Themed collection Journal of Materials Chemistry A Emerging Investigators 2024

Single-molecule fluorescence imaging offers high spatiotemporal resolution and enables quantitative, operando studies of photocatalytic nanomaterials at the single- or sub-particle level.

This review summarizes the latest advances in material development and process design for electrochemically upgrading CO₂ to value-added C₃₊ chemicals.

We review polythiophene and its derivative (PT)-based polymer donors for all-PSCs, focusing on material design, morphology optimization strategies, and the selection and design of polymer acceptors that complement their properties.

This review comprehensively summarizes the development history of CPDT-based organic photovoltaic materials, which contributes to a deeper understanding of the revival of CPDT driven by low-cost acceptors.

This review provides valuable insights and suggestions for future research on designing low-strain cathode materials for long-life and high-energy-density all-solid-state batteries under low external pressure conditions.

In this review, we discuss the promising applications and practical considerations of thermoelectrics to harvest the unutilized thermal gradient between the plasma-facing surfaces and the molten salt coolant loop in tokamak fusion reactors.

Light-driven three-phase interface catalysts for the production of green ammonia as one of the key future energy carriers for the net-zero carbon landscape.

In this review, recent progress in the synthesis and electrocatalytic applications of hybrid nanomaterials containing low-dimensional metals was outlined and some promising future directions were proposed.

To enhance the economy and society's sustainability, prioritizing innovative, green energy conversion methods is essential.

This review summarizes the latest research progress in polyanionic cathodes for aqueous Zn-ion batteries from the perspectives of crystal structure, reaction mechanism, and design strategy, finally highlights potential challenges and future outlook.

Increasing the oxidation potential improved electrochemical performance by inducing LiCoO₂ delithiation and restructuring into β-CoOOH. Raman spectroscopy revealed heterogeneity and dynamic phase evolution within and between particles.

Non-sticking water droplets covered with a particulate gel, namely particulate gel liquid marbles (PGLMs), exhibited high mechanical stability due to the viscous dissipation of the PG.

Through the electrochemical ion-exchange method, P2-K_0.56Na_0.11Li_0.12Ni_0.22Mn_0.66O₂ was successfully synthesized as a high-performance cathode with a single-phase reaction and K⁺/vacancy disordering for potassium-ion batteries.

Entrainment, where a solid object in a liquid bath moves towards the air phase, is common in industry and daily-life.

Histidine/tryptophan and their enantiomers were stepwise recognized by a dual-optical-response system, responding to fluorescence intensity variation and chiroptical activity regulation.

Al doped single-crystal nickel-rich NCMA cathode materials are considered one of the most promising candidates for automobile Li-ion batteries due to their high compacted density and superior cycling stability.

By introducing an amino group on the ligand, the shape of two-dimensional coordination polymers transforms from planar into wavy, creating a supramolecular microenvironment to boost the CO₂RR for C₂H₄ and simultaneously restrict the HER.

The “marionette” effect of various diluents in localized-high-concentration electrolytes subtly controls solvent and additive interactions and refines interfacial chemistry for enhancing Li-ion battery performance, particularly in extreme conditions.

An electrolyte design strategy is proposed for graphite anode in potassium-ion batteries working in a wide temperature range.

The pivotal role of Ge doping is found in finely adjusting the bandgap, enhancing carrier mobility, and improving optical-electronic properties and photovoltaic response.

In this paper, the Pt–Fe₃C/rGO catalyst is synthesized by an in situ assembly strategy. The strong interaction between Fe₃C and Pt is favorable for boosting the methanol electrooxidation activity, CO anti-poisoning ability and remarkable stability.

Two novel guest molecules were designed and incorporated into the PM6:L8-BO system, which could enhance the crystallinity and optimize vertical phase distribution. Ternary OSCs achieved a remarkable PCE of 19.04% with enhanced stability.

An improved bat-tongue-inspired superhydrophilic origami channel with liquid manipulation and collecting ability.

Introduction of highly dispersed Pd into well-regulated structures of a Ni₃Sn₂ intermetallic catalyst contributes to excellent catalytic performance for propyne semi-hydrogenation.

A heterointerface engineering strategy of immobilizing core–shell CdSe/CdS quantum dots onto SiO₂ spheres was realized to efficiently integrate CO₂ photoreduction with the oxidation of furfuryl alcohol in one system.

We report a lithium-rich layered oxide Li_1.2Mn_0.6Ni_0.2O₂ (LMNO) with an electrochemically stable Li-poor nickel-rich surface by simple excessive calcination treatment, greatly suppressing the surface side reactions and Mn-ion dissolution.

Schematic diagrams of the preparation process of corrosion electrodes and the formation mechanism.

Metal–defect cooperative catalysis in Ru-doped defective MOF-808 is directly visualised via combined XAS, XPDF, XRD, and IR analysis.

In this paper we present the in situ analysis of gas dependent alloying in bimetallic Au-Pd nanoparticles through a combination of CO-DRIFTS and in situ TEM providing direct insight in the surface- and nanoparticle bulk redistribution kinetics.

The combination of appropriate gate bias and innovative structure design can significantly enhance the cycling stability of organic electrochemical transistors, which is crucial for controllable and extended lifetime of functional bioelectronics.

This study reveals the enhanced piezoelectric activity of SnS nanobelts with step edges compared to nanobelts/nanoparticles and nanobelts, demonstrating superior catalytic performance for acetaminophen degradation in water.

Developing cost-effective electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in proton exchange membrane (PEM) water electrolysis is crucial to achieving large-scale hydrogen production through water electrolysis.

Self-supported Ni/Ni₃N_1−x heterostructures with abundant nitrogen vacancies as efficient electrocatalysts for ethylene glycol oxidation.

The macropores within carbon skeleton-supported FeSe₂/NiSe₂ derived from MOF assemblies are meticulously engineered at the micrometer scale and the OER electrocatalytic performance exhibits a significant dependence on the micrometer-scale dimensions.

When 2,2′-bipyridine coordinates with a single atom Rh to form a single site Rh–bipyridine molecular cocatalyst, the hydrogen production rate is effectively inhibited and the CO generation is significantly increased.

The synthesis of Ni/Ti disordered rock salt compounds (DRX) features the fast formation of a layered phase before the DRX structure becomes favored by entropy. Electrochemically the compounds exhibit significant structural and electronic hysteresis.

Fluorine-free oleophobic fabrics that can repel ethanol are demonstrated, but the fabric construction largely determines the capillary resistance and current wettability theory is only predictive for plain weave fabric structures.

The PINAs with a novel nanofiber–lamella crosslinking architecture exhibited excellent thermal insulation, flexibility and elasticity over a wide temperature range (−196 to 300 °C).

A strategy of using an ion-conductive biphasic electrolyte was adopted to suppress the shuttle effects of polybromides in Zn–Br₂ batteries.

Electron-rich Rh sites of CuRh NSs enable the selective adsorption of *NH₂OH, thus achieving high FE and yield rate of ammonia.

GR and Ni₂P dual cocatalysts modified ZnIn₂S₄ nanoflower has been prepared and they can simultaneously utilize photogenerated electrons and holes to actuate the oxidation of benzyl alcohol (BA) to benzaldehyde (BAD) integrated with H₂ evolution.

Computational exploration and discovery of fluoride-based weberites and perovskites as positive electrodes for calcium batteries, an important next-generation energy storage technology.

Carbon–carbon (C–C) composites are highly sought-after in aviation, automotive, and defense sectors due to their outstanding thermal & thermo-mechanical properties even surpassing those of alloys and other composites for exterme operations.

The HER, OER, and water electrolysis properties in an alkaline medium and the corresponding mechanism of nanoclimbing-wall-like NiO/NiCoP are revealed by the electrochemical tests, in situ Raman spectroscopy, and DFT calculation.

The recrystallization process of naphthalene molecules enhances intermolecular π–π interactions, leading to the formation of a uniform morphology and increasing electrical conductivity, which allows fast charge transfer kinetics in SIBs.

Fine-tuning the local coordination and electronic structures of Ni-based pre-catalysts via ligand regulation promotes self-reconstruction and improves OER activity.

A well-defined 2 nm Pt/SiO₂ catalyst that can be dynamically modified without irreversibly changing the underlying structure in reductive and oxidative environments, but that rapidly sinters under reaction conditions.

A design of Pt(II)–TADF emitters based on metal-perturbed intraligand charge-transfer excited states towards high-performance red organic light-emitting diodes is presented.

A scandium acetate electrolyte additive enables the improved stability of Zn metal anodes in an aqueous ZnSO₄ electrolyte with suppressed side reactions and Zn dendrite formation due to the buffered pH value and homogenized Zn²⁺ distribution.

The hierarchical and interconnected architecture of NiO/N-HPC promotes efficient electrolyte penetration, shortens ion transport path, and accelerates reaction kinetics, leading to a high-performance aqueous potassium-ion hybrid capacitor.

Atomically ordered Ir₃Ti intermetallics on carbon nanotubes exhibit remarkable performance for pH-universal overall water splitting.

A systematic study was performed on Ti-doped Li_1.2Mn_0.4³⁺Ti_xMn_0.4−x⁴⁺O₂, which revealed the fast kinetics of Li diffusion with an improvement in the electrochemical property of MT₀₋₁, thus providing a guideline for DRXs cathode materials design.

By employing AFM-IR, this work uncovered the passivation mechanism of the OPA additive on perovskite films.

This work reports the thermal properties of garnet electrolyte LLZTO. The aged LLZTO exhibits an enhanced thermal conductivity, attributed to the formation of Li₂CO₃.

A multi-functional electrolyte additive, namely ethoxy(pentafluoro)cyclotriphosphazene, is explored to realize extreme fast charging of lithium-ion batteries with enhanced safety.

Flexible thermocell devices are designed with device-level degradability for low-grade heat harvesting and precise thermal sensing.

C-shell-augmented porous Cu/CNFs can enhance CO₂ availability for efficient C₂H₄ production via promoted CO₂ mass transport and CO₂ adsorption.