CoSb2O6/rGO composite was prepared by sol-gel and evaluated for the first time as anode material for lithiumion batteries (LIBs). The ex-situ XRD revealed the lithium storage mechanism of CoSb2O6, indicating that its capacity is mainly provided by the conversion reaction. The results show that CoSb2O6/rGO has better cycling stability and higher cycling rate than pristine CoSb2O6, with a reversible capacity of 693.0 mAh/g after 100 cycles at a current density of 0.1 A/g. This is due to the introduction of reduced graphene oxide (rGO), which can effectively buffer the volume expansion during lithiation/delithiation and maintain the the structural stability of the electrode, and facilitate the transfer of lithium ions and electrons during the cycling process. Based on these results, the CoSb2O6/rGO has the potential to be used as anode material for LIBs.

The absence of sensitive, multiplexed, and point-of-care assays poses a critical obstacle in promptly responding to emerging human respiratory virus (HRV) pandemics. Herein, RECOGNIZER (re-building commercial pregnancy strips via large-size nanoflowers), an innovative one-pot CRISPR assay, is presented that employs commercially available strips to identify several types of HRVs. The superiority of the RECOGNIZER assay mainly relies on two aspects: (i) DNA nanoflowers possessing a high surface-to-volume ratio and well-defined surface allow for a considerable probe loading density and minimized non-specific interaction, achieving an impressive signal-to-noise proportion exceeding tenfold at 1 nM target. (ii) The design of the one-pot reaction, multi-channel chip, and custom-made app enables the rapid, sample-to-answer, and multiplexed analysis of four HRVs in 25 min. This assay demonstrates a sensitivity of 5.42 pM for synthetic SARS-CoV-2 RNA and 10 copies mu L-1 for SARS-CoV-2 plasmids after pre-amplification. Finally, the proposed approach indicated 100% accuracy in 50 clinical swab samples, demonstrating the robust performance in distinguishing SARS-CoV-2 from other HRVs. The versatility and scalability of RECOGNIZER renders it a user-friendly platform for virus infection monitoring, offering significant potential for improving pandemic response efforts.

In this study, the regulation of abscisic acid (ABA) on cell growth and lipid biosynthesis was investigated under saltinduced stress in Chlorella pyrenoidosa. It is found that as suffering from only salt stress, although the lipid content of single cell was improved, the inhibitory effects of stress on cell proliferation was visible. When the algal cells were exposed to salt stress and ABA conditions, lipid productivity was increased (45.35 mg L-1 d-1) by 1.17-fold compared to that of control cells (20.91 mg L-1 d-1), and the inhibition to cell growth was relieved. Transcriptomic analysis revealed that after adding ABA, these genes involved in antioxidant activity, jasmonic acid (JA) biosynthesis, and lipid biosynthesis were upregulated. Subsequently, we observed that the levels of glutathione, total antioxidant capacity, trehalose, and JA were elevated and the levels of reactive oxygen species were reduced. This study presents an effective approach to improve lipid production in algal cells, a new mechanism on that ABA alleviates intracellular oxidative stress through JA signaling pathway was elaborated.

Single-atom catalysts hold significance in the field of electrocatalysis. In this study, cobalt nitride (CoN), known for its semiconductor characteristics, is selected as the substrate, on which single gold (Au) atoms are loaded, to synthesize the catalyst Au SAC CoN@NF with Au single atoms anchored on CoN catalysts and grown on nickel foam. The introduction of single Au atoms results in an exceptional double-layer capacitance (1425.7 mF cm-2), which offers immense possibilities for the applications of zinc-air batteries based on Au SAC CoN@NF. The zinc-air batteries demonstrated remarkable performance metrics, including a power density of 161.94 mW cm-2, a specific capacity of 813.80 mAh g-1, and a cycling stability of more than 260 h at 10 mA cm-2. In addition, these batteries show an outstanding round-trip efficiency of 65.1%. Density functional theory calculations reveal that Au SAC CoN@NF can optimize the adsorption energies of intermediates for oxygen evolution reaction and promote single Au atoms in transporting electrons to the OH- species at an Au-N active site for oxygen reduction reaction. The proposed electronic metal-support interaction strategy offers fresh insights for designing single-atom catalysts to enhance electrocatalysis efficiency, thereby expanding the practical application prospects of zinc-air batteries. Au SAC CoN@NF improves the bifunctional intrinsic catalytic activity by designing electronic metal-support interactions between single gold (Au) atoms and CoN through nitrogen coordination bonds. The strong hybridization of Co (dxz, dz2) and OO* electronic orbitals are assisted by the synergistic effect of electronic and geometrical coordination structures, resulting in rechargeable zinc-air batteries with voltaic efficiency as high as 65.1%. image

Rechargeable zinc-air batteries (ZABs) have garnered attention as a viable choice for large-scale energy storage due to their advantageous characteristics, such as high energy density and cost-effectiveness. Strategies aimed at improving the kinetics of the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) through advanced electrocatalytic materials or structural designs can significantly enhance the efficiency and longevity of ZABs. In this study, we introduce a three-dimensional (3D) leaf-vein system heterojunction architecture. In this structure, NiCoO2 nanowire arrays form the central vein, surrounded by an outer leaf composed of NiCo layered double hydroxide (LDH) nano sheets. All these components are integrated onto a substrate made of Ni foam. Notably, when tested in an alkaline environment, the NiCoO2@NiCo LDH exhibited an overpotential of 272 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm-2, and extended durability evaluations over 12 h underscored its robustness at 99.76 %. The rechargeable ZABs achieved a peak power density of 149 mW cm-2. Furthermore, the NiCoO2@NiCo LDH demonstrated stability by maintaining high round-trip efficiencies throughout more than 680 cycles (equivalent to 340 h) under galvanostatic charge-discharge cycling at 5 mA cm-2. The leaf-vein system heterojunction significantly increased the active sites of the catalysts, facilitating charge transport, improving electronic conductivity, and enhancing overall stability.

Zinc-air batteries(ZABs)offer tremendous potential in various industries and daily life due to their excellent energy density,safety and affordability.How-ever,the practical application of ZABs has been severely hindered by challenges such as high low round-trip effi-ciencies and overpotential,primarily attributed to the inherent sluggish kinetics in the oxygen evolution reaction(OER)of air electrocatalysts.To address these issues effectively and economically,heterojunction engineering accompanied by interfacial chemistry emerges as an ideal approach to designing efficient OER electrocatalysts.Herein,a novel heterogeneous interfacial chemical struc-ture,namely NiCoP/NiFe LDH(layered double hydrox-ide),needle-like NiCoP and NiFe LDH nanosheets were assembled from cores and shells,respectively.Remark-ably,the NiCoP/NiFe LDH-based ZABs have an exceptionally long cycle life of 238 h,far superior to Pt/C+Ir/C batteries(～97 h).Theoretical calculations and experimental results demonstrate that NiCoP/NiFe LDH possesses tunable interfacial chemistry,demonstrating significant electronic,coordination,geometric and syner-gistic effects.These enhancements dramatically improve the active site density,intrinsic activity and electrochemi-cal durability of the catalyst.In summary,this work pro-vides a solid foundation for the development of cost-effective OER electrocatalysts for electrochemical energy devices.

Inverse Vulcanisation (IV) under neat reaction conditions (without solvent) has enabled the research and development of the fundamental chemistry as well as the generation of unique sulfur -rich polymers with unprecedented properties. However, such bulk polymerisation can be problematic, especially with high molecular weight. The energetics of the thermal polymerisation process, combined with poor heat control of solvent -free polymerisation, cause risks of dangerous auto -acceleration if the process is scaled up. The required high temperatures (>160 C-degrees or 135 C-degrees even with catalysts), exceed the boiling point of most commonplace organic solvents, preventing implementation of solvents for IV under thermal conditions. We report here a photo -induced IV polymerisation in solvent at room temperature. The reactions proceed smoothly and efficiently with excellent yields, despite the potential negative factors of reflection, refraction, and low absorption intensity of light by these organic solvents, opening an attractive avenue for the preparation of functional sulfur -rich polymers as well as their potential applications. The extension of crosslinkers to the value-added C5 fraction of industrial byproduct and beta-carotene showcase the benefit of this low temperature protocol. Mechanistic study reveals that the moisture in both substrates and solvents might play a key role for the generation of toxic H2S by-product in IV reaction under thermal conditions, with photopolymerisation remaining un-affected. This protocol not only extensively expands the scope of crosslinkers for the IV reaction together with resultant polymers, but also provides a potential scale -up route for industrial application by avoiding the generation of toxic H2S by-product and possible explosion risk with high temperature.

The development of redox bifunctional electrocatalysts with high performance, low cost, and long lifetimes is essential for achieving clean energy goals. This study proposed an atom capture strategy for anchoring dual single atoms (DSAs) in a zinc-zeolitic imidazolate framework (Zn-ZIF), followed by calcination under an N2 atmosphere to synthesize ruthenium-platinum DSAs supported on a nitrogendoped carbon substrate (RuPt DSAs-NC). Theoretical calculations showed that the degree of Ru 5dxz *O 2px orbital hybridization was high when *O was adsorbed at the Ru site, indicating enhanced covalent hybridization of metal sites and oxygen ligands, which benefited the adsorption of intermediate species. The presence of the RuPtN6 active center optimized the absorption-desorption behavior of intermediates, improving the electrocatalytic performance of the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). RuPt DSAs-NC exhibited a 0.87 V high half-wave potential and a 268 mV low overpotential at 10 mA cm-2 in an alkaline environment. Furthermore, rechargeable zinc-air batteries (ZABs) achieved a peak power density of 171 mW cm-2. The RuPt DSAs-NC demonstrated long-term cycling for up to 500 h with superior round-trip efficiency. This study provided an effective structural design strategy to construct DSAs active sites for enhanced electrocatalytic performance. (c) 2024 Science Press and Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Published by ELSEVIER B.V. and Science Press. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies.

Supercapacitors and batteries play crucial roles in sustainable energy storage devices. Layered double hydroxide (LDH) exhibits outstanding adaptability to various electrochemical environments. However, poor electrical conductivity, limited electrochemical activity, and insufficient stability limits the application of LDH. Overcoming these obstacles is essential to fully exploit its potential in large-scale applications. This review extensively examines the crystal structure, properties, preparation, and modification techniques of LDH, as well as its application in different energy storage devices and various in situ characterization methods. The evolution of LDH from 1842 to 2024 is systematically reviewed, with a detailed analysis of recent advancements in characterization and modification methods, including the template method, high entropy alloy, superlattice, vacancy regulation, and defect engineering. Additionally, the review discusses the utilization of LDH in various energy storage devices such as supercapacitors, lithium-ion batteries, air batteries, and halogen ion batteries. Future research directions for LDH are also outlined, such as AI assistance and in-situ characterization. In conclusion, this review provides a comprehensive analysis of the structure, properties, and challenges of LDH in supercapacitors and batteries, aiming to address the current gaps in existing reviews and serve as a valuable reference for researchers and industry professionals.

The development of a highly efficient, stable, and low-cost bifunctional catalyst is imperative for facilitating the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER). However, significant challenges are involved in extending its applications to rechargeable zinc-air batteries. This study presents a bifunctional catalyst, Zr 2 ON 2 @NiFe layered double hydroxide (LDH), that was developed by utilizing a urea -glass route for synthesizing the Zr 2 ON 2 precursor, followed by riveting NiFe LDH nanosheets using a hydrothermal method. Specifically, the vertical distribution of NiFe LDH on the Zr 2 ON 2 surface ensures the maximization of the number of accessible active sites and interfacial catalysis of NiFe LDH. Notably, Zr 2 ON 2 @NiFe LDH demonstrates ORR and OER bifunctional electrocatalytic behavior and high stability owing to its heterostructure and composition. Furthermore, a rechargeable zinc-air battery using a Zr 2 ON 2 @NiFe LDH electrocatalyst as the air cathode demonstrated a high peak power density (172 mW cm -2 ) and galvanostatic charge-discharge cycle stability (5 mA cm -2 over 443 h). Thus, this study presents an efficient and cost-effective strategy for the design of bifunctional electrocatalysts.

Digital polymerase chain reaction(dPCR)is a PCR technology that realizes accurate quantification of single-copy nucleic acid molecules by dividing the reaction system into tens of thousands of independent PCR reaction units for single-molecule-level amplification and integrating Poisson distribution.Due to its single-copy sensitivity and accurate quantification without the need of standard curves,dPCR has been widely used in disease diagnosis.By introducing technologies such as stepped emulsification and three-dimensional imaging,dPCR has been greatly improved in terms of accuracy,multiplexability and turnaround time,significantly enhancing its performance in clinical disease diagnosis.Based on this,this paper traced the technological development history of dPCR,gave an overview of its application in detection of tumors,infections and other diseases,and further discussed the challenges and opportunities of the development of dPCR,with the aim of providing a reference for the development and utilization of dPCR in the future,and promoting the high-quality development of molecular technology in clinical testing.

High-valence metals (such as, Mo, W, Zr and Nb) have recently been reported that promote oxygen evolution reaction (OER) activity of the 3d-transition metal electrocatalysts. These high-valence metals play a key role on surface self-reconstruction process and stabilizing the low-valence active sites. However, further understand their effect on the OER mechanism is challenging, especially in amorphous electrocatalysts with complicated structure. Here, we integrate high-valence Mo with 3d metals (Fe, Co and Ni), fabricating Fe34-xCo25Ni25MoxP8B8 amorphous electrocatalysts by the melt-spinning method. We employ in-situ Raman spectroscopy to characterize the species evolution during OER, and find that the higher OER performance is originated from a bifunctional mechanism involves two catalytic sites (NiOOH and FeOOH) enabled by high-valence Mo dissolution. Benefit from this, the Fe34-xCo25Ni25MoxP8B8 with Mo show higher OER performance compared with Fe34-xCo25Ni25MoP8B8 without Mo. For 3d-metal OER electrocatalyst, this study provides a new understanding on the effect of high-valence metals.

Solid-state lithium metal batteries (SSLMBs) are regarded as an important development direction due to their high energy density and safety. Nevertheless, the application of SSLMBs is hampered by the poor interfacial contact with large resistance and dendrite issue, as well as volume variation of metallic lithium anode. Here, a high-performance Li-BiF3 composite lithium having successive ion-conducting phase was constructed via the conversion reaction between commercial BiF3 powders and molten lithium, which shows reduced surface tension of lithium and improved wettability toward Li6.4La3Zr1.4Ta0.6O12 electrolytes. The as-formed Li3Bi in the anode with high ionic diffusion coefficient can quickly transport lithium from the bulk to the solid-state interface to compensate for the lithium depletion during stripping, thus ensuring tight interface contact, inhibiting the generation of gaps, and homogenizing current and Li+ flux. The Li-BiF3/LLZTO/Li-BiF3 symmetric cells present small interfacial resistance (7.4 omega cm2), large critical current density (1.1 mA cm-2) and superior cyclic stability of 850 h under 0.3 mA cm-2 at 25 degrees C. In addition, full cells assembled together with LiFePO4 and LiNi0.8Co0.1Mn0.1O2 cathodes demonstrate exceptional cyclic performance with 92.9% and 86.5% capacity maintenance upon 100 cycles under 0.5 C.

The electronic structures and properties of electrocatalysts, which depend on the physicochemical structure and metallic element components, could significantly affect their electrocatalytic performance and their future applications in Zn-air battery (ZAB) and overall water splitting (OWS). Here, by combining vacancies and heterogeneous interfacial engineering, three-dimensional (3D) core–shell NiCoP/NiO heterostructures with dominated oxygen vacancies have been controllably in-situ grown on carbon cloth for using as highly efficient electrocatalysts toward hydrogen and oxygen electrochemical reactions. Theoretical calculation and electrochemical results manifest that the hybridization of NiCoP core with NiO shell produces a strong synergistic electronic coupling effect. The oxygen vacancy can enable the emergence of new electronic states within the band gap, crossing the Fermi levels of the two spin components and optimizing the local electronic structure. Besides, the hierarchical core–shell NiCoP/NiO nanoarrays also endow the catalysts with multiple exposed active sites, faster mass transfer behavior, optimized electronic strutures and improved electrochemical performance during ZAB and OWS applications.

The development of inexpensive and efficient electrocatalysts is key to commercializing energy-related electrocatalytic techniques such as water electrolyzers and metal-air batteries. In particular, novel oxygen evolution reaction (OER) pre-catalysts, such as transition metal chalcogenides (TMCs) and phosphides (TMPs), have evolved in recent years from traditional stable OER electrocatalysts, which show superior OER electrocatalytic performance compared with transition metal oxides (TMOs) or (oxy)hydroxides (TMOHs). In this feature article, we summarize recent advances in the development of TMC- and TMP-based OER electrocatalysts, as well as approaches to improve the OER performance in terms of morphology, structure, composition, surface engineering, lattice-strained and in-situ transformation in the electrolysis process. In particular, the electrochemical stability of TMCs and TMPs in alkaline electrolytes and the evolution of morphology, structure and composition under OER conditions are discussed. In the last section, we discuss the challenges that need to be addressed in this specific area of research and the implications for further research.

The use of Li anode is critical for the energy density of solid-state Li-metal batteries (SSLMBs) to surpass that of lithium-ion batteries. However, the practical applications are hampered by the large interfacial resistance and poor physical contact at the solid-state interface, as well as dendrite issues and volume changes of Li anode. Here, a composite lithium anode with continuous electron/ion conductive networks is fabricated, which shows a significant improvement in wettability towards garnet-type Li6.4La3Zr1.4Ta0.6O12 electrolytes. The intimate interface and its high charge-transfer kinetics of composite Li anode endows the symmetric cell a small over -potential (45 mV) at 0.3 cm(-2), ultra-low interfacial resistance (-2.0 omega cm(2)), high critical current density (1.1 mA cm(-2)), and outstanding cycling performance (> 3000 h at 0.1 mA cm(-2)) at 25 ?. The SSLMB paired with LiFePO4 delivers a high discharge specific capacity of 161.7 mAh g(-1) at 0.1 C, good cycle performance of 100 cycles with capacity retention of 80%. Moreover, the NMC811-based SSLMB can also realize a high capacity of 219.5 mAh g(-1), superior rate capability and cyclic stability. This work lays the foundation to develop composite Li anodes for practical applications of SSLMBs with high performance.

In this work, a lithiophilic Ni-Al@LDH interlayer is engineered at the Li6.4La3Zr1.4Ta0.6O12 (LLZTO) electrolyte and Li anode interface. The Ni-Al@LDH interlayer can significantly reduce the interfacial resistance as well as give excellent cycling performance both in a symmetric Li//Li cell and solid full lithium metal batteries.

Lithium-ion capacitors (LICs) have become one of the most popular energy storage devices because of the combination of high energy densities and power densities. However, the kinetic imbalance of anode and cathode restricts the specific capacities and voltage windows of LICs. Herein, an in-situ nitrogen-doped activated porous carbon (ANMPC) material with high specific surface area (1894.9 m2/g) is proposed to act as both cathode and anode for the preparation of the 4.5 V “all carbon” LICs. The hierarchically porous ANMPC obtained by KOH activation and carbonization of polypyrrole (PPy) has plenty of mesopores created by surfactant (added during the PPy process) as well as micropores generated by KOH activation, thus can provide abundant active sites for ion intercalation and large area for electrostatic adsorption simultaneously, satisfying the critical requirements of high-performance anode and cathode, respectively. After coupling the pre-lithiated ANMPC anode and fresh ANMPC cathode, the complete LIC device delivers large energy density of 167.5 Wh/kg at a power density of 269.0 W/kg, and still remains 88.9 Wh/kg at an ultrahigh power density of 13,198.5 W/kg, exhibiting enormous potential for applications in high performance lithium-ion capacitors.

Rechargeable Li-S batteries (LSBs) have aroused wide research interest due to their high energy density, yet still have many intractable challenges such as the sluggish sulfur electrochemistry, polysulfide shuttling, as well as hazardous Li corrosion/dendrites issues to be addressed. Here, we have simultaneously addressed these chal-lenges by developing a multifunctional PP separator covered by functional layers to regulate the interfacial electrochemistry in LSBs. The functional layer consisting of VS4 and tannin acid can synergistically work as redox mediators to catalyze the sulfur conversion and a buffer layer to regulate Li ions stripping/deposition behaviors. The LSBs with the as-designed multifunctional separator can deliver a considerable capacity of more than 3 mA h cm(-2) after 400 cycles, realize a stable cycling performance for 1200 cycles, and show excellent thermal tolerance even at a high temperature of 130 ?. By combining with the feasible manufacturing process, this separator engineering strategy bridges the electrode reactions initially and demonstrates safe LSBs for practical application.

Abstract Direct application of metallic lithium (Li) as the anode in rechargeable lithium metal batteries (LMBs) is still hindered by some annoying issues such as lithium dendrites formation, low Coulombic efficiency, and safety concerns arising therefrom. Herein, an advanced composite separator is prepared by facilely blade coating lightweight and thin functional layers on commercial 12 µm polyethylene separator to stabilize the Li anode. The composite separator simultaneously improves the Li ion transport and lithium deposition behaviors with uniform lithium ion distribution properties, enabling the dendrite‐free Li deposition. As a result, the lithium anode can stably cycle up to 3000 cycles with the high capacity of 3.5 mAh cm−2. Moreover, the composite separator exhibits wide compatibility in LMBs (Li–S and Li‐ion battery) and delivers stable cycling performance and high Coulombic efficiency both in coin and lab‐level soft‐pack cells. Thus, this cost‐effective modification strategy exhibits great application potential in high‐energy LMBs.