A synergy electrolyte of weak-solvating methyl difluoroacetate and high-permittivity isobutyronitrile facilitates forming LiF-/Li 3 N-rich interfaces, enabling lithium-ion batteries to operate at high-voltage, high-rate and wide-temperature scenarios.
It is of essential importance to exploit electrocatalysts with excellent performance for anodic reactions in electrochemical water splitting, such as oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and urea oxidation reaction (UOR). Herein, we delicately constructed a coaxial nanocable-like structure containing Cu foamsupported CuO NWs as core and Ni(OH)2 @FeOOH heterogeneous nanosheets as a porous sheath ( i.e. , CuO@Ni(OH)2 @FeOOH NWs/CF). The particular architecture with 1D nanoarray frameworks in-situ grown on 3D conductive substrate and hierarchical microstructure ensures the adequate exposure of the active sites, facilitative electron/mass transfer, and high structural stability. Combined experimentation and DFT calculation demonstrate that Ni(OH)2 and CuO in the hybrid served as active metal ions and scaffold for providing a fast electron conducting path, respectively. Meanwhile, FeOOH acted as an inductive agent to attract charge reorganization of adjacent Ni sites, thus modulating the electron structure and optimizing the d -band centers. Strengthened by the above desirable characteristics, CuO@Ni(OH)2 @FeOOH NWs/CF exhibited superior electrocatalytic activities towards both OER and UOR with a small overpotential of 310 mV and low potential of 1.37 V at 100 mA cm-2 , respectively, as well as the expected electrocatalytic stability. This work affords a way to design highly active catalysts via constructing heterojunctions for various applications. (c) 2025 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of The editorial office of Journal of Materials Science & Technology.
Single-atom catalysts (SACs) have triggered great interest in the field of catalysis due to their high atom utilization and unique structures. Tailoring the electronic metal-support interaction (EMSI) of SACs is crucial to enhancing the catalytic performance. Herein, a novel Ce1/ZnO SAC has been precisely constructed by a facile one-pot hydrothermal strategy, and the modulation of EMSI with different d-orbital electrons (Ce, Fe, and Zr) is for the first time proposed for electrochemical CO2 reduction (CO2RR). The Ce1/ZnO catalyst exhibits an excellent performance with a Faradaic efficiency of 84% for CO production and a record-high turnover frequency of 10658h-1 at -1.1V vs. RHE, exceeding Zr1/ZnO and Fe1/ZnO counterparts. Detailed characterizations and theoretical calculations reveal that the EMSI effect induces charge redistribution via the asymmetric metal-O-Zn moieties, while the unique Ce3+/Ce4+ redox feature can exert a more pronounced electronic communication with the substrate. The strong electronic interaction between single-atom Ce and ZnO alters the d-band center structure of Ce sites, facilitating the adsorption of CO2 and lowering the energy barrier of *COOH formation, thus accelerating CO production. This work elucidates the pivotal role of the electronic metal-support communication effect in engineering SACs toward boosted catalysis.
The peritumoural adipose tissue (PAT) is a key contributor to cancer therapy resistance, yet its role in regulating ferroptosis remains unclear. Here we demonstrate that PAT confers ferroptosis resistance to cancer cells by upregulating ferritin (FTH1/FTL) and sequestering intracellular iron. PAT-derived kynurenine (KYN) was identified as the principal mediator. KYN is taken up by cancer cells and metabolized to 3-hydroxykynurenine, which directly binds to nuclear receptor coactivator 4 (NCOA4). This interaction inhibits NCOA4-mediated ferritinophagy, preventing ferritin degradation and limiting the free iron pool required for ferroptosis. In murine models, pharmacological inhibition of the KYN pathway synergized with PD-1 blockade to overcome ferroptosis resistance and suppress tumour progression. These findings reveal a PAT-KYN-ferritinophagy axis that promotes ferroptosis resistance, highlighting the potential of targeting adipose-tumour cross-talk to enhance immunotherapy in PAT-associated tumours.
