Self-Adhesive Polydimethylsiloxane Foam Materials Decorated with MXene/Cellulose Nanofiber Interconnected Network for Versatile Functionalities

Polydimethylsiloxanes (PDMS) foam as one of next-generation polymer foam materials shows poor surface adhesion and limited functionality, which greatly restricts its potential applications. Fabrication of advanced PDMS foam materials with multiple functionalities remains a critical challenge. In this study, unprecedented self-adhesive PDMS foam materials are reported with worm-like rough structure and reactive groups for fabricating multifunctional PDMS foam nanocomposites decorated with MXene/cellulose nanofiber (MXene/CNF) interconnected network by a facile silicone foaming and dip-coating strategy followed by silane surface modification. Interestingly, such self-adhesive PDMS foam produces strong interfacial adhesion with the hybrid MXene/CNF nano-coatings. Consequently, the optimized PDMS foam nanocomposites have excellent surface super-hydrophobicity (water contact angle of ≈159^o), tunable electrical conductivity (from 10⁻⁸ to 10 S m⁻¹), stable compressive cyclic reliability in both wide-temperature range (from −20 to 200 ^oC) and complex environments (acid, sodium, and alkali conditions), outstanding flame resistance (LOI value of >27% and low smoke production rate), good thermal insulating performance and reliable strain sensing in various stress modes and complex environmental conditions. It provides a new route for the rational design and development of advanced PDMS foam nanocomposites with versatile multifunctionalities for various promising applications such as intelligent healthcare monitoring and fire-safe thermal insulation.     

In Situ Topochemical Transformation of ZnIn2S4 for Efficient Photocatalytic Oxidation of 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural to 2,5-Diformylfuran

Photocatalytic selective oxidation of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) coupled H₂ production offers a promising approach to producing valuable chemicals. Herein, an efficient in situ topological transformation tactic is developed for producing porous O-doped ZnIn₂S₄ nanosheets for HMF oxidation cooperative with H₂ evolution. Aberration-corrected high-angle annular dark-field scanning TEM images show that the hierarchical porous O-ZIS-120 possesses abundant atomic scale edge steps and lattice defects, which is beneficial for electron accumulation and molecule adsorption. The optimal catalyst (O-ZIS-120) exhibits remarkable performance with 2,5-diformylfuran (DFF) yields of 1624 µmol h⁻¹ g⁻¹ and the selectivity of >97%, simultaneously with the H₂ evolution rate of 1522 µmol h⁻¹ g⁻¹. Mechanistic investigations through theoretical calculations show that O in the O-ZIS-120 lattice can reduce the oxidation energy barrier of hydroxyl groups of HMF. In situ attenuated total reflection surface-enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy (ATR-SEIRAS) results reveal that DFF^* (C₄H₂(CHO)₂O^*) intermediate has a weak interaction with O-ZIS-120 and desorb as the final product. This study elucidates the topotactic structural transitions of 2D materials simultaneously with electronic structure modulation for efficient photocatalytic DFF production.     

Field-Induced Multiscale Polarization Configuration Transitions of Mesentropic Lead-Free Piezoceramics Achieving Giant Energy Harvesting Performance

The development of high-performance (K,Na)NbO₃ (KNN)-based lead-free piezoceramics for next-generation electronic devices is crucial for achieving environmentally sustainable society. However, despite recent improvements in piezoelectric coefficients, correlating their properties to underlying multiscale structures remains a key issue for high-performance KNN-based ceramics with complex phase boundaries. Here, this study proposes a medium-entropy strategy to design “local polymorphic distortion” in conjunction with the construction of uniformly oversize grains in the newly developed KNN solid-solution, resulting in a novel large-size hierarchical domain architecture (≈0.7 µm wide). Such a structure not only facilitates polarization rotation but also ensures a large residual polarization, which significantly improves the piezoelectricity (≈3.2 times) and obtains a giant energy harvesting performance (W_out = 2.44 mW, P_D = 35.32 µW mm⁻³, outperforming most lead-free piezoceramics). This study confirms the coexistence of multiphase through the atomic-resolution polarization features and analyzes the domain/phase transition mechanisms using in situ electric field structural characterizations, revealing that the electric field induces highly effective multiscale polarization configuration transitions based on T–O–R sequential phase transitions. This study demonstrates a new strategy for designing high-performance piezoceramics and facilitates the development of lead-free piezoceramic materials in energy harvesting applications.     

Hyperelastic,Robust, Fire-Safe Multifunctional MXene Aerogels with Unprecedented Electromagnetic Interference Shielding Efficiency

MXene aerogels have shown great potential for many important functional applications, in particular electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding. However, it has been a grand challenge to create mechanically hyperelastic, air-stable, and durable MXene aerogels for enabling effective EMI protection at low concentrations due to the difficulties in achieving tailorable porous structures, excellent mechanical elasticity, and desired antioxidation capabilities of MXene in air. Here, a facile strategy for fabricating MXene composite aerogels by co-assembling MXene and cellulose nanofibers during freeze-drying followed by surface encapsulation with fire-retardant thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) is reported. Because of the maximum utilization of pore structures of MXene, and conductive loss enhanced by multiple internal reflections, as-prepared aerogel with 3.14 wt% of MXene exhibits an exceptionally high EMI shielding effectiveness of 93.5 dB, and an ultra-high MXene utilization efficiency of 2977.71 dB g g⁻¹, tripling the values in previous works. Owing to the presence of multiple hydrogen bonding and the TPU elastomer, the aerogel exhibits a hyperelastic feature with additional strength, excellent stability, superior durability, and high fire safety. This study provides a facile strategy for creating multifunctional aerogels with great potential for applications in EMI protection, wearable devices, thermal management, pressure sensing, and intelligent fire monitoring.     

Breaking the Responsivity-Bandwidth Trade-Off Limit in GaN Photoelectrodes for High-Response and Fast-Speed Optical Communication Application

Underwater optical communication (UOC) has attracted considerable interest in the continuous expansion of human activities in marine/ocean environments. The water-durable and self-powered photoelectrodes that act as a battery-free light receiver in UOC are particularly crucial, as they may directly face complex underwater conditions. Emerging photoelectrochemical (PEC)-type photodetectors are appealing owing to their intrinsic aqueous operation characteristics with versatile tunability of photoresponses. Herein, a self-powered PEC photodetector employing n-type gallium nitride (GaN) nanowires as a photoelectrode, which is decorated with an iridium oxide (IrO_x) layer to optimize charge transfer dynamics at the GaN/electrolyte interface, is reported. Strikingly, the constructed n-GaN/IrO_x photoelectrode breaks the responsivity-bandwidth trade-off limit by simultaneously improving the response speed and responsivity, delivering an ultrafast response speed with response/recovery times of only 2 µs/4 µs while achieving a high responsivity of 110.1 mA W⁻¹. Importantly, the device exhibits a large bandwidth with 3 dB cutoff frequency exceeding 100 kHz in UOC tests, which is one of the highest values among self-powered photodetectors employed in optical communication system.     

Voltage Decay of Li-Rich Layered Oxides: Mechanism,Modification Strategies,and Perspectives

Li-rich layered oxides (LLOs) have been considered as the most promising cathode materials for achieving high energy density Li-ion batteries. However, they suffer from continuous voltage decay during cycling, which seriously shortens the lifespan of the battery in practical applications. This review comprehensively elaborates and summarizes the state-of-the-art of the research in this field. It is started from the proposed mechanism of voltage decay that refers to the phase transition, microscopic defects, and oxygen redox or release. Furthermore, several strategies to mitigate the voltage decay of LLOs from different scales, such as surface modification, elemental doping, regulation of components, control of defect, and morphology design are summarized. Finally, a systematic outlook on the real root of voltage decay is provided, and more importantly, a potential solution to voltage recovery from electrochemistry. Based on this progress, some effective strategies with multiple scales will be feasible to create the conditions for their commercialization in the future.     

Photo-Driven Hydrogen Production from Methanol and Water using Plasmonic Cu Nanoparticles Derived from Layered Double Hydroxides

Methanol steam reforming (MSR) is viewed as an important technology in the growth of a future hydrogen economy, with methanol serving as an easily transportable and storable liquid hydrogen carrier. However, the thermocatalytic MSR reaction is energy intensive as it requires high temperatures. Herein, a novel L-Cu catalyst is successfully fabricated for photo-driven MSR through reduction of CuAl layered double hydroxide (CuAl-LDH) nanosheets. L-Cu offers outstanding activity for the photothermal conversion of methanol and water to hydrogen (160.5 µmol g_cat⁻¹ s⁻¹) under ultraviolet-visible irradiation, with this rate being much higher than that achieved for L-Cu at the same temperature in the dark. Characterization studies using X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X-ray absorption spectroscopy, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy determine that L-Cu catalyst comprise Cu nanoparticles on an amorphous alumina support. Computational calculations reveale that Cu localized surface plasmon resonance effects promote the activation of H₂O, thereby underpinning the remarkable hydrogen production rates achieved during photo-driven MSR. This study introduces a novel photothermal strategy for hydrogen generation from methanol, demonstrating the enormous potential of photothermal catalysis in the chemical and energy sectors.     

Spring-Like Ammonium Salt Assisting Stress Release for Low-Temperature Deposited FAPbI3 Films Toward Flexible Photovoltaic Application

The substrates of conventional flexible perovskite solar cells (FPSCs) are thermoplastic polymer material polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), which will deform during high temperature annealing process. In addition, lead iodide (PbI₂) permanently formed and the substrate undergoes reversible deformation from 20 °C to 200 °C and back to 20 °C. Therefore, to balance the substrate supporting capacity and the crystalline quality of narrow band gap α-phase formamidinium lead iodide (α-FAPbI₃), an annealing process of 120 °C for 30 minutes is determined. Additionally, there will also be a large number of gaps and lattice strain at the perovskite grain boundaries during the annealing process as the FAPbI₃ phase transition is accompanied by much lattice shrinkage. As a result, 1,6-hexanediammonium diiodide (HADI) is chosen to passivate the defects and release the stress of perovskite film. Therefore, a recorded 1.4% extended stretch rate of the flexible film is attained. Finally, the champion PCE of 21.14% under AM 1.5G and 31.52% under 1062 lux is achieved after HADI treatment, accompanied by a better long-term and mechanical stability. This study provides annealing process optimization and stress relief strategies for the further development of narrow band gap FPSCs.     

Boosting the Durability of Triboelectric Nanogenerators: A Critical Review and Prospect

Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) have attracted great interests in the development of sustainable energies and intelligent society. However, a big challenge for TENGs in practical applications is the unavoidable external mechanical abrasion and/or contaminant adsorption on the triboelectric materials, which leads to the significant decrease of the durability of TENGs and is urgently needed to be addressed. There are already a series of interesting progresses on the topic of the TENGs’ durability. In this study, reviewing the durability of TENGs via both the advanced materials/structure designing and the novel surface/interface engineering is focused upon, which includes choosing basic TENG materials, improving composites performance, optimizing structures, and designing triboelectric surfaces and interfaces. To get a better understanding of the durability of TENGs in published studies, the quantifiable levels of service life are also summarized including operation cycles, time, friction coefficient, and wear loss of triboelectric materials, where the boosting mechanisms are also discussed and summarized. Finally, the challenges as well as key strategies toward high durable TENGs are presented.     

High-Efficiency Organic Solar Cells Enabled by Chalcogen Containing Branched Chain Engineering: Balancing Short-Circuit Current and Open-Circuit Voltage,Enhancing Fill Factor

The elaborate balance between the open-circuit voltage (V_OC) and the short-circuit current density (J_SC) is critical to ensure efficient organic solar cells (OSCs). Herein, the chalcogen containing branched chain engineering is employed to address this dilemma. Three novel nonfullerene acceptors (NFAs), named BTP-2O , BTP-O-S , and BTP-2S , featuring different peripheral chalcogen containing branched chains are synthesized. Compared with symmetric BTP-2O and BTP-2S grafting two alkoxy or alkylthio branched chains, the asymmetric BTP-O-S grafting one alkoxy and one alkylthio branched chains shows mediate absorption range, applicable miscibility, and favorable crystallinity. Benefiting from the enhanced π–π stacking and charge transport, an optimal power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 17.3% is obtained for the PM6: BTP-O-S -based devices, with a good balance between V_OC (0.912 V) and J_SC (24.5 mA cm⁻²), and a high fill factor (FF) of 0.775, which is much higher than those of BTP-2O (16.1%) and BTP-2S -based (16.4%) devices. Such a result represents one of the highest efficiencies among the binary OSCs with V_OC surpassing 0.9 V. Moreover, the BTP-O-S -based devices fabricated by using green solvent yield a satisfactory PCE of 17.1%. This work highlights the synergistic effect of alkoxy and alkylthio branched chains for high-performance OSCs by alleviating voltage loss and enhancing FF.