Multifunctional metal–organic framework-based electrocatalysts: from CO2 reduction and ammonia synthesis to urea production
June 2026
The urgent need for sustainable chemical production has spurred interest in electrocatalytic technologies powered by renewable electricity. Among these, electrocatalytic carbon dioxide reduction (ECR),...
Emerging of carbon quantum dots-based powder materials for photocatalytic environmental remediation and chemical production
June 2026
The climate crisis and global pollution urgently require cheap and sustainable methods to produce materials and clean ecosystems, such as photocatalysis that uses solar energy. Nonetheless, actual photocatalysts...
Unlocking superior mechanical properties: the synergistic enhancement of hardness and fracture toughness in nanopolycrystalline tantalum diboride
June 2026
Achieving optimal mechanical properties, including hardness and fracture toughness, by controlling grain size is a fundamental and long-standing objective in the development of hard and superhard transition...
Engineering inorganic perovskite solar cells: overcoming efficiency and stability barriers for next-generation photovoltaics
April 2026
Inorganic perovskite solar cells (IPSCs) offer superior thermal stability and reduced toxicity compared with hybrid perovskites, yet their practical deployment is still restricted by phase instability,...
Au@MoSx boosted carbon nitride for selective photoreforming of plastic waster: synergistic hydrogen production and value-added chemicals generation
April 2026
Combining the hydrogen production reaction with the photoreforming of plastic waste represents a key strategy for establishing a circular economy. Herein, the Au@MoSx nanoparticles were successfully...
Lattice expansion/contraction triggered by etching-assisted strain engineering of cobalt sulfide heterostructures to boost electromagnetic wave absorption
April 2026
Lattice-level design presents a promising avenue to overcome the bottleneck of achieving a broadband dielectric response in transition metal chalcogenides. However, the selective control of lattice...
Ultrastrong and ductile hierarchical heterostructured titanium composites from room to high temperatures
April 2026
Titanium matrix composites (TMCs) offer significant enhancements in strength and heat resistance while preserving the low-density characteristic of advanced lightweight titanium alloys. However, ultra-strong,...
Leveraging structural rigidity for thermal robust scintillation in rare-earth halide perovskites
April 2026
High-temperature scintillators are critical components for X-ray imaging technique used in extreme environments such as oil well-logging, nuclear reactors, and industrial inspections. Cu and Mn-based...
Tetragonal-pseudocubic phase boundaries and octahedral order-disorder tilting transitions facilitate high piezoelectric performance in Bi1/2Na1/2TiO3-based single crystals
February 2026
High-performance lead-free piezoelectric single crystals are urgently needed for next-generation actuators and transducers. In this study, we reveal that a compositionally driven tetragonal-pseudocubic...
The chemistry and design principles of cellulose-based materials toward eco-friendly flexible supercapacitors
February 2026
The demand for sustainable energy storage has accelerated the development of cellulose-based materials (CBMs) for flexible supercapacitors (FSCs). However, widespread commercialization of FSCs remains...
Orchestrating catalytic hotspots and macromolecular architectures: molecular engineering toward zero-waste polymer circularity
February 2026
The pervasive accumulation of plastic waste exacerbates environmental degradation and undermines resource circularity. Selective thermal catalysis emerges as a transformative pathway for valorizing...
AI-driven design of powder-based nanomaterials for smart textiles: from data intelligence to system integration
February 2026
Artificial intelligence (AI) is emerging as a transformative enabler in the development of smart textile systems, particularly those integrating powder-based functional materials. This review highlights...
Dual-region synergistic modulation and (101) facet engineering for highly reversible zinc anodes
February 2026
Aqueous zinc-ion batteries (AZIBs) offer promising safety and affordability, but suffer from dendritic Zn growth and parasitic side reactions at the electrode-electrolyte interface. Herein, we construct...
Modulating the coordination environment in CeO2-x towards enhanced photocatalytic CO2 conversion stability and performance
February 2026
Oxygen vacancy (Vo) engineering has been recognized as one of the most effective strategies for enhancing the photocatalytic CO2 conversion performance of metal oxides, as it can simultaneously facilitate...
White LED driven {010}-faceted BiVO4 mediated electron transfer enables efficient peroxymonosulfate activation for norfloxacin degradation
February 2026
The increasing prevalence of antibiotic norfloxacin (NOR) residues in aquatic environments necessitates the research of high-efficiency and eco-friendly photocatalysts for their degradation. In this...
Electrolyte hydration energy as a universal descriptor for ion-specific capacitance: insights from interpretable machine learning
February 2026
The rational design of high-performance electrochemical energy storage devices critically depends on a fundamental understanding of ion-electrode interactions at the molecular scale. Herein, we employ...
Dual-metallic site regulation boosts charge storage in zinc-ion hybrid supercapacitors
February 2026
Zinc-ion hybrid supercapacitors (ZIHCs) are compelling candidates for next-generation energy storage owing to their intrinsic safety, low cost, and high power density. However, their practical implementation...
Sb-terminated functionalized interlayer with dual-function mechanism enables highly stable lithium metal batteries
February 2026
Lithium metal batteries (LMBs) have attracted huge attention due to super-high capacity and low reduction potential of lithium anode constructing high-energy/power density. However, the practical application...
Machine learning application in thermal CO2 hydrogenation: Catalyst design, process optimization, and mechanism insights
December 2025
The growing demand for carbon neutrality has heightened the focus on CO2 hydrogenation as a viable strategy for transforming carbon dioxide into valuable chemicals and fuels. Advanced machine learning...
Scalable synthesis of high-purity Ti4N3Tx MXene via saturated salt solution (S3) etching
December 2025
Two-dimensional (2D) nitride MXenes are predicted to exhibit exceptional metallic properties and high polarity; however, their synthesis remains challenging. Research has relied on traditional molten...
Tellurium-based potassium-ion batteries: design strategies, challenges, and prospects for emerging electrode materials
December 2025
Potassium ion batteries (PIBs) have attracted widespread attention due to their higher power density, low operating voltage, wide temperature range adaptability, and cost effectiveness. Nevertheless,...
Unlocking the non-covalent electrostatic engineering of photocatalysts: From molecular interactions to multifield tuning strategies toward enhanced charge dynamics
December 2025
Photocatalysis is one of the most capable green energy techniques for sustainable solar-to-chemical energy conversion. However, the speedy recombination of photocarriers remains a critical bottleneck...
Discovery of a liquid crystal phase of sodium halides via a nonclassical nucleation pathway
December 2025
The crystallization of ionic crystals has traditionally been explained by Gibbs's classical nucleation theory. However, recent observations of intermediate phases during nucleation suggest that the...
Elemental synergistic effect for enhancing ablation resistance of Zr1/2Hf1/3Ti1/12Ta1/12C ceramic
December 2025
Formation of multicomponent ceramics is one of the most promising strategies for enhancing the ablation resistance of ultra-high-temperature carbide ceramics (UHTCCs), while the effects of the elements...
Wide-range tuning of trap depths in double perovskite phosphors enabling tunable NIR persistent luminescence
December 2025
Persistent Luminescence (PersL) materials, which use traps to store energy and emit photons over a long period, have found important applications in the fields of optical information storage, security...