As the cradle of Chinese civilization, Henan's settlement spatial distribution is of great significance for understanding human-land relations and for cultural heritage protection. This study proposes a novel grid-based prediction approach that integrates multi-source geographic features with machine learning. A 1 km-resolution spatial grid system is constructed to incorporate topographic, hydrological, and spatial association features, forming a three-layer predictive modeling architecture. A spatially aware dual-branch model fuses topographic features with spatial variables such as coordinates and settlement density; a grid-based ensemble model, built on features aggregated at the geographic grid level, combines XGBoost with a dynamic weight optimization algorithm. We systematically incorporate the Topographic Wetness Index (TWI) and hydrological accessibility indicators into the multi-scale framework, employ Focal Loss to address extreme class imbalance, enhance recall via dynamic threshold optimization, and further integrate spatial lag features in conjunction with the initial model for prediction. Experiments show that, in Henan, the proposed method achieves significantly higher predictive accuracy than traditional models. Spatial heatmaps reveal that high-probability settlement zones are concentrated on the loess tablelands and the alluvial plains along the Yellow River, closely matching archaeological findings. The results provide a quantitative spatial decision-making tool for settlement archaeological surveys in the Central Plains.
As an attractive on-demand hydrogen release strategy, ammonia borane (AB, NH3BH3) catalytic hydrolysis still lacks the necessary practicality at present because of the unresolved issues, including the easily prepared, highperformance, and cost-effective catalysts, as well as the according catalytic mechanism. Herein, a novel chitosanbased carbon aerogel (CCA)-encapsulated RuPd bimetallic nanocatalyst is developed through a facile freezedrying and one-step calcination procedure in the absence of any chemical activators and any post-treatment. The abundant N/O-containing functional groups in CS coordinate with the precious metal ions (Ru3+ and Pd2+), thereby facilitating the uniform and tight encapsulation of the resulting metal ultrafine particles. Also, these functional groups favor the introduction of self-doped heteroatoms, further improving the metal dispersion and enhancing the hydrophilicity of the catalysts. Moreover, the ice-crystal templating effect of the aqueous acetic acid solution as well as the chemical activation role of the noble metal chlorides endow the as-prepared catalysts with a hierarchically porous framework, providing adequate surface active sites and favoring mass transfer. In addition, the favorable electronic synergistic effect of the RuPd nanoalloys further promotes AB hydrolysis. Consequently, the optimized bimetallic catalyst (denoted as Ru0.85Pd0.15@CCA) exhibits significantly enhanced catalytic performance compared to the monometallic counterparts. Catalyzed by Ru0.85Pd0.15@CCA, turnover frequency (TOF) and hydrogen generation rate (HGR) are 209.1 min- 1 and 46.0 & times; 103 mL min- 1 g- 1, respectively. Notably, the according apparent activation energy is merely 20.7 kJ mol-1, which is superior to most reported heterogeneous catalysts. Benefiting from the promotion for breaking an O-H bond in a water molecule, adding a certain amount of NaOH (1.5 M) further markedly accelerates hydrogen release (TOF = 546.5 min- 1, HGR = 121.1 & times; 103 mL min- 1 g-1) in the presence of Ru0.85Pd0.15@CCA. This study not only provides a facile and promising strategy for constructing porous carbon-encapsulated metal nanoalloys, but also offers an effective catalyst for boosting AB hydrolysis.
Background Fe-based amorphous alloys have attracted increasing attention in wastewater treatment due to their unique atomic structure and catalytic properties; however, their degradation efficiency remains insufficient. This study aims to address this limitation by developing Fe-based amorphous/Cu (Feam/Cu) composites and evaluating their performance in degrading acid red 88 (AR88). Methods Feam/Cu bimetallic composites were fabricated via a direct chemical copper plating method. Mechanistic investigations were conducted through XRD, DSC, SEM, XPS, Fe2+/Fe3+ ion addition experiments, inhibition tests, EPR, and LC–MS analyses. Significant Findings Compared with Feam, the Feam/Cu composites exhibit significantly enhanced degradation efficiency. This improvement originates from the formation of discontinuous Cu-enriched layer, which generate localized galvanic corrosion with the Feam matrix, thereby accelerating electron transfer and Fe2+/Fe3+ release while mitigating the influence of metalloids (P, B, and C). Additionally, partial detachment of Cu coatings and selective corrosion expose fresh active sites and increase the specific surface area, enhancing adsorption and catalytic activity. The results indicate that AR88 degradation is mainly governed by the synergistic effects of Fe2+/Fe3+ adsorption–precipitation and the cleavage of azo bonds (–NN–) by reactive species [H]. These findings provide new insights and a feasible strategy for improving the dye degradation performance of Fe-based amorphous alloys.
Triglycine (GGG), owing to its simple structure and well-defined hydrogen-bonding network, has become a representative model molecule in the fields of peptide coordination chemistry, bioconjugation, and drug delivery. However, the solid-state applications of this compound have long been constrained by its property uncertainty arising from polymorphism and extremely poor processability caused by anisotropic crystal habits. In this work, a new anhydrous polymorph (Form II) is reported for the first time, and its crystal structure is solved by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The results demonstrated that the two anhydrous forms (Forms I and II) exhibit comparable thermodynamic stability and remain stable under both mechanical grinding and solution-mediated slurry conditions. In addition, spherical crystalline of GGG Form 2H were successfully obtained for the first time via antisolvent crystallization in a tetrahydrofuran system. The effects of the polymeric additives hydroxypropyl methylcellulose and polyvinylpyrrolidone on the sphericity, particle size distribution, and powder flowability of the spherical aggregates were systematically investigated. The aggregation mechanism of the spherical particles and the regulatory role of additives were further elucidated. This study provides new insights into the interplay among solvent environment, polymorphism, and crystal morphology, and offers a feasible strategy for morphology control of tripeptides.
Wear-resistant materials are critical components that ensure the operational efficiency and service life of industrial equipment under extreme conditions. However, current material systems face substantial challenges in achieving synergistic enhancement of mechanical and tribological properties. In this study, we successfully synthesized a novel high-entropy boride (HEB) ceramic (MoW)2 (FeCoNi)B2 . The HEB is characterized by a high relative density of 94.6% and exceptional mechanical properties, including Vickers hardness of 17.73 +/- 0.57 GPa, flexural strength of 994 +/- 54 MPa, and fracture toughness of 9.62 +/- 0.18 MPa m1/2 . Remarkably, the HEB maintains low friction coefficients at both room temperature and 800 degrees C with wear rates of 6.22 & times; 10-7 mm3 /(N m) and 3.2 & times; 10-5 mm3 /(N m), respectively. The hightemperature friction mechanism is mainly achieved by enhancing self-lubrication through the in-situ formation of CoWO4 and Fe2 (MoO4 )3 oxide layers with low shear strength on the wear surface at high temperature, thereby improving wear resistance. This novel HEB with balanced mechanical and superior tribological performance shows promising potential for applications involving high-temperature friction and wear conditions. (c) 2026 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of The editorial office of Journal of Materials Science & Technology.
