene sheets having a catalyst, in a form of nanoparticles or coating having a diameter or thickness from 0.3 nm to 10 nm, bonded to or supported by graphene sheet surfaces, wherein the porous graphene balls have a density from 0.01 to 1.7 g/cm3 (preferably and typically from 0.1 to 1.5 g/cm3), and a specific surface area from 50 to 3,000 m2/g (preferably and typically from 200 to 2,630 m2/g). A method of producing such porous graphene balls is provided as well. Also provided is a gas storage device containing the invented powder mass as a gas-absorbing, gas-adsorbing, gas-capturing, or gas-storing medium to store a gas species therein.

Abstract: Provided is graphene-embraced anode particulate for a lithium battery, the particulate comprising: (A) a core comprising one or a plurality of anode active material-decorated carbon or graphite particles, wherein the carbon or graphite particles have a diameter or thickness from 500 nm to 50 ?m and the anode active material, in a form of particles or coating having a diameter or thickness from 0.5 nm to 2 ?m, is bonded to or embedded into surfaces of the carbon or graphite particles; and (B) an embracing shell embracing or encapsulating the core, wherein the embracing shell comprises multiple graphene sheets and have a thickness from 0.34 nm to 5 ?m.

Abstract: Provided is method of producing graphene-embraced anode particulates for a lithium battery, the method comprising: (A) providing anode active material-decorated carbon or graphite particles, wherein the carbon or graphite particles have a diameter or thickness from 500 nm to 50 ?m and the anode active material, in a form of particles or coating having a diameter or thickness from 0.5 nm to 2 ?m, is bonded to surfaces of the carbon or graphite particles; and (B) embracing the anode active material-decorated carbon or graphite particles with a shell comprising multiple graphene sheets to produce the graphene-embraced anode particulates.

Abstract: Provided is a method of producing a graphitic film, comprising: (a) providing a suspension of aromatic molecules selected from petroleum heavy oil or pitch, coal tar pitch, a polynuclear hydrocarbon, a halogenated variant thereof, or a combination thereof, dispersed or dissolved in a liquid medium; (b) dispensing and depositing the suspension onto a surface of a supporting substrate to form a wet layer of aromatic molecules, wherein the procedure includes subjecting the suspension to an orientation-inducing stress or strain; (c) partially or completely removing the liquid medium; and (d) heat treating the resulting dried layer at a first temperature selected from 25° C. to 3,200° C. so that the aromatic molecules are merged or fused into larger aromatic molecules to form the graphitic film having graphene domains or graphite crystals, wherein the larger aromatic molecules or graphene planes in the graphene domains or graphite crystals are substantially parallel to each other.

Abstract: This disclosure provides a process for producing carbon-semiconductor nanowire hybrid material, comprising: (A) preparing a catalyst metal-coated mixture mass, which includes mixing carbon filaments with micron or sub-micron scaled semiconductor particles to form a mixture and depositing a nanoscaled catalytic metal onto surfaces of the carbon filaments and/or semiconductor particles; and (B) exposing the catalyst metal-coated mixture mass to a high temperature environment (preferably from 100° C. to 2,500° C.) for a period of time sufficient to enable a catalytic metal-catalyzed growth of multiple semiconductor nanowires using the semiconductor particles as a feed material to form the carbon-semiconductor nanowire hybrid material composition. An optional etching or separating procedure may be conducted to remove catalytic metal or carbon filaments from the semiconductor nanowires.

Abstract: Provided is a process for producing porous graphene particulates for an alkali metal battery, the process comprising: (a) depositing a lithium-attracting or sodium-attracting metal onto particle surfaces of a sacrificial material to obtain metal-decorated sacrificial particles, wherein the lithium-attracting or sodium-attracting metal is selected from Au, Ag, Mg, Zn, Ti, Li, Na, K, Al, Fe, Mn, Co, Ni, Sn, V, Cr, an alloy thereof, or a combination thereof; (b) encapsulating the metal-decorated sacrificial particles with multiple graphene sheets to produce graphene-embraced metal-decorated sacrificial particles; and (c) partially or completely removing the sacrificial particles from the graphene-embraced metal-decorated sacrificial particles to form porous graphene particulates, wherein the porous graphene particulate comprises a graphene shell (comprising multiple graphene sheets) encapsulating a porous core, comprising one or a plurality of pores and the lithium-attracting or sodium-attracting metal resides i

Abstract: Provided is an impact-transfer method of producing multiple porous anode particulates for a lithium battery, the method comprising: (a) mixing multiple particles of a graphitic material, multiple composite particles comprising primary anode active material particles dispersed in or bonded by a sacrificial material, optional milling balls to form a mixture in an impacting chamber of an energy impacting apparatus; (b) operating the energy impacting apparatus for peeling off graphene sheets from the particles of graphitic material and transferring the peeled graphene sheets to surfaces of composite particles to produce particulates of graphene-encapsulated composite particles; (c) recovering the particulates from the impacting chamber; and (d) partially or completely removing the sacrificial particles from the particulates of graphene-encapsulated composite particles to obtain the multiple porous anode particulates.

Abstract: Provided is a porous graphene particulate comprising a graphene shell encapsulating a porous core, wherein the porous core comprises one or a plurality of pores and pore walls and a lithium-attracting metal or sodium-attracting metal residing in the pores or deposited on pore walls; wherein the lithium-attracting or sodium-attracting metal is selected from Au, Ag, Mg, Zn, Ti, Li, Na, K, Al, Fe, Mn, Co, Ni, Sn, V, Cr, or an alloy thereof and is in an amount of 0.1% to 90% of the total particulate weight, and the shell comprises multiple single-layer or few-layer graphene sheets. Also provided is a powder mass, anode, or battery that contains one or a plurality of such porous particulates.

Abstract: Provided is a porous graphene/carbon particulate comprising a graphene/carbon shell encapsulating a porous core, wherein the porous core comprises one or a plurality of pores and pore walls and a lithium-attracting metal or sodium-attracting metal residing in the pores or deposited on pore walls; wherein the lithium-attracting or sodium-attracting metal is selected from Au, Ag, Mg, Zn, Ti, Li, Na, K, Al, Fe, Mn, Co, Ni, Sn, V, Cr, or an alloy thereof and is in an amount of 0.1% to 90% of the total particulate weight, and the shell comprises multiple single-layer or few-layer graphene sheets chemically bonded by a carbon material having a carbon material-to-graphene weight ratio from 1/200 to 1/2. Also provided is a powder mass, anode, or battery that contains one or a plurality of such porous particulates.

Abstract: Provided is process for producing porous graphene/carbon particulates for an alkali metal battery, the process comprising: (a) depositing a lithium-attracting metal or sodium-attracting metal onto surfaces of polymer particles, (b) mixing the resulting metal-deposited polymer carrier particles, multiple particles of a graphitic material, and an optional ball-milling media to form a mixture in an impacting chamber of an energy impacting apparatus; (c) operating the energy impacting apparatus for peeling off graphene sheets from the graphitic material and transferring the graphene sheets to surfaces of the metal-deposited polymer carrier particles to produce graphene-embraced metal-deposited polymer particles; (d) recovering the graphene-embraced metal-deposited polymer particles from the impacting chamber; and (e) pyrolyzing the graphene-embraced metal-deposited polymer particles to thermally convert the polymer into pores and carbon or graphite that bonds the graphene sheets to form metal-containing porous gr

Abstract: Provided is a simple, fast, scalable, and environmentally benign method of producing graphene-embraced particles of a battery electrode active material, comprising: a) mixing graphitic material particles and multiple particles of a milling media to form a mixture in an impacting chamber of an energy impacting apparatus; b) operating the energy impacting apparatus with a frequency and an intensity for a length of time sufficient for transferring graphene sheets from the graphitic material to surfaces of milling media particles to produce graphene-embraced milling media particles; c) mixing particles of an active material with graphene-embraced milling media particles in an impacting chamber of an energy impacting apparatus; d) operating the energy impacting apparatus for transferring graphene sheets from the graphene-embraced milling media particles to surfaces of active material particles to produce graphene-embraced electrode active material particles; and e) recovering these graphene-embraced active materia

Abstract: Disclosed is a process for producing graphene-metal nanowire hybrid material, comprising: (A) preparing a catalyst metal-coated mixture mass, which includes mixing graphene sheets with source metal particles to form a mixture and depositing a nanoscaled catalytic metal onto surfaces of the graphene sheets and/or metal particles; and (B) exposing the catalyst metal-coated mixture mass to a high temperature environment (preferably from 100° C. to 2,500° C.) for a period of time sufficient to enable a catalytic metal-catalyzed growth of multiple metal nanowires using the source metal particles as a feed material to form the graphene-metal nanowire hybrid material composition. An optional etching or separating procedure may be conducted to remove catalytic metal or graphene from the metal nanowires.

Abstract: Provided is a lithium metal secondary battery comprising a cathode, an anode, an electrolyte-separator assembly disposed between the cathode and the anode, wherein the anode comprises: (a) an anode active material layer containing a layer of lithium or lithium alloy optionally supported by an anode current collector; and (b) an anode-protecting layer in physical contact with the anode active material layer and in ionic contact with the electrolyte-separator assembly, having a thickness from 10 nm to 500 ?m and comprising an elastic polymer foam having a fully recoverable elastic compressive strain from 2% to 500% and pores having a pore volume fraction from 5% to 95% (most preferably 50-95%); wherein preferably the pores are interconnected.

Abstract: Disclosed is a process for producing metal nanowires having a diameter or thickness from 2 nm to 100 nm, the process comprising: (a) preparing a source metal particulate having a size from 50 nm to 500 ?m, selected from a transition metal, Al, Be, Mg, Ca, an alloy thereof, a compound thereof, or a combination thereof; (b) depositing a catalytic metal, in the form of nanoparticles or a coating having a diameter or thickness from 1 nm to 100 nm, onto a surface of the source metal particulate to form a catalyst metal-coated metal material, wherein the catalytic metal is different than the source metal material; and (c) exposing the catalyst metal-coated metal material to a high temperature environment, from 100° C. to 2,500° C., for a period of time sufficient to enable a catalytic metal-assisted growth of multiple metal nanowires from the source metal particulate.