One-dimensional multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT)/SiC porous nanocomposites were prepared via an in situ reaction between Si and MWCNTs induced by the reaction between Na and I₂. The as-prepared nanocomposites exhibit outstanding microwave absorbing performances with an absorber thickness of about 2 mm. The absorbing bandwidth for the nanocomposites increases by raising the reaction temperature from 200 to 400 °C. The dielectric polarizations, which originate from the synergistic effect of the defects, porous structures and nanoparticles in the nanocomposites, are responsible for the excellent microwave absorbing performances.

Yttrium-modified Li₄Ti₅O₁₂ (YLTO) was fabricated by a coprecipitation method using tetrabutyl titanate, Y(NO₃)₃·6H₂O and LiOH·H₂O as reactants, followed by simply sintering the dried mixture at 600 °C. The products and their lithiation–delithiation process were characterized by a combination of electrochemical measurements, X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy and nitrogen adsorption. The YLTO exhibits excellent long-term cycling stability (over 1000 cycles) at a high current rate of 10 C and outstanding rate capabilities. Particularly, the YLTO demonstrates remarkable cyclability even if directly cycled at a rate of 10 C without low-rate activation and with no relaxation between charge and discharge. Even without utilizing carbon black as conductive material, the YLTO still shows prominent rate capabilities and long-term cyclic performance at a rate of 5 C. The excellent performance is ascribed to the increased lattice constant, improved electronic and ionic conductivities, refined grains with large surface area and uniform nanopores resulting from the Y-modification.

La-doped Li₄Ti₅O₁₂ (LLTO) was prepared by a simple approach using tetrabutyl titanate, LiOH·H₂O and La(NO₃)₃·6H₂O as raw materials, followed by sintering the dried mixture at 600 °C for 5 h. Without requiring any further treatments, the as-obtained LLTO could exhibit excellent long-term cycling stability, high coulombic efficiency close to 100% at various charge–discharge rates, outstanding capacity retention at high current rates of 10–50 C, remarkable performance in the temperature range from −40 to 60 °C, good cycling performance even subjected to overcharging to about 10 times of the reversible capacity. The La-doped LTO could be directly used as efficient anode materials for lithium-ion batteries.