Latest ArticlesIn recent years, the emerging two−dimensional material−MXenes has attracted widespread attention in the field of photocatalysis due to its high conductivity, suitable Fermi level, tunable elemental composition, and excellent photoelectric properties. The zero−dimensional quantum dots (MQDs) derived from 2D MXenes not only inherit the characteristics of MXenes but also exhibit better performance due to the quantum size effect. Based on the above excellent physical and chemical properties, MQDs are often used as co−catalysts of photocatalysts, and show excellent co−catalytic properties. At the same time, compared with other cocatalysts (precious metals, metal oxides, metal sulfides), it has the advantages of low cost and high conductivity. Therefore, understanding the status of MQDs in the field of photocatalysis is crucial for their further development. In this review, we summarized the synthesis and modification methods of MQDs in recent years, as well as their photocatalytic applications in H2 production, CO2 reduction, N2 fixation, pollutant degradation, and other aspects. In addition, the challenges and prospects faced by MQDs are also proposed, providing theoretical guidance for the further development of MQD−based photocatalysts.
The exploration of advanced materials through rational structure/phase design is the key to develop high-performance lithium-ion capacitors (LICs). However, high complexity of material preparation and difficulty in quantity production largely hinder the further development. Herein, Cu5FeS4-x/C (CFS@C) heterojunction with rich sulfur vacancies has successfully achieved from natural bornite, presenting low cost-effective and bulk-production prospect. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations indicate that rich vacancies in bulk phase can decrease band gap of bornite and thus improve its intrinsic electron conductivity, as well as the heterojunction spontaneously evokes a built-in electric field between its interfacial region, largely reducing the migration barrier from 1.27 eV to 0.75 eV. Benefited from these merits, the CFS@C electrodes deliver outperformed lithium storage performance, e.g., high reversible capacity (822.4 mAh/g at 0.1 A/g), excellent cycling stability (up to 820 cycles at 2 A/g and 540 cycles at 5 A/g with respective capacity retention of over or nearly 100%). With CFS@C as anode and porous carbon nanosheets (PCS) as cathode, the assembled CFS@C//PCS LIC full cells exhibit high energy/power density characteristics of 139.2 Wh/kg at 2500 W/kg. This work is expected to offer significant insights into structure modifications/devising toward natural minerals for advanced energy-storage systems.
Membrane-based separation is a promising technology to eliminate water impurities from the oil phase. However, it remains a great challenge to separate water from highly emulsified viscous oil owing to the high stability of the water droplets in oil. Herein we report a surface wettability engineering on an alumina ceramic membrane to achieve an efficient separation of a water-in-oil (W/O) emulsion. Silanes with different carbon chain lengths and fluorinated status were introduced to endow the alumina membrane with different surface wettabilities. While all the modified membranes exhibited excellent separation of the W/O without Span 80 (surfactant), the one with amphiphobic wettability and lowest surface energy failed to separate the Span 80 stabilized W/O. The presence of Span 80 reduced the interfacial tension of water droplets, making them easier to deform and penetrate the modified membrane with the lowest surface energy. It reveals that engineering proper surface wettability is the key to separating the oil and water phases. Besides, the modified membranes maintained decent separation performance and stability under long-term run separation of the emulsified W/O.
Low-molecular-weight (LMW) compounds are ubiquitous in living organisms and play essential roles in biological processes. The direct analysis of LMW compounds in biological tissues by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry imaging (MALDI-MSI) could provide a more comprehensive understanding of their essential functions. Here, we evaluated 4-nitrocatechol (4-NC) as a novel positive-ion matrix for enhancing in situ detection and imaging of LMW compounds from the rat liver, brain, and germinating Chinese-yew seed by MALDI-MS. Our results showed that the 4-NC possessed remarkable features, including strong ultraviolet absorption, uniform matrix crystal, excellent chemical stability, and fewer matrix-related background peaks. The use of 4-NC led to the successful detection of 232, 218, and 193 LMW compounds from the three abovementioned tissue sections, respectively. Also, the use of 4-NC improved the imaging quality of LMW compounds in tissue sections through MALDI-MSI and has the potential as a matrix for MALDI tissue imaging of LMW compounds.
Electrocatalytic CO2 reduction at mild conditions is a promising strategy to transform greenhouse gases into fuels or value-added chemicals to solve the increasingly serious environmental and energy problems. The most crucial factor in determining the CO2 reduction performance is to develop efficient electrocatalysts with high selectivity and stability. Among the various electrocatalysts, indium-based catalysts have attracted extensive attention due to their non-toxicity, low cost, and high formic acid/formate selectivity. In this work, we comprehensively review the recent development and research progress of indium-based electrocatalysts for CO2RR. The reaction mechanism, reaction pathways, structure–activity relationship, and strategies to enhance the activity of CO2RR on indium-based catalysts have also been briefly presented and discussed. Finally, the existing challenges and future developments for indium-based high-performance catalysts for CO2RR are proposed.
Electrochemical sensing provides a powerful technological means for the therapeutic drug monitoring of drug-resistant tuberculosis but requires a functionalized electrode to capture the analytes and catalyze their redox reactions. Herein, we construct a nickel–tannic acid supramolecular network (Ni–TA) on the surface of electrospun-derived C–CeO2 nanofiber for the sensitive and simultaneous detection of isoniazid (INZ) and hydrazine (HYD). Mechanistic investigations demonstrate that Ni–TA is electronegative and hydrophilic, thus facilitating an efficient mass and electron transfer. Ni–TA/C–CeO2 has higher adsorption rate constants (0.091 g mg–1 h–1 for INZ, and 0.062 g mg–1 h–1 for HYD) than native C–CeO2 (0.075 g mg–1 h–1 for INZ, and 0.047 g mg–1 h–1 for HYD). Moreover, Ni–TA/C–CeO2 (56 Ω) has lower charge transfer resistances than C–CeO2 (417 Ω). Ni–TA/C–CeO2 performs low detection limits and wide linearity ranges for INZ (0.012 µmol/L and 0.1–400 µmol/L, respectively) and HYD (0.008 µmol/L and 0.015–1420 µmol/L, respectively), coupled with high selectivity, cycle stability and reproducibility. This research demonstrated the promising applications of Ni–TA/C–CeO2 by analyzing human-collected plasma and urine samples.
Long-term excessive intake of nitrite (NO2−) poses a great threat to human health, needing a simple and fast method to detect NO2− in food. Herein, via a simple and feasible strategy, Mn/Yb/Er triple-doped CeO2 nanozyme (Mn/Yb/Er/CeO2) was synthesized for highly sensitive ratiometric detection of nitrite. By doping Mn, Yb, Er into CeO2 lattice structure, Mn/Yb/Er/CeO2 nanozyme showed enhanced oxidase-like activity, obtaining a higher density of oxygen vacancy and a higher ratio of Ce3+ to Ce4+ than that of CeO2. The 3,3′,5,5′-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) can be effectively oxidized by Mn/Yb/Er/CeO2 to produce the oxidized TMB (oxTMB), showing a significant absorption signal at 652 nm. Additionally, nitrite can react with oxTMB to produce yellow diazotized oxTMB, which is accompanied by an elevated absorption signal at 445 nm and a decreased absorption signal at 652 nm. Thus, based on the oxidase-mimetic activity of Mn/Yb/Er/CeO2 and the diazotization reaction between NO2− and oxTMB, a ratiometric colorimetric assay was established for NO2− detection in food. Furthermore, by integrating Mn/Yb/Er/CeO2 with a smartphone, a colorimetric smartphone-sensing platform was successfully fabricated for visualization and quantitative detection of NO2−. Notably, this two-detection mode showed excellent sensitivity, selectivity, reliability and practicability in monitoring the NO2− in real samples, impling its great potential for food safety.
Single atom catalysts (SACs) have been in the forefront of catalysts research because of their high efficiency and low cost and provide new ideas for development of renewable energy conversion and storage technologies. However, the relationship between the intrinsic properties of materials such as lattice thermal conductivity and catalysis remains to be explored. In this work, the lattice thermal conductivity of BN and graphene was calculated by ShengBTE. In addition, the adsorption properties of 3d-TM (TM = V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni) on BN and graphene were investigated using first-principles methods, and it was found that Ni atom can form relatively stable SACs compared to other TMs. The molecular dynamics (MD) simulation and migration barrier of Ni loaded on BN and graphene were calculated. Our study found that graphene has higher thermal conductivity and is easier to form SACs than BN, but the SACs formed on BN surface have higher thermodynamic stability.
Glycosyl radicals, produced under mild photoredox conditions, show unique utility in the preparation of C-linked glycoconjugates. We herein report the construction of C-glycosidic bonds on α,β-dehydroalanine (DHA) of peptides with easily available glycosyl bromides as glycosyl radical precursors under highly anomeric control, leading to C-glycosylation modifications of peptides. This method not only has outstanding functional group compatibility, but also is feasible in near-physiological conditions (pH ~ 7 and temperature T ≤ 37 ℃ in aqueous media).
Cr(Ⅵ), one of the most hazardous metal pollutants, poses significant threats to the environment and human health. Herein, a novel MoS2 composite (MoS2/PVP/PAM) modified by polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) and polyacrylamide (PAM) was synthesized to enhance the removal of Cr(Ⅵ). Characterization analysis including SEM, XRD, FTIR, and XPS indicated that PVP and PAM could increase the interlayer spacing and the dispersibility of MoS2, and introduce pyrrolic N and amino functional groups. The batch experiments showed that MoS2/PVP/PAM represented excellent Cr(Ⅵ) removal performance over a wide pH range, and exhibited a significantly higher maximum Cr(Ⅵ) adsorption capacity (274.73mg/g, at pH 3.0, and 298K) than pure MoS2. The adsorption of Cr(Ⅵ) followed Langmuir and pseudo-second-order kinetic model, which was a homogeneous monolayer chemisorption process. MoS2/PVP/PAM showed stable removal of Cr(Ⅵ) in the presence of humic acid (HA), interfering cations and anions at different concentrations. Moreover, it had excellent selectivity for Cr(Ⅵ) (Kd value of 1.69× 107mL/g) when coexisting with a variety of competing ions. Multiple characterization revealed that Cr(Ⅵ) was reduced to low toxicity Cr(Ⅲ) by Mo4+ and S2−, and then chelated on the surface of the adsorbent by pyrrolic N. This research expanded the design concept for MoS2 composites by demonstrating the potential of MoS2/PVP/PAM as a promising material for selective elimination of Cr(Ⅵ) in water.
No. 86 Xueyuan South Road, Haidian District, Beijing
010-62662699(Operation and Technical Support)
qkjq@cast.org.cn
Copyright © 2025 China Association for Science and Technology. All rights reserved. For all open access content, the relevant licensing terms apply.
Sponsored by the Office of the Leading Group for Cybersecurity and Informatization of CAST, and supported by Science and Technology Review Publishing House
