Chemical origin of effective functionalization of single atom-MXene catalysts.

The chemical and atomic structures of Cu-, Ni-, or CuNi-embedded MXene (TiCT , T = O or OH) nanosheet catalysts are examined by using various characterization methods to demonstrate the chemical origin of their composition-dependent evolution. The results of combined X-ray spectroscopy studies and the electrochemical test reveal that Cu ions in (Cu or CuNi):MXene remain active having a +1 valence and form metallic Cu-Cu bonds to enhance the catalytic activity for nitrate reduction. By contrast, Ni ions in (Ni or CuNi):MXene tend to remain bound to O as in NiO staying inactive, and, furthermore, hinder the catalytic activity of Cu when co-doped on MXene.

Roadmap for Next-Generation Electrochemical Energy Storage Technologies: Secondary Batteries and Supercapacitors.

The transition from fossil fuels to environmentally friendly renewable energy sources is crucial for achieving global initiatives such as the carbon peak and carbon neutrality. The use of secondary batteries and supercapacitors based on electrochemical energy storage principles provides high energy density, conversion efficiency, and rapid response times, offering essential solutions for stabilizing and ensuring the reliability of energy supply from renewable sources despite their intermittency. In recent years, increased demands for higher energy density, improved rate performance, longer cycle life, enhanced safety, and cost-effectiveness have driven researchers to delve deeper into electrode materials, electrolytes, and storage mechanisms in secondary batteries.

Flexible porous carbon fiber composite electrodes for hydrogen and chlorine production with antibacterial applications.

Flexible porous carbon fiber composite electrodes (Pt@C-PES cathode/RuO@C-PES anode) for hydrogen and chlorine evolution reactions (HER/CER) in acidic NaCl electrolyte (1 M HCl + 5 M NaCl) were developed in this work. Functionalized with Pt and RuO electrodeposition and drop-coating, the electrodes demonstrated low overpotentials of 71 mV@25 mA cm (HER) and 77 mV@25 mA cm (CER). When applied in a two-electrode H-cell system, faradaic efficiencies of 99.

Decoupled Control of CO and Nitrate Reduction Intermediates to Enable Efficient Tandem Urea Electrosynthesis.

The direct electrochemical coupling of CO and nitrate (NO) offers a sustainable alternative to the energy-intensive Bosch-Meiser process for urea synthesis. However, achieving efficient C-N coupling at single active sites remains challenging due to the kinetic mismatch between CO and NO reduction, as well as the intricate multistep proton-coupled electron transfer process. Here, we present a sacrificial template-based strategy to synthesize a two-dimensional (2D)/zero-dimensional (0D) FePS/AgS heterostructure catalyst, enabling the tandem coreduction of CO and nitrate for urea electrosynthesis.

Conduction band convergence and local structure distortion for superior thermoelectric performance of GaSb-doped n-type PbSe thermoelectrics.

Achieving high-stability thermoelectric materials with excellent average power factor and figure of merit is crucial for maximizing the output power density and conversion efficiency of thermoelectric devices. In this study, GaSb is added to PbSe as an n-type dopant to form stable solid solutions. Doping with GaSb flattens the conduction band and reduces the energy difference between the Σ and L conduction bands, thereby significantly improving the Seebeck coefficient.

Broadening the Na diffusion degree of freedom to unlock a rapid sodium storage potential in fluorophosphate cathode.

High safety and high energy-density sodium-ion batteries require the promising polyanionic insertion-type cathode possessing fast dis-/charging capability, yet persistent challenges remain in the kinetic optimization to accelerate their intrinsically low Na diffusivity. Exampled by the representative NaV(PO)OF (NVPOF) with considerable theoretical energy density, structural distortion results in a one-dimensional sluggish Na diffusion out of the two-dimensional Na pathway provided structurally. Previous endeavors with Na site or transition-metal site regulation successfully optimize the Na diffusion energy barrier of the available one-dimensional path.

Chelation-Driven Electrolyte Design for Enhanced Interface and Electrochemical Window in Aqueous Aluminum Batteries.

Aqueous aluminum-ion batteries have garnered significant attention owing to the abundance of aluminum resources, high theoretical specific capacity, and excellent safety. However, challenges such as electrolyte-induced water decomposition, aluminum anode corrosion, and electrode material compatibility continue to constrain their performance. In this study, we restructured the solvation environment using the chelating reagent Bis(2-methoxyethyl)amine (BMEA), achieving an expanded electrochemical window of 2.

Unlocking the Oxygen Evolving Activity of Molybdenum Nickel Bifunctional Electrocatalyst for Efficient Water Splitting.

Earth-abundant transition metal-based catalysts with exceptional bifunctionality for both hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) are greatly desired. Alloyed catalysts, such as molybdenum-nickel (MoNi), are known to demonstrate enhanced HER activity, yet suffer from low OER performance. To realize improved functionality, elemental doping can be an effective approach, giving rise to synergistic interactions between incorporated metal species, optimizing surface adsorption of target intermediates, and promoting reaction.

Promoting the Intermediates Hydrogenation for Urea Electrosynthesis Over an "Active Hydrogen Pump" Catalyst.

Electrocatalytic coupling of CO and NO offers a sustainable approach for urea production. However, the limited supply of active hydrogen (*H) hinders the formation of the key carbon- and nitrogen-containing intermediates, thus impeding the selective C─N coupling. Herein, we developed copper molybdate (CuMoO) nanorods, which could serve as "active hydrogen pump" catalysts by regulating the water dissociation and hydrogen adsorption.

Reaction-driven formation of anisotropic strains in FeTeSe nanosheets boosts low-concentration nitrate reduction to ammonia.

FeM (M = Se, Te) chalcogenides have been well studied as promising magnets and superconductors, yet their potential as electrocatalysts is often considered limited due to anion dissolution and oxidation during electrochemical reactions. Here, we show that by using two-dimensional (2D) FeTeSe nanosheets, these conventionally perceived limitations can be leveraged to enable the reaction-driven in-situ generation of anisotropic in-plane tensile and out-of-plane compressive strains during the alkaline low-concentration nitrate reduction reaction (NORR). The reconstructed catalyst demonstrates enhanced performance, yielding ammonia with a near-unity Faradaic efficiency and a high yield rate of 42.

Strategy Formulation for Mitigating Capacity Fading of Na-Layered Oxides.

The mechanisms underlying capacity fading during cycling in layered oxide cathode materials for sodium-ion batteries remain inadequately understood. It is essential to elucidate the reasons and propose effective strategies. Here, the capacity-fading mechanism of commercial NaFeMnNiO is due to the dissolution of iron ions.

Lean-Water Hydrogel with Multipolar Sites for Flexible and High-Performance Aqueous Aluminum Ion Batteries.

Rechargeable aqueous aluminum ion batteries (AAIBs) offer a promising avenue for achieving safe, high-energy, and low-cost large-scale energy storage applications. However, the practical development of AAIBs is hindered by competitive reduction reactions in the aqueous solution, which lead to insufficient aluminum (Al) deposition and a severe hydrogen evolution reaction (HRE). In this work, an inorganic/organic hybrid hydrogel with a stable silicon-based network and multiple polar sites is successfully fabricated via an in situ sol-gel polymerization method.

Validation of suitable reference microRNAs for qRT-PCR in under abiotic stress, hormone and metal ion treatments.

Introduction: Sweet osmanthus () is a prominent woody ornamental plant extensively utilized in horticulture, the food industry, cosmetics, and traditional Chinese medicine. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are crucial regulators of gene regulation, playing a vital role in enabling plants to adapt to environmental fluctuations. Despite their significance, research on miRNA expression in under adverse stress conditions remains limited.

Enabling Unconventional "Alternating-Distal" N Reduction Pathway for Efficient Ammonia Electrosynthesis.

The general understanding on the reaction path is that the electrocatalytic N reduction follows either individual associative alternating or distal pathways, where efficient N activation and selective NH production are very challenging. Herein, an unconventional "alternating-distal" pathway was achieved by shifting the "*NHNH→*NHNH" to "*NHNH→*NH + NH" step to boost NH synthesis with an amorphous CeMnO electrocatalyst. In this unconventional process, N activation was realized through π back donation on the Mn site, while the Mn/Ce dual active sites could regulate the intermediate configurations to avoid the nitrogen-containing by-product formation.

Selection of suitable reference lncRNAs for gene expression analysis in under abiotic stresses, hormone treatments, and metal ion treatments.

Intoduction: , a well-regarded traditional flower in China, holds extensive applications in gardening, food, cosmetics, and traditional Chinese medicine. Despite its importance, research on long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in has been constrained by the absence of reliable reference genes (RGs).

Methods: We employed five distinct algorithms, i.

Improved thermoelectric efficiency of SbSiTe through yttrium-induced nanocompositing.

SbSiTe is a promising 2D material for medium-temperature thermoelectric applications, with the thermoelectric figure of merit approaching 1 at 823 K. However, its widespread use has been limited by relatively low power factor values. In this study, we successfully enhanced the performance of SbSiTe by introducing Yttrium nanocomposites.

In Situ Characterization Techniques for Electrochemical Nitrogen Reduction Reaction.

The electrochemical reduction of nitrogen to produce ammonia is pivotal in modern society due to its environmental friendliness and the substantial influence that ammonia has on food, chemicals, and energy. However, the current electrochemical nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) mechanism is still imperfect, which seriously impedes the development of NRR. In situ characterization techniques offer insight into the alterations taking place at the electrode/electrolyte interface throughout the NRR process, thereby helping us to explore the NRR mechanism in-depth and ultimately promote the development of efficient catalytic systems for NRR.

Drivers and Pathways for the Recovery of Critical Metals from Waste-Printed Circuit Boards.

The ever-increasing importance of critical metals (CMs) in modern society underscores their resource security and circularity. Waste-printed circuit boards (WPCBs) are particularly attractive reservoirs of CMs due to their gamut CM embedding and ubiquitous presence. However, the recovery of most CMs is out of reach from current metal-centric recycling industries, resulting in a flood loss of refined CMs.

Alloying Pd with Ru enables electroreduction of nitrate to ammonia with ∼100% faradaic efficiency over a wide potential window.

Electrocatalytic nitrate (NO) reduction reaction (eNORR) to ammonia under ambient conditions is deemed a sustainable route for wastewater treatment and a promising alternative to the Haber-Bosch process. However, there is still a lack of efficient electrocatalysts to achieve high NH production performance at wastewater-relevant low NO concentrations. Herein, we report a PdRu bimetallic nanocrystal (NC) electrocatalyst capable of exhibiting an average NH FE of ∼100% over a wide potential window from 0.

Bio-Polyethylene and Polyethylene Biocomposites: An Alternative toward a Sustainable Future.

Polyethylene (PE), a highly prevalent non-biodegradable polymer in the field of plastics, presents a waste management issue. To alleviate this issue, bio-based PE (bio-PE), derived from renewable resources like corn and sugarcane, offers an environmentally friendly alternative. This review discusses various production methods of bio-PE, including fermentation, gasification, and catalytic conversion of biomass.

Synergistic Combination of SbSiTe Additives for Enhanced Average ZT and Single-Leg Device Efficiency of BiSbTe-based Composites.

Thermoelectric materials are highly promising for waste heat harvesting. Although thermoelectric materials research has expanded over the years, bismuth telluride-based alloys are still the best for near-room-temperature applications. In this work, a ≈38% enhancement of the average ZT (300-473 K) to 1.