Ca 4− x IrO 6− δ particles with Ca deficiencies act as electrocatalysts toward oxygen evolution in acid electrolytes via the lattice oxygen mechanism. The Ca deficiencies and oxygen vacancies co-modulate the OER performance of Ca 4− x IrO 6− δ .

Plastics play an indispensable role in daily life, but their adverse impacts on nature and human health are becoming increasingly severe due to their non-degradability and the persistent accumulation of plastic waste. It is essential to develop biodegradable and sustainable alternatives with favorable mechanical properties. Here, we developed a dilute-solution-based strategy that enables the facile and scalable production of high strength sustainable nanocomposites with multicomponent synergistic reinforcement. Owing to the shear-flow-induced nanosheets alignment and strong interfacial interactions, the nanocomposites achieve outstanding mechanical properties, with a high tensile strength of 566.9 +/- 13.5 MPa. Moreover, these nanocomposites possess electromechanical stability and thermal stability, and can fully biodegrade within 30 days in natural soil. This strategy provides an effective pathway for the design of high-performance sustainable nanocomposites.

Photocatalytic water splitting is one of the promising approaches to solve energy consumption and environmental pollution, and designing efficient catalysts has attracted extensive attention. Herein, we systematically investigate the electronic structures, water splitting performance for van der Waals heterostructures composed of GaN and Janus WSSe (GaN/WSSe) with various S/Se ratios. Interestingly, these heterostructures demonstrate a remarkable composition-dependent band alignment transition. When the S content of the interfacial layer becomes higher than the Se content, the band alignment changes from type-I to type-II, and all these type-II heterostructures show the ability for overall water splitting as their band edge span the redox potential of water. Especially for GaN/SWSe (the interfacial layer is pure S), its solar-to-hydrogen efficiency is as high as 18.5 %, surpassing most reported analogous photocatalysts. These findings provide both fundamental insights into band alignment engineering through chalcogen ratio modulation and practical guidelines for designing efficient photocatalysts.

Superconcentrated electrolytes (e.g., water-in-salt electrolytes) exhibit large electroneutral and non-electroneutral aggregates/networks (similar to 1-5 nm). Depending upon the surface charge density and the pore size of nanoporous separators and electrodes, the electrolyte residing within similar to 1-10 nm sized pores may contain either (i) a single cation- or anion-dominated network, or (ii) multiple alternating layers of cation- or anion-dominated networks. Scenario (i) is similar to overlapping condensed double layers in smaller pores with high surface charge densities. Non-electroneutrality within a pore in both scenarios brings electrokinetics into play, which is not accounted for in the standard pseudo-2D (P2D) model. Based on statistical mechanics and electrochemistry, we present a new model for 'superconcentrated electrolytes interacting with nanoporous materials' that incorporates electrokinetic effects, predicts that the transference number is no longer solely an electrolyte property, but depends on the separator morphology and electrolyte volume. We also present experimental evidence supporting our model's prediction of electrokinetically driven current oscillations in chronoamperometry. Our proposed model has applications across multiple domains where superconcentrated electrolytes are used in combination with nanoporous materials. Our results indicate that using superconcentrated electrolytes with nanoporous materials is another method for developing flowing electrolyte metal batteries - an emerging class of batteries - in commercial form factors (e.g., coin and pouch cells).

The electrolyte flow in a battery can enhance its performance by mitigating dendrite formation and fostering the growth of a stable, uniform solid electrolyte interphase (SEI). Here, we illustrate a mechanism for introducing electrolyte flow within batteries of commercially viable architectures, such as coin, pouch, and cylindrical cells. In our lithium-ion coin cells using 1 M LiPF6 in EC:DEC (1:1 by vol), chronoamperometry step of the Bruce-Vincent method for measuring the transference number, we observed an unexpected, separator-dependent current increase. While Bruce-Vincent method assumes only Fick’s diffusion and ionic migration as the ion transport mechanisms, our results point to an additional mechanism – ‘separator polymer strand dynamics (SPSD)-driven electrolyte advection.’ This indicates that a new physically relevant parameter that includes electrolyte advection effects is needed for accurate determination of the transference number. We further demonstrate, for the first time, that polymer strand dynamics also lead to peaks and valleys in capacity as a function of cycle number in half-cells. Notably, we also elaborate future research opportunities arising out of these findings which include, (i) focusing on SPSD for a better battery performance, (ii) carefully designing fast charging protocols that account for the unexpected current increase during the constant voltage step, (iii) studying oscillations in batteries and other devices to develop physics-based digital twins, (iv) developing a new battery performance parameter that accounts for electrolyte advection, and (v) leveraging electrolyte flow to eliminate dendrite growth in metal anode batteries without changing cell form factors, using external pumping systems, and additional accessories.

Ordered intermetallic nanomaterials represent an important class of functional materials, but their synthesis under ambient conditions is challenging due to kinetically hindered disorder-to-order transformations that typically require thermal annealing, often leading to structural coarsening. Conventional electrochemical dealloying drives a direct transition from alloys to pure metals, leaving nanoporous ordered intermetallics largely unexplored. In this study, we overcome both limitations by demonstrating that top-down electrochemical dealloying can directly generate nanoporous ordered intermetallics at room temperature through coupled phase and porosity evolution. Using Zn-rich Cu–Zn alloys as a model system, sequential dealloying-induced phase transformations yield nanoporous γ-Cu5Zn8 and β-CuZn with bicontinuous nanoscale architectures. Combined experimental and density functional theory studies reveal that this behavior originates from a synergistic kinetic effect: intrinsically facile atomic diffusion in Zn-rich precursor alloys, coupled with an apparent reduction in the activation barrier enabled by the in situ generation of nanoscale porosity, unlocks ordering pathways inaccessible in bulk materials. We further validate the generality of this kinetic principle across Au–Zn and Pd–Zn systems, synthesizing nanoporous γ-AuZn3, β-AuZn, β-Pd2Zn3, and β1-PdZn through sequential phase-evolution pathways. The resulting nanoporous intermetallics deliver exceptional catalytic performance in acetylene semihydrogenation, achieving ~97% ethylene selectivity and ~2 times higher activity than nanoporous Cu. These findings establish electrochemical dealloying as a transformative ambient route to intermetallic nanomaterials and open a previously inaccessible class of nanoporous ordered architectures for catalysis and beyond.

The catalytic performance of single-atom catalysts (SACs) is predominantly governed by their local atomic environment. However, directly resolving the transient configurations of individual atoms remains challenges for inherent thermal fluctuations and electron-beam-induced dynamics. Conventional scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) relies on long dwell times, covering such dynamic structural fluctuations and constrained by serious noise. Here, a machine-learning-enhanced fast-scan STEM methodology is introduced, permitting accurate identification and localization of individual Pt atoms on MoS2 supports, circumventing the limitations of high-noise imaging. Analysis reveals random displacements of ∼3.2% relative to ideal lattice sites, offering a direct glimpse into intrinsic structural disorder. Furthermore, we observe persistent heterogeneity in the local electric field across Pt atomic columns in differential phase contrast (DPC) imaging. These results suggest that single-atom sites locate in a highly dynamic, nonideal equilibrium state. This study also establishes a rigorous computational framework for resolving atomic-scale structures under noisy imaging conditions.

The limited redox activity of Ru-loaded catalysts results in poor catalyst stability, severely hindering their largescale application in chlorinated volatile organic compounds (CVOCs) pollution control. The core objective is to develop a synergistic strategy capable of achieving dual improvements in both redox activity and rapid chlorine removal. Herein, a Ru/3CeZrOx catalysts with strong metal-support interactions was synthesized for the catalytic degradation of dichloromethane (DCM), which exhibited outstanding catalytic activity, excellent water resistance, and long-term stability. This exceptional performance is attributed to its unique Ru0-RuOx-CeZrOx structure, which not only optimizes the electronic structure of the active sites but also provides an abundance of reactive oxygen species, oxygen vacancies, and acid sites. Compared to the Ru/3CeO2-ZrO2 catalyst, its T90 decreased by approximately 100 degrees C, and the reaction rate increased by about 1.67 times. In-situ DRIFTS analysis indicates that DCM oxidation likely proceeds via initial dechlorination to form*O-CH2-Cl, followed by a further dechlorination step to yield the *O-CH2-O* intermediate, which is further oxidized to HCHO. Subsequently, HCHO reacts with *O-CH2-O* via the Cannizzaro reaction to yield HCOOH and CH3O* species, which are ultimately oxidized to CO2 and H2O. During chlorine product analysis, HCl desorption was the dominant pathway from the Ru/3CeZrOx catalyst surface below 450 degrees C. This strategy effectively addressed the poor stability of Ruloaded catalysts, which originates from their limited redox activity. Furthermore, it successfully suppresses the concurrent generation of Cl2 during the removal of surface-bound chlorine species.

Commercial deployment of alkaline water electrolysis requires electrodes that can sustain ampere-level current densities while remaining manufacturable at scale; however, most advanced electrocatalysts demonstrated in laboratories lack mechanical robustness and are incompatible with industrial production. Here we report a vapor-phase surface alloying-dealloying (VPA-CD) strategy that converts commodity metal sheets directly into bulk-supported nanoporous electrodes via in situ formation of catalyst layers metallurgically bonded to dense substrates. Applied to Ni-Mo and Ni-Fe alloys, this approach yields Mo single-atom-doped nanoporous Ni with high hydrogen evolution activity and nanoporous Ni(Fe)/Ni3Fe heterostructures with excellent oxygen evolution activity, enabling ampere-level alkaline electrolysis at low cell voltages. Beyond planar substrates, the method scales to large-area and patterned architectures that directly integrate flow fields and catalyst layers; the resulting integrated electrolyzer achieves 1.0 A cm-2 at only 1.84 V and remains stable for over 185 h, outperforming commercial benchmarks. These findings establish VPA-CD as a robust and manufacturable route for engineering nanoporous electrodes, bridging the gap between catalyst discovery and device-level hydrogen production.

Transition metal oxides are pivotal for volatile organic compound (VOCs) abatement, yet enhancing their catalytic activity and water resistance remains a central challenge. Herein, by precisely modulating the bimetallic interaction on the support, a synergistic mechanism was achieved that minimizes precious metal usage and efficiently activated transition metal active sites, thereby enhancing the oxidation activity and water resistance of toluene. The resultant PtCu/CeO2 catalyst achieved a high toluene reaction rate 1.86 mu mol gcat representing a 10.4-fold enhancement over the Cu/CeO2 counterpart. Meanwhile, the PtCu/CeO2 also exhibited excellent water resistance and stability. Moreover, In-situ spectroscopic analysis revealed that toluene oxidation follows a sequential pathway involving: hydroxylation of the methyl group to benzyl alcohol, further oxidation to benzaldehyde, aromatic ring opening via benzoate and maleic anhydride intermediates, and finally complete C-C/C-H bond cleavage to form CO2 and H2O, and the introduction of water vapor did not change the oxidation pathway. Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations indicated that PtCu nanoparticles exhibit stronger binding to H2O molecules and a lower energy barrier for H2O dissociation than their monometallic Cu counterparts. This work proposes a method with developmental potential that can effectively enhance the catalytic activity of transition metal oxides and improve their water resistance.

A zincophilic HOF-coated 3D skeleton was developed for achieving stable zinc anodes. The HOF layer improves hydrophilicity, electrolyte infiltration, and zinc ion dispersion through zincophilic functional groups, suppresses dendrite formation, and lowers nucleation barriers. The dense HOF covering forces uniform zinc growth within interlayer gaps while protecting against electrolyte-induced corrosion. It also facilitates solvation removal and reduces activation energy. Consequently, the HOF-based electrode achieves an ultrahigh coulombic efficiency of 99% at 15 mA cm-2, superior cycling life of over 2000 h at 1 mA cm-2, and outstanding full-cell performance.

Flexible and transparent surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrates hold great promise for noninvasive and non-destructive detection of molecules on uneven surfaces, with broad applications in food safety, security, environment, and high-precision opto-mechanic components. In this work, we developed a type of flexible and transmissive three-dimensional (3D) SERS substrate composed of inverted pyramidal structures on a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film, decorated with aggregated silver nanoparticles (AgNPs). The SERS substrates were fabricated using a low-cost nanoimprinting technique in combination with deposition. The AgNPs provide a high density of electromagnetic "hot spots", while the inverted pyramidal surfaces concentrate the EM waves into a small volume. When measured in a transmission mode (back-side illumination), the SERS substrates have transmittance of 38% and exhibited an enhancement factor (EF) in transmission mode of 9.3 & times; 1011. The transmissive SERS substrate was further employed for the in-situ detection of methylene blue (MB) residues on the surface of crucian carp, successfully identifying the MB molecules. These results highlight the considerable potential of this flexible substrate for food safety monitoring.

Aluminum-containing wastewater from metallurgy, electroplating, electronics, and papermaking causes environmental and resource issues due to complex composition and high aluminum concentration. In response to these challenges, we propose a "silicon-incorporated pore modulation" strategy for the direct conversion of aluminium in such wastewater into high-value mesoporous Al2O3.xSiO2. By integrating silicon doping during gelation, this approach achieves simultaneous aluminum recovery and structural stabilization, yielding a recovery rate of up to 70 %. The optimized Al2O3.1/3SiO2 (Si:Al =1:6) exhibits exceptional hydrothermal stability, with minimal phase transformation to AlOOH. DFT simulations confirm that silicon doping stabilizes the framework close to the thermodynamic minimum by optimizing the pore structure, thereby enhancing the stability of the material. This integrated process presents a scalable and sustainable solution for aluminum recovery and high-value mesoporous Al2O3.1/3SiO2 production, advancing the circular economy and material innovation.

The sustainable hydrogenation of 1,4-butynediol (BYD) to high-purity 1,4-butanediol (BDO) - a cornerstone monomer for biodegradable plastics - remains a critical challenge, demanding catalysts that simultaneously achieve near-quantitative selectivity, energy efficiency, and structural robustness. Here, we report a Mo-doped nanoporous Ni/NiAl3 heterojunction catalyst (NP-Ni/NiAl3-Mo0.3) synthesized via a controlled chemical etching strategy, which overcomes the limitations of conventional core-shell architectures. Unlike traditional NiAl3@NP-Ni systems prone to phase segregation, Mo doping stabilizes the NiAl3 intermetallic matrix while engineering a hierarchically porous heterostructure. The optimized catalyst demonstrates 100% BYD conversion and 99.9% BDO selectivity under mild conditions (30 degrees C, 2 MPa H2), achieving 38-80% higher conversion rate and 10-20% enhanced selectivity versus NiAl3@NP-Ni, Raney Ni and Raney Ni-Mo benchmarks. Remarkably, it exhibits a 30% reduction in apparent activation energy (13.9 kJ & sdot;mol-1) compared to commercial Raney Ni-Mo and maintains excellent catalytic performance over a wide H2 pressure range (2-6 MPa), reflecting a significant advance in hydrogen utilization efficiency. Mechanistic studies (H2-TPD, in situ DRIFTS, DFT) unveil a synergistic mechanism. The NiAl3 framework enhances H2 adsorption capacity, while Mo sites lock the key intermediate (1,4-butenediol, BED) in an optimal adsorption geometry that kinetically suppresses isomerization byproducts. Furthermore, the robust NP-Ni/NiAl3-Mo0.3 structure mitigates Al leaching, retaining 80% BDO selectivity after 8 cycles, significantly outperforming commercial Raney Ni-Mo catalysts. This study introduces an innovative approach to the design of porous intermetallic compound catalysts, establishing a benchmark for the development of catalysts capable of functioning with enhanced efficiency under mild reaction conditions.

In direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs), the phenomenon of methanol crossover, where the fuel methanol in anode side permeates into the cathode through the electrolyte membrane, is a primary factor that poisons the cathode catalyst and leads to performance degradation. Therefore, developing a highly efficient cathode with excellent methanol resistance is a crucial project for DMFC technology. In this study, a nanoporous Pd cathode with outstanding methanol resistance was designed and fabricated for DMFC which also exhibits comparable oxygen reduction activity to commercial Pt/C. At an anodic methanol concentration as high as 13 M, this Pd cathode with an ultra-loading of 0.045 mgPd cm- 2 achieves a power density of 105 mW cm- 2, about 19 times higher than that of Pt/C cathode with loading of 2 mgPt cm- 2. More importantly, this home-made Pd cathode also demonstrates significantly enhanced durability. After operating for 40 h at a high anodic methanol concentration of 13 M, Pd cathode only experiences a decay in DMFC performance by 5 %, while Pt/C cathode is reduced by 95 % within just 20 min. Therefore, the developed nanoporous Pd cathode demonstrates promising prospects in highconcentration DMFC for portable power supplies.

For the applications of synthetic hydrogels in wearable devices and underwater protection fields, both exceptional mechanical properties and high transparency are highly desired. Here, we produce a superstrong and transparent hydrogel with a homogeneous and densely interconnected polymer network. The obtained hydrogel has exceptional mechanical properties, for example, an ultimate strength of 44.2 +/- 1.0 MPa and a toughness of 153.0 +/- 3.6 MJ m-3. The homogeneous triple-network structure endows the hydrogel with a high transparency of 90% and an excellent tensile strength of 35.5 +/- 0.8 MPa in an underwater environment. The multiple effective energy dissipation mechanisms, including ion cross-linking, crystalline domains, and entanglements, synergistically enhance the mechanical properties. Moreover, such a superstrong and transparent hydrogel can be coated on the surface of underwater optical devices, playing the role of antifogging, antioiling, and wear resistance. Our strategy provides a new avenue to design functional hydrogel materials with excellent mechanical properties and high transparency.

The eco-friendly features and desirable catalytic activities of Fe-based catalysts make them highly promising for propane dehydrogenation (PDH). However, simultaneously improving their stability and activity remains a challenge. Here, we present a strategy to address these issues synergistically by anchoring single-atom Fe-Cl sites in Al3+ vacancies of Al2O3. The as-synthesized Fe-Cl/Al2O3 catalyst exhibited greater charge transfer between Cl and Fe than that between O and Fe in conventionally impregnated single-atom Fe/Al2O3 catalysts, resulting in higher effective magnetic moments for Fe-Cl/Al2O3 compared to Fe/Al2O3. When tested in PDH, the durability of Fe-Cl/Al2O3 exceptionally lasted for 250 h under continuous regeneration conditions comprising 60 % C3H8 (40 % N2), followed by pure C3H8 at 600 °C while maintaining a high propylene space-time yield of 1.2 molC3H6 gFe -1 h-1, surpassing the performance of previously developed Fe-based PDH catalysts. We demonstrate that anchoring Fe-Cl into Al3+ vacancies simultaneously enhances stability and suppresses coke formation, owing to unique atomically dispersed Fe-Cl active structures. Compared with Fe/Al2O3 catalysts, charge transfer between Cl and Fe active centers reduces the activation energy barrier for C-H activation during C3H8 dehydrogenation, thereby improving catalytic activity; this may be related to their spin state as observed in in-situ X-ray emission spectroscopy studies during PDH.

Lithium metal batteries (LMBs) encounter significant performance degradation at low temperatures due to high desolvation energy barriers, sluggish Li-ion transport kinetics, and non-uniform deposition, all of which contribute to dendrite growth and serious polarization. Herein, a grafted layer which can simultaneously regulate Li+ desolvation pathway and modulate lithium deposition behavior is developed. The grafted layer integrates an organic matrix for pre-desolvation via selective Li+ sieving and solvation-shell modulation, coupled with an electron-blocking interphase and lithiophilic alloy layer to synergistically regulate Li+ flux uniformity and dendrite suppression. Symmetric cells with grafted Li exhibit a cycle life over 1000 h at -20 degrees C, representing a tenfold improvement compared with bare Li. PFG-NMR reveals selective Li+ transport within the engineered interface, with the Li+ diffusion coefficient significantly exceeding those of anions and solvent molecules. Furthermore, theoretical calculations and simulations demonstrate a substantial reduction in the desolvation energy barrier. Explored as the anode in lithium-air batteries, it can also be cycled for more than 250 cycles at -20 degrees C which is far better than the bare Li anode. This study establishes pre-desolvation engineering as a viable strategy for enhancing the stability of lithium anode, providing critical insights into the next-generation LMBs operating under extreme conditions.

Enzyme-catalyzed reactions have the advantages of excellent selectivity, low cost, and mild reaction conditions, but the slow reaction kinetics limit their practical applications. Herein, a microdroplet generator that can continuously and rapidly generate water microdroplets with tunable size was designed and used for the study of an enzyme-catalyzed reaction in microdroplets. Using glucose oxidase as a model and resazurin as a fluorescence probe, the fluorescence intensity of the collected microdroplets sprayed into the gas phase was 35 times higher than that in the bulk system, demonstrating obvious reaction acceleration in the microdroplets. Mechanistic studies demonstrated that local concentration enrichment and enzyme reorientation at the gas-water interfaces play key roles in the acceleration of enzymatic reactions in microdroplets. Further, the potential application of the reaction system in glucose sensing was investigated. Finally, we also studied the reaction acceleration of enzymic catalysis at the oil-water interfaces. Online measurement of the fluorescence signal of microdroplets sprayed into the mineral oil revealed a reaction acceleration factor of 6.2. It was demonstrated that aqueous microdroplets provided a green, efficient, and convenient methodology for enzyme-catalyzed reactions.

The practical application of Na metal batteries is severely hindered by uncontrolled Na dendrite growth and large volume fluctuations, which lead to safety hazards and poor cycling stability. Herein, we designed a composite 3D Ni foam skeleton modified with fast-ion conductor (FIC) networks to achieve dual ionic/electronic conductivity, enabling spatially guided Na deposition and confined growth. The FIC modification exhibits strong Na+ affinity, which ensures uniform ion distribution and directs Na deposition preferentially within the porous Ni framework rather than on its surface. This unique structure facilitates region-induced deposition and spatial confinement of Na metal, effectively suppressing dendrite formation and mitigating volume expansion. Moreover, the FIC network significantly enhances Na+ transport kinetics during plating/stripping processes, improving electrochemical reversibility. As a result, the FIC-modified 3D Ni host provides stable Na metal anodes with a prolonged cycling life and reduced polarization. The symmetric cells exhibit stable operation for 300 hours at 0.5 mA cm-2 and 2 mAh cm-2, while full cells demonstrate an outstanding capacity retention of 94.6% at 5C over 400 cycles. This work presents a rational electrode design strategy that combines guided ion redistribution and physical confinement to achieve dendrite-free Na metal anodes, providing new insights for developing high energy density Na-based batteries.