Themed collection Chemistry for a Sustainable World – Celebrating Our Community Tackling Global Challenges

Smart polymers represent a class of advanced materials that undergo reversible changes in their physical or chemical form and are known as responsive polymers.

This review focuses on the sulfurization of transition metal inorganic compounds and the effect of sulfurization on redox reactions in Li-S batteries, examining the current developments and providing insights into the prospects of the sulfurization.

This review summarizes the recent focus on the dynamic evolution of atomic metal–nitrogen-codoped catalysts in electrocatalytic reactions.

We highlight recent advances and future directions in the electrocatalytic upgrading of NO_x into value-added chemicals.

Recent developments in flow protocols for the Minisci reaction highlight its versatility and potential for industrial applications.

We summarise the recent surge of interest in CALF-20, which stems from its remarkable balance of properties, including stability, durability, and processability, as well as its utility for CO₂ capture at industrial scales.

This highlight provides an overview of methods for carbon–carbon bond formation using sustainable aromatics derived from biomass.

This review systematically summarizes the electrochemical mechanisms, material synthesis methods, and modification strategies for Mn-based tunnel-structured cathodes while also proposing future research directions.

This work summarizes macrocyclic catalysis strategies for overcoming aqueous-phase reactivity challenges, product inhibition, and catalyst compatibility in “one-pot” reactions.

We provide a comprehensive overview of the latest research progress and development strategies for high-performance chemiresistive H₂ sensors, highlighting the enhancement strategies that have been employed to improve sensor performance.

Biomass-derived carbon materials (BDCMs) are considered as promising and practical electrode materials for solid-state supercapacitors (SSCs), which are beneficial to achieving UN Sustainable Development Goals 7, 11-13.

This mini-review highlights the scientific breakthroughs in photochemical upcycling polymers through oxidative degradation and post-polymerization modification via visible light-driven C–H bond activation.

Direct functionalization of alkenes with C(sp³)–H substrates offers unique opportunities for the rapid construction of pharmaceuticals and natural products.

The COF-based SACs and DACs, including their design, synthesis, applications, and electrocatalysis mechanism, are reviewed by investigating their catalytic mechanisms underlying both the oxygen reduction reaction and oxygen evolution reaction.

In this review, the potential role of machine learning in sustainable energy and SGDs is analyzed; energy forecasting, planning, renewable energy production and storage are covered and an extensive perspective on the future role of ML is provided.

This article presents a review of catalytic processes used at low temperatures to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides (NO_x) and nitrous oxide (N₂O), which are exceedingly important in terms of their environmental impacts on the Earth.

Recent advances in ordered membrane electrode assemblies for water electrolysis are reviewed, highlighting their fundamental concepts and structural characteristics. Key challenges and potential solutions are also discussed.

This feature article highlights the potential of ball milling in synthesizing pharmaceutically important classes of molecules under solvent-free conditions.

This feature article focuses on classifying pollutants that degrade indoor air quality (IAQ) and highlights next-generation nanofilter technologies to address them.

This feature article highlights recent progress in shell waste biorefinery, focusing on chitin extraction, upgrading to key chemicals and future research trends.

This feature article mainly outlines the advances in the precise design of inorganic- and organic-based porous electrocatalysts towards the enhancement of oxygen evolution reaction (OER) properties to achieve efficient water-splitting reaction.

Terpolymerization reactions of epoxides, CO₂, and the third monomers such as cyclic anhydrides, lactones, lactides, heteroallenes, and olefins give polymers with controlled structures and properties.

The electrochemical reaction mechanism of various plastic wastes and the recent developments of four types of plastic waste-assisted electrolysis systems are discussed, and the challenges that hinder scalable implementation are pointed out.

Oxamidato-based MOFs in water remediation: the most remarkable examples of the application of oxamidato-based bioMOFs for the selective and efficient removal of emerging pollutants are highlighted in this feature article.

A schematic depiction of the various solid–solid interfaces existing in a porous electrode.

Progress in the study of ether-based polymer electrolytes for in situ polymerization is reviewed, including ring-opening polymerization, Li⁺ conduction mechanism, and recycling of ether-based polymer electrolytes.

Since the seminal work by Trofimenko (1960s), scorpionate ligands have emerged as pivotal components in the field of coordination chemistry and catalysis. They have demonstrated a remarkable versatility for the preparation of sustainable polymers.

This feature article highlights the contribution of ionic liquids, as better alternatives to conventional solvating and templating media, in the sustainable synthesis of anisotropic and photo-catalytically active nanoparticles and their composites.

This Feature highlights the most prominent features of atomically thin 2D materials and their potential for emerging photovoltaics.

Key advances in introducing built-in electric fields to guide the surface dynamic reconstruction of oxygen evolution reaction electrocatalysts are summarized.

Recent works on practical and recyclable catalysts for the cycloaddition of CO₂ to epoxides are reviewed with an eye to the use of inexpensive, readily-available, non-toxic materials and to future emerging designs.

This work focused on renewable polymers derived from lipid compounds, including triacylglycerol, terpenes/terpenoids and rosin gum.

This Feature article discusses the conversion of lignin into high-value chemicals using metabolic engineering.

Progress in chemical recycling of waste polyesters (waste plastic refinery) was reviewed and prospected, newly reported thermal catalysis, photocatalysis, electrocatalysis, and biocatalysis in the recycle of waste PET-based product were introduced.

The review examines the structure–function relationship and outlines future directions to develop heterogeneous catalysts for C–C and C–O bonds cleavage in plastic waste and upcycling real-world plastic waste into chemicals and fuels.

In this study, five catalysts with Pd particle sizes ranging from single atoms to nanoclusters and nanoparticles were synthesized by controlling the Pd loading amount and preparation methods, and applied in the hydrogenation of FDCA to THFDCA.

Optimized continuous flow synthesis of 1,1-cyclopropane aminoketones was achieved by enhancing the photocyclization of 1,2-diketones to 2-hydroxycyclobutanones, followed by their reaction with aryl- and alkylamines through tandem C4–C3 ring contraction.

An iron oxide catalyst with high-index (1238) and (1344) facets achieves a high faradaic efficiency of 96.54% and a production rate of 1.13 mmol h⁻¹ cm⁻² towards electrocatalytic nitrate reduction to ammonia at 250 mA cm⁻².

This study investigates the aggregation-induced delayed fluorescence (AIDF), two-photon emission and photocurrent generation properties of three newly designed organic luminogens based on triphenyl amine as donor.

Modifying Cu with MnO₂ enhances the interaction of the furan ring and C–O–C group in furfural alcohol with catalyst in a preferential flat adsorption configuration thus facilitating the C–O–C activation to produce pentanediols.

Two new types of bifunctional chlorhexidine-based covalent organic polymers COP-Co and COP-Zn can efficiently convert CO₂ and epoxides into cyclic carbonates under solvent-free and co-catalyst-free conditions.

The in situ formation of a biphasic system based on DES components is characterised and applied for enhanced metal separation.

Melt-polymerization and mechanical ball-milling were combined to achieve the facile mass production of polyimide covalent organic frameworks (COFs) towards high-performance sodium-ion batteries.

Controllable ratios of Ni/NiO heterostructures aim to boost the alkaline HER under industrial conditions.

Herein we disclose a photosensitized E→Z contra-thermodynamic isomerization of vinyl sulfones, employing SEGPHOS as a promoter.

The SAPO-37-tetragonal zirconia composite was synergistically stabilized and found to be efficient in synthesizing ethyl levulinate from furfuryl alcohol.

A sustainable approach to prevent filler settling in vitrimeric polymers, using a mechanically recycled composite filler, is reported.

The ASSBs of Ca²⁺-substituted LZC electrolyte exhibit excellent discharge capacity and cycling performance with 4 V-class cathode materials.

The synthesis of poly(ester-block-vinyl acetate) was achieved using a robust xanthate reagent with dual activity for two distinct polymerisation mechanisms.

A well-dispersed CoP electrocatalyst embedded in nitrogen-doped carbon (CoP@NC) is developed for the first time as a novel host, demonstrating excellent performance in zinc–iodine batteries.

The study of cationic groups in novel anion exchange membranes suggests an approach to reducing H₂ crossover and improving performance.

This work developed a BiOI@AgBiS₂@NaYF₄:Yb,Tm UV-vis-NIR-activated heterostructure photocatalyst showing marked improvement in solar energy harvesting.

A straightforward synthesis route has led to the first sulfonated derivative of Shvo's catalyst, enabling base-free (transfer) hydrogenation in water.

An Fe-doped Ni-based oxalate framework is synthesized, and applied as an excellent bi-functional electrocatalyst for water and urea oxidation reactions.

In situ, quantitative, selective, and sub-millisecond dynamic detection of the four primary ROS/RNS (ONOO⁻, H₂O₂, NO, and NO₂⁻) in individual phagolysosomes during sterilization of RAW 264.7 macrophages was achieved by SiC@Pt nanowire electrodes.

Tetraene-linked diketopyrrolopyrrole (DPP)-based CMPs were developed via Knoevenagel condensation. The CMP has been characterized with NIR absorption (∼1200 nm) and high electrical conductivity (0.2 S m⁻¹).

Stable and conformal Ti–organic thin films from titanium isopropoxide and organic precursors (hydroquinone or benzene dicarboxylic acid) via ALD/MLD technique is reported; conformality is verified with lateral high-aspect-ratio structures.