This book commemorates the “Nobel Laureate Professor Suzuki Special Symposium” at the International Union of Material Research Society–International Conference on Advanced Materials (IUMRS-ICAM2017), which was held at Kyoto University, Japan, in 2017. The book begins with a foreword by Professor Akira Suzuki. Subsequently, many authors who attended the special symposium describe the latest scientific advances in the field of carbon materials and carbon nanomaterials including polymers, carbon nanocomposites, and graphene. Carbon-based materials have recently been the focus of considerable attention, given their wide range of potential applications. Fittingly, the chapters in this book cover both experimental and theoretical approaches in several categories of carbon-related materials.

Representing the first text to cover this exciting new area of research, this book will describe synthesis techniques of CNWs, their characterization and various expected applications using CNWs. Carbon-nanowalls (CNWs) can be described as two-dimensional graphite nanostructures with edges comprised of stacks of plane graphene sheets standing almost vertically on the substrate. These sheets form a wall structure with a high aspect ratio. The thickness of CNWs ranges from a few nm to a few tens of nm. The large surface area and sharp edges of CNWs may prove useful for a number of applications such as electrochemical devices, field electron emitters, storage materials for hydrogen gas, catalyst support. In particular, vertically standing CNWs with a high surface-to-volume ratio, serve as an ideal material for catalyst support for fuel cells and in gas storage materials.

The proceedings of the VIIth International Symposium on the Scientific Bases for the Preparation of Heterogeneous Catalysts, are in line with the general scope of this series of events. Emphasis in all Symposia has been on the scientific aspects of the preparation of new and industrial catalysts, or on new methods of preparation, rather than on the catalytic reactions in which such solids are ultimately used. In the present context, the catalytic event itself has only been considered as another, though often decisive, method of catalyst characterization.

The use of nanotechnologies continues to grow, as nanomaterials have proven their versatility and use in many different fields and industries within the scientific profession. Using nanotechnology, materials can be made lighter, more durable, more reactive, and more efficient leading nanoscale materials to enhance many everyday products and processes. With many different sizes, shapes, and internal structures, the applications are endless. These uses range from pharmaceutics to materials such as cement or cloth, electronics, environmental sustainability, and more. Therefore, there has been a recent surge of research focused on the synthesis and characterizations of these nanomaterials to better understand how they can be used, their applications, and the many different types. The Research Anthology on Synthesis, Characterization, and Applications of Nanomaterials seeks to address not only how nanomaterials are created, used, or characterized, but also to apply this knowledge to the multidimensional industries, fields, and applications of nanomaterials and nanoscience. This includes topics such as both natural and manmade nanomaterials; the size, shape, reactivity, and other essential characteristics of nanomaterials; challenges and potential effects of using nanomaterials; and the advantages of nanomaterials with multidisciplinary uses. This book is ideally designed for researchers, engineers, practitioners, industrialists, educators, strategists, policymakers, scientists, and students working in fields that include materials engineering, engineering science, nanotechnology, biotechnology, microbiology, drug design and delivery, medicine, and more.

Boasting chapters written by leading international experts, Nanostructured and Advanced Materials for Fuel Cells provides an overview of the progress that has been made so far in the material and catalyst development for fuel cells. The book covers the most recent developments detailing all aspects of synthesis, characterization, and performance. It offers an overview on the principles, classifications, and types of fuels used in fuel cells, and discusses the critical properties, design, and advances made in various sealing materials. It provides an extensive review on the design, configuration, fabrication, modeling, materials, and stack performance of μ-SOFC technology, and addresses the advancement and challenges in the synthesis, characterization, and fundamental understanding of the catalytic activity of nitrogen-carbon, carbon, and noncarbon-based electro catalysts for PEM fuel cells. The authors explore the atomic layer deposition (ALD) technique, summarize the advancements in the fundamental understanding of the most successful Nafion membranes, and focus on the development of alternative and composite membranes for direct alcohol fuel cells (DAFCs). They also review current challenges and consider future development in the industry. Includes 17 chapters, 262 figures, and close to 2000 references Provides an extensive review of the carbon, nitrogen-carbon, and noncarbon-based electro catalysts for fuel cells Presents an update on the latest materials development in conventional fuel cells and emerging fuel cells This text is a single-source reference on the latest advances in the nano-structured materials and electro catalysts for fuel cells, the most efficient and emerging energy conversion technologies for the twenty-first century. It serves as a valuable resource for students, materials engineers, and researchers interested in fuel cell technology.

From a chemistry aspect, graphene is the extrapolated extreme of condensed polycyclic hydrocarbon molecules to infinite size. Here, the concept on aromaticity which organic chemists utilize is applicable. Interesting issues appearing between physics and chemistry are pronounced in nano-sized graphene (nanographene), as we recognize the importance of the shape of nanographene in understanding its electronic structure. In this book, the fundamental issues on the electronic, magnetic, and chemical properties of condensed polycyclic hyodrocarbon molecules, nanographene and graphene are comprehensively discussed.

After a brief introduction to the fundamental properties of graphene, this book focuses on synthesis, characterization and application of various types of two-dimensional (2D) nanocarbons ranging from single/few layer graphene to carbon nanowalls and graphene oxides. Three major synthesis techniques are covered: epitaxial growth of graphene on SiC,