The current trend for ultra-high-field magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technologies opens up new routes in clinical diagnostic imaging as well as in material imaging applications. MRI selectivity is further improved by using contrast agents (CAs), which enhance the image contrast and improve specificity by the paramagnetic relaxation enhancement (PRE) mechanism. Generally, the efficacy of a CA at a given magnetic field is measured by its longitudinal and transverse relaxivities r₁ and r₂, i.e., the longitudinal and transverse relaxation rates T₁⁻¹ and T₂⁻¹ normalized to CA concentration. However, even though basic NMR sensitivity and resolution become better in stronger fields, r₁ of classic CA generally decreases, which often causes a reduction of the image contrast. In this regard, there is a growing interest in the development of new contrast agents that would be suitable to work at higher magnetic fields. One of the strategies to increase imaging contrast at high magnetic field is to inspect other paramagnetic ions than the commonly used Gd(III)-based CAs. For lanthanides, the magnetic moment can be higher than that of the isotropic Gd(III) ion. In addition, the symmetry of electronic ground state influences the PRE properties of a compound apart from diverse correlation times. In this work, PRE of water ¹H has been investigated over a wide range of magnetic fields for aqueous solutions of the lanthanide containing polyoxometalates [Dy^III(H₂O)₄GeW₁₁O₃₉]^5– (Dy-W₁₁), [Er^III(H₂O)₃GeW₁₁O₃₉]^5– (Er-W₁₁) and [{Er^III(H₂O)(CH₃COO)(P₂W₁₇O₆₁)}₂]¹⁶⁻ (Er₂-W₃₄) over a wide range of frequencies from 20 MHz to 1.4 GHz. Their relaxivities r₁ and r₂ increase with increasing applied fields. These results indicate that the three chosen POM systems are potential candidates for contrast agents, especially at high magnetic fields.

Process monitoring and control require dedicated and reliable measures which reflect the status of the process under investigation. Although nuclear magnetic resonance is known to be a versatile analytical technique, it is only seldomly found in process monitoring. Single-sided nuclear magnetic resonance is one well known approach for being applied in process monitoring. The dedicated V-sensor is a recent approach that allows the inline investigation of materials in a pipe non-destructively and non-invasively. An open geometry of the radiofrequency unit is realized using a tailored coil, enabling the sensor to be applied for manifold mobile applications in in-line process monitoring. Stationary liquids were measured, and their properties were integrally quantified as the basis for successful process monitoring. The sensor, in its inline version, is presented along with its characteristics. An exemplary field of application is battery production in terms of anode slurries; thus, the first results on graphite slurries will demonstrate the added value of the sensor in process monitoring.

Charge transfer and mobility are essential for electrochemical processes in batteries, which need to be understood in detail for optimization, especially in the case of all-solid-state batteries. Wide line NMR is well-known in solid-state NMR and allows the quantification of ion mobility in ordered crystalline and amorphous structures. Temperature-dependent 23Na-NMR is sensitive to ion mobility via longitudinal relaxation, but also via line analysis and transverse relaxation. As 23Na is a spin 3/2 nucleus, 23Na-NMR is also susceptible to electric field gradients caused by their nearest neighbor environment and, therefore, reflects not only the mobility of 23Na+ but also the molecular dynamics in the neighborhood, which are investigated in this paper. The named NMR methods were explored to study 23Na+ mobility in the solid electrolytes NaSICON (sodium (Na) Super Ionic CONductor, here Na3.4Zr2Si2.4P0.6O12), the salt NaTFSI (sodium bis(trifluoromethyl sulfonyl)imide), as well as in the polymer-based electrolytes PEO-NaSICON, PEO-NaTFSI, and PEO-NaTFSI-NaSICON.