A novel acid pretreatment strategy modulates the distribution of silanol groups on MCM-41 by increasing isolated silanol groups while reducing H-bonded ones, which enables the formation of highly dispersed Ag nanoparticles. The resulting Ag catalyst dramatically enhances the catalytic performance, achieving complete formaldehyde conversion at 75 °C, with an approximately 50-fold enhancement compared to untreated samples (4.45 nm, 100%, vs. 15.4 nm, 2%).

Ultrathin crystalline silicon (c-Si) is a promising material for wearable electronics. However, its intrinsic brittleness and limited optical transparency hinder its broader application in flexible devices. This study introduces a novel grid-structured c-Si (GSC-Si) film by etching patterned circular through-holes into ultrathin c-Si. This design imparts lightweight, mechanical flexibility, and optical transparency to the c-Si film. The fabricated GSC-Si film remains structurally intact under continuous bending with a radius of 0.2 mm while achieving a visible-light transparency of 75%. A transparent and flexible photodetector (TFPD) developed on this film exhibits self-powered photodetection across the ultraviolet (UV) to near-infrared (NIR) spectrum. When it is conformally mounted on a finger as a photoplethysmography (PPG) biosensor, the TFPD successfully captures subdermal pulse signals. The outstanding performance and design methodology of this GSC-Si film provide new insights for the development of Si-based flexible wearable electronics.

Dual-band photodetection plays a critical role in smart devices due to its ability to distinguish multi-wavelength signals. However, traditional dual-band photodetection relies on complex, bulky systems with multiple devices. It is highly desired to realize dual-band photodetection by one simple semiconductor device. Here, we present a voltage-modulated ultraviolet-visible (UV-VIS) dual-band photodetector based on a ZnO film/CuO nanowires. The device is composed of vertical CuO nanowires grown on a ZnO film, which is sandwiched in between top and bottom ITO transparent electrodes. With zero bias, the device can sense VIS light via the photovoltaic effect through a CuO/ZnO p-n junction. Under 10 V bias, the device can detect UV light by photoresistive behavior. The controllable dual-band detection is characterized, and the photodetection mechanism is analyzed by finite-element electric field simulations. Additionally, an image sensor with 5 & times; 5 pixel arrays is fabricated to demonstrate the controllable sensing capability for VIS or UV images. The research reported here may impact photodetection fields for controllable detecting dual band photo signals by a single semiconductor device.

Piezo-photocatalysis, which synergistically integrates mechanical perturbation and sunlight to concurrently produce hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and treat water, has emerged as a promising strategy for alleviating the energy crisis and environmental pollution. However, low mechanical energy conversion efficiency and insufficient surface-active sites severely limit its practical application. Herein, selenium (Se)-doped ultrathin carbon nitride nanosheets (Se/g-C3N4-x) were synthesized via a one-step pyrolysis method followed by exfoliation. The resulting catalysts exhibit efficient piezo-photocatalytic H2O2 generation and organic pollutant degradation. Se doping introduces lattice defects that break the structural symmetry of g-C3N4, enhancing the spontaneous polarization field and thereby promoting charge separation and interfacial charge transfer. Meanwhile, the electron-rich Se atomic sites not only provide extra active sites but also enable Pauling-type O2 adsorption. This preserves the OO bond, suppresses bond cleavage, and promotes the formation of •O2− and •OOH intermediates through a two-step single-electron dominated ORR pathway, thereby improving H2O2 yield. As a result, the composite of Se/g-C3N4–2 achieves a high H2O2 production rate of 9.92 mmol/g/h under ambient air and visible light. Continuous-flow and natural environment experiments exhibit excellent stability, and the generated H2O2 solution can directly decolorize the KMnO4 solution. In addition, Se/g-C3N4–2 also exhibits exceptional piezo-photocatalytic activity, with a degradation efficiency of up to 98.8% for oxytetracycline hydrochloride (OTC) in 40 min. This work offers a rational strategy for the design of high-performance metal-free piezo-photocatalysts, with promising applications in green oxidation and water pollution control.

Encapsulating the USY zeolite within a mesoporous SBA-15 shell is a promising strategy to construct hierarchical catalysts with regulated acidity. However, the acidic conditions required for SBA-15 synthesis pose a stability challenge to the acid-sensitive USY core. In this work, we first systematically investigated the physicochemical evolution of USY under simulated SBA-15 synthesis conditions by varying the acid concentration, temperature, and treatment time. Through XRD, N2 physisorption, NH3-TPD, and Py-FTIR analysis, the optimal conditions for USY to retain its framework integrity and Br & oslash;nsted acidity were determined to be <= 1.0 M HCl and treatment time <= 24 h. This acid-tailored optimization is essential for the subsequent fabrication of the core-shell structure. Guided by these findings, the Ni-Mo/USY@SBA-15 core-shell catalyst is successfully prepared and evaluated in naphthalene hydrocracking, achieving 97.8% conversion and 51.6% BTX selectivity, outperforming conventional Ni-Mo/USY (92.6% conversion and 26.0% BTX selectivity). XPS analysis provides direct evidence of the spatially regulated metal-acid distribution and enhanced electron density on active sites. The performance enhancement is attributed to the hierarchical pore structure and the spatially regulated metal-acid distribution, which together enhance mass transfer, optimize acid site accessibility, and suppress overcracking. This study provides an acid-tolerance-guided synthesis strategy for designing high-performance core-shell zeolite catalysts.

Ultraviolet (UV) photodetectors based on zinc oxide (ZnO) wide-bandgap semiconductors have been intensively explored for applications in environmental monitoring, optical communication, and biosensing. However, conventional ZnO-based photodetectors often suffer from limited responsivity and relatively slow photoresponse speeds, which severely restrict their practical applications. Herein, we report a highly sensitive and fast-responsive photodetector based on ZnO/MgZnO core–shell radial-heterostructured nanowires (NWs) through radial interface engineering. The introduction of a wider bandgap MgZnO shell onto ZnO NWs forms a radial ZnO/MgZnO heterojunction, which introduces a built-in electric field that effectively promotes the separation and collection of photogenerated carriers. The optimized device exhibits a fast response time of 0.41/2.30 s (rise/decay) and a high responsivity of 0.75 A/W at zero bias. Furthermore, this study reveals a nonlinear relationship between the MgZnO shell thickness and the photoresponsivity of the device, and identifies the optimal MgZnO shell thickness for optimizing device performance. These results demonstrate that core–shell heterointerface engineering is an effective strategy for balancing responsivity and response speed in ZnO-based UV photodetectors.

Hydrogel electrolytes with abundant functional groups show great potential for prolonging the lifetime of aqueous zinc-ion batteries (AZIBs). Nevertheless, unmodified hydrogels still suffer from low ionic conductivity and poor mechanical strength. To overcome these challenges, we designed a high-performance hydrogel (PCU) by modifying polyacrylamide through the synergistic action of gamma-cyclodextrin (gamma-CD) and urea. Here, gamma-CD not only guides Zn2+ deposition on the (002) plane but also strengthens the hydrogel's mechanical properties, while urea tunes the hydrogen bond network to eliminate the harmful aggregation of gamma-CD's excess hydroxyls with the polyacrylamide (PAM) chains. Consequently, the PCU hydrogel delivers high ionic conductivity of 38.9 mS cm-2 and a high Zn2+ transference number of 0.79. The hydrogel exhibits a fracture strength of 141.3 kPa and, even after 96 h exposure to air, retains high water content (64.57%) and flexibility. The Zn||Zn symmetric cell based on PCU hydrogel operates stably for 2800 h at 1 mA cm-2 and 1 mAh cm- 2, and the Zn||V2O5 full cells delivers a high capacity of 261.3 mAh g- 1 at 1 A g- 1. This work offers a new strategy for rationally designing hydrogels with high performance by customizing the hydrogen bond network.

An efficient visible-light-induced manganese-catalyzed system has been established for bromination by using dibromomethane as the brominating reagent. This protocol enables diverse bromination reactions, including bromination of arenes, α-selective bromination of cinnamaldehydes, and benzylic C(sp3)-H bromination. These reactions proceed under photosensitizer-free and mild reaction conditions. Consequently, this methodology provides a novel and environmentally benign strategy for the synthesis of brominated compounds.

A ternary Bi 4 Ti 3 O 12 film achieves 91 J cm −3 recoverable energy density and 80% efficiency via an IID (in-plane domain – insulating layer – defect dipole) synergistic strategy, with exceptional cycling endurance and thermal stability.

Abstract Liquid organic hydrogen carriers (LOHCs) have attracted increasing attention in recent years for their hydrogen-storage potential; among them, dibenzyltoluene (DBT) is one of the most promising candidates. Supported Pt catalysts have been widely used for DBT hydrogenation, yet the high Pt loading required becomes a major cost barrier to its scale-up. Herein, we report an Al2O3-supported Pt–Ni bimetallic catalyst containing only 0.5 wt % Pt that, under mild conditions (120 °C, 2.5 MPa), delivers 100% DBT conversion with 99.4% selectivity. Comprehensive characterizations (transmission electron microscope (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), H2 temperature-programmed desorption (H2-TPD), and in situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS)) reveal that the enhanced activity originates from (i) electron transfer from Pt species to Ni, which modifies the electronic structure of the Ni sites and strengthen the Ni–H bonds; (ii) the formation of smaller and highly dispersed Ni nanoparticles (NPs), promoted by Pt introduction; and (iii) suppressed desorption of reaction intermediates upon Pt incorporation, together with accelerated hydrogen spillover that facilitates the migration of active H* species and improves DBT conversion efficiency. Consequently, the catalyst maintains superior hydrogenation performance, offering a practical route toward low-cost DBT-based hydrogen storage.

Flexible capacitive pressure sensors play a crucial role in the field of wearable electronics. Presently, most flexible capacitive pressure sensors choose polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) as the material of the dielectric layer, because of its excellent elasticity and biocompatibility. However, these flexible pressure sensors suffer from low sensitivity because the uniform dielectric layer has a fixed relative dielectric constant (RDC). Researchers have developed microstructured dielectric layers to achieve pressure-induced changable RDC, so as to enhance the sensor sensitivity. However, the typical process of fabricating microstructures is complex, and the enhancement in sensor sensitivity is limited. Here, we report a simple and effective biomimetic strategy to enhance the sensor sensitivity. First, the petal microstructure is replicated with PDMS. Then, a 180 nm zinc oxide (ZnO) layer is sputtered to form a pressure sensitive layer, which will possess a pressure sensitive and changeable RDC. The as-fabricated biomimetic-petal-microstructure sensor (BPMS) achieves an average sensitivity of up to 0.28 kPa− 1 (0–2 kPa), a fast response time of 0.1 s, and good stability over 1,000 cycles of operations, showing a broad application prospect in wearable electronics.

Visible-light photoredox catalyzed 1,2-arylalkylation of alkenes with quinoxalin-2(1H)-ones and malonic esters has been developed through direct C(sp2)-H/C(sp3)-H functionalization under mild conditions. A number of quinoxalin-2(1H)-one containing esters could be obtained in moderate to good yields in a step and atom-economic manner. This transformation proceeded through a radical process, which features the advantages of mild conditions, a clean energy source, a wide substrate scope, and favorable functional group compatibility.

A visible-light-promoted and simple iron salt-catalyzed cascade amidation/cyclization of N-aryl acrylamides with dioxazolones was developed. The reaction proceeds under photosensitizer-free conditions and features satisfactory to good yields, broad functional group tolerance, and an easy operation procedure. Mechanistic studies revealed that the reaction proceeded via an iron-nitrene intermediate. This method may contribute to shift the paradigm of iron-catalyzed C-N bond construction and nitrene transfer chemistry.

An efficient visible-light-mediated iron-catalyzed atom transfer radical addition (ATRA) reaction between CH2Br2 and various alkenes has been developed. This transformation provides direct access to synthetically valuable 1,3-dibromo compounds with excellent atom economy under mild reaction conditions. The protocol demonstrates remarkable versatility, exhibiting broad substrate scope and excellent functional group compatibility. Notably, the obtained 1,3-dibromo products function as highly versatile synthetic building blocks. Through rationally designed one-pot multistep transformations, these intermediates can be conveniently converted into structurally diverse derivatives, including oxetanes and allyl bromides, directly from terminal alkenes.

Aqueous zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) have attracted significant interest due to their low cost and high safety. The lifetime of ZIBs is highly associated with several critical factors, including dendrite growth, hydrogen evolution reactions (HER), and irreversible parasitic reactions. Although the adoption of electrolyte additives can greatly mitigate such issues, the fundamental regulation mechanisms remain unclear. In this work, L-glutamic acid (Glu), serving as an electrolyte additive, is proposed to construct long-lifespan ZIBs with outstanding capacity. Crucially, a systematic and fundamental clarification of the roles of Glu is carried out, which includes tailored solvation structures, accelerated desolvation kinetics, and reinforced interfacial interactions. Consequently, the Zn||Zn symmetrical battery delivers a remarkable cycling stability of as long as 4,500 h at 5 mA cm-2 and 1.25 mAh cm-2. Furthermore, the developed Zn||MnO2 full battery achieved a significant capacity improvement and maintains an outstanding capacity retention of 80.41% even after 1,000 h at a current density of 1 A g-1.

Bacterial infections are a major cause of death worldwide. However, it is difficult to track the in vivo dynamics of pathogenic bacteria and the expression of inflammatory factors in infected animals throughout the infection process. This work used Pseudomonas aeruginosa as an infection model and utilised genetically bioluminescence-labeled P. aeruginosa and hydrodynamic transfection technology to construct a liver-visual NF-κB, IL-6, TNF-α inflammation model, thereby enabling the tracking of the dynamic spread of P. aeruginosa in infected animals and the transient activation of the liver inflammation response. The results showed that P. aeruginosa introduced via the tail vein initially accumulates in the liver and gradually activates NF-κB, IL-6, and TNF-α. Subsequently, the P. aeruginosa infection gradually spreads to the lungs and small intestine, and final proliferation leads to septic death in mice. During the infection process, we observed a strictly negative correlation between platelet activation and bacterial proliferation; the higher the degree of platelet activation, the stronger the inhibitory effect on bacterial proliferation and liver inflammation. In conclusion, this bioluminescence-based in vivo imaging technique offers new opportunities to investigate the innate immune response in controlling pathogenic infections.

The high conductivity inherent to the dense graphite structures of carbon nanofibers (CNFs) results in microwave reflection, making it a noteworthy topic to design structures that endow CNFs with microwave absorption capabilities. Herein, drawing inspiration from Sun Tzu's strategy of luring the enemy deep, a novel tree-like heterostructure of CNFs (co-CPAN@PVP) was designed using coaxial electrospinning and a subsequent carbonization process. The shell layer consists of a blend of polyacrylonitrile (PAN-2) and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), serving as the bark of the tree, while the core layer, namely the trunk, is made of polyacrylonitrile (PAN-1). During the high-temperature carbonization, the heterostructures of the "bark" result in the formation of non-uniform carbon structures on the fiber surface, creating channels that are easily penetrated by microwaves, which act as enemies. The conductive pathways formed by the carbon structure of the "trunk", in conjunction with the polarization sites of the "bark", facilitate microwave attenuation. The results show that co-CPAN@PVP with heterostructures has good impedance matching characteristics and microwave attenuation ability. The minimum reflection loss (RLmin) at 1.8 mm is -55.19 dB, and the effective absorption bandwidth (EAB) is 5.695 GHz. This research has inspired the design of heterostructures for high-performance and lightweight carbon-based microwave absorbing materials (MAMs). Moreover, it introduces a solution for recycling and reusing waste electromagnetic and thermal energy, potentially mitigating pressing environmental and energy challenges.

The dust reduction and inhibition effects of ultrafine water mist containing SDS anionic surfactant on methanecoal dust explosion were experimentally investigated. Compared with pure ultrafine water mist, the P max and (dP/dt) max of 0.5% SDS water mist were reduced by 9.18% and 27.2%, respectively, and the explosion induction period was prolonged from 102 ms to 205 ms. SDS water mist can effectively inhibit the intensity and propagation of the flame, forming the formation of irregular fronts and unevenly colored orange flames after multiple extinguishments in the explosion induction period. In addition, the addition of SDS surfactant promotes the formation of liquid bridges between water mist and coal dust particles. The contact angle of coal dust is reduced by 38.9% and the sink time is reduced to 30 ms. This paper presents a new direction and choice for achieving simultaneous dust reduction and explosion suppression in coal mines.

In recent years, flexible UV photodetectors (PDs) with complex environmental adaptability and great wearability have attracted the attention of researchers worldwide. Wide bandgap inorganic semiconductor materials with excellent optoelectronic properties and mechanical stability are key functional materials for UV PD devices. However, the high temperature processing and inherent brittleness limit the further application of high-quality inorganic semiconductors in the field of flexible optoelectronics. In this work, we develop a specific flip-chip bonding fabrication technique that utilizes high-temperature treated inorganic semiconductor materials for high-performance flexible UV detection devices. Leveraging this technique, a 7 x 7 pixel flexible UV photodetector array (UV-FPDA) device based on a vertical architecture Mg-doped ZnO/NiO (Mg:ZnO/NiO) heterojunction transistor is built. The UV-FPDAs exhibit a high responsivity of 75.8 A/W and an outstanding detectivity of 8.5 x 10(12) Jones. Besides, the UV-FPDAs also demonstrate excellent bending stability. Furthermore, the photoresponse characteristics of each pixel are trained and learned by an artificial neural network to achieve clear imaging of UV light information. Our results provide a new pathway for the application of inorganic semiconductors in the field of high-performance flexible UV photodetection.

There is an urgent need to design efficient photothermal layer, continuous water migration pathways, and stable insulation layer to simultaneously achieve ideal water and heat management in solar-powered interfacial evaporation systems. Here, we assemble into a biomimetic aerogel with down-feather-like shape by first introducing rigid polyaryl ether material of sulphonated poly (phthalazinone ether sulfone ketone) (SPPESK) for highly efficient and multifunctional solar interfacial evaporation drawing inspiration from the cavity structure and insulation strategy of the eagle wings. The biomimetic aerogel has an evaporation rate of 2.34 kg m(-2) h(-1) at one solar irradiance, an energy efficiency of 91.7 %, and an output voltage of 316.7 mV when coated. The insights provided by this work into biomimetic structure displayed by chitosan/SPPESK/Mxene aerogels promise to translate photothermal conversion performance benefits measured in laboratories into real-world applications for continuous desalination and wastewater purification. We anticipate that our work is a starting point to utilize the full potential of photothermal properties of polyaryl ether-based materials.