Themed collection 2023 Journal of Materials Chemistry A Most Popular Articles

Sorbent-assisted AWH and moisture-enabled energy generation are reviewed in parallel to reveal the correlation between these two technologies.

The design strategies and underlying mechanisms of versatile carbon superstructures for energy storage are reviewed. Current challenges and development roadmaps are proposed to spur the further exploration of carbon superstructures.

CdS-based 3D nano/micro-architectures, their formation mechanism and tailoring of properties for visible light induced photocatalytic activities in energy and environmental applications are presented.

This review covers recent advances in novel palladium-based nanomaterials for multifunctional ORR/OER/HER electrocatalysis. Challenges are critically evaluated and strategies to solve current problems are summarized.

Lithium–sulfur batteries (LSBs) are one of the most promising next-generation batteries because they have higher theoretical capacities, lower cost, and smaller environmental impact than lithium-ion batteries (LIBs).

This review discusses the current status and challenges in the development of novel iodine capture adsorbents, focusing on adsorption mechanisms and evaluation methods.

The oxygen evolution reaction (OER), as an essential process in water decomposition and air batteries, has received increasing attention in the context of clean energy production and efficient energy storage.

Transparent supercapacitors hold great promise for futuristic electronics. This review discusses about the choice of electrode materials for achieving desirable transparency in supercapacitors without sacrificing the energy storage capacity.

Recently reported ruthenium (Ru)-based catalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) falling in the Ru metal and Ru compound subclasses are summarized with special emphasis being given to a discussion of activity/stability-enhancing strategies.

Aerogels are highly porous structures produced by replacing the liquid solvent of a gel with air without causing the collapse of the solid network.

The mechanism of a NiRuNa/CeAl dual function material in successive cycles of CO₂ capture and conversion was investigated. Carbonyls and carbonates were formed during CO₂ capture, and a spillover mechanism occurred to form the desired products.

A three-dimensional carbon-reinforced ionic-electronic composite (CRIEC) boosts the cycling areal capacities of working anode-free all-solid-state lithium batteries.

NiFeS nanosheet array on Ni foam (NiFeS/NF) behaves as a superb bifunctional electrocatalyst for overall seawater splitting, attaining a commercially demanded current density of 500 mA cm⁻² at a low cell voltage of 1.85 V with robust stability.

The MnCoO_x solid solution catalysts show excellent catalytic efficiency and stability in the acidic OER. The investigation and DFT studies highlight the essential role of Co³⁺ and Mn⁴⁺ cations and oxygen vacancies in the OER mechanism.

Using consistent-potential DFT calculations, two stable spin states of Fe(II)N₄C₁₀ are identified at ORR-relevant potentials. They exhibit dissimilar behavior for the adsorption of ORR intermediates and distinct ORR activity.

Bipolar porous polymers bearing carbonyl and amine groups were designed and synthesized as cathode materials in Na-ion and K-ion batteries, demonstrating great promise for high-performance and sustainable batteries.

COF membranes were synthesized using aliphatic diamines with tunable pore size for precise separation, solvent permeance, and fouling resistance. These membranes showed good operational stability and potential for various filtration applications.

Understanding dehydration of Prussian white systems to enable processability of water-based electrodes for sustainable and high capacity sodium-ion batteries.

Ce(SO₄)₂ was introduced as an electrolyte additive for aqueous zinc batteries. The MnOOH generated in situ in the electrolyte was deposited on MnO₂ cathodes and compensated for the influence of disproportionation.

Zn-doping populates the catalytically active Ni³⁺-OOH sites, and subsequently prevents the detrimental competition between the UOR and OER. Consequently, Zn@Ni-MOF demonstrates an outstanding ultra-high UOR current density.

Novel WO₃/In₂O₃ S-scheme heterojunctions unveiled enhanced CO₂ photoreduction performance with ∼53.7% CH₄ selectivity, attributing to unique S-scheme charge separation and efficient CO₂ activation.

Leveraging indoor photovoltaics for battery-free, self-powered IoT applications using engineered dye-sensitized light harvesters with record V_OC of 1.27 V, as a sustainable solution to mitigate the carbon footprint caused by discarded and depleted batteries.

Using first-principles calculations, a comprehensive intrinsic defect study on high-voltage spinel LiMn_1.5Ni_0.5O₄ (LMNO) cathode shows that the defect chemistry of this material is dominated by cation antisites and their complexes.

Unusual thermostable and insensitive high-energy compounds which contain dioximes with donor–acceptor H-bond sites, were synthesized from glyoxal (40% in water) in straightforward steps.

Novel structured thiadiazole-attached carbon nitrides are first synthesized via sintering 5-amino-1,3,4-thiadiazole-2-thiol, demonstrating excellent performances towards photocatalytic H₂ evolution under visible light irradiation.

Improving the perovskite/electron-transporting layer (ETL) interface is a crucial task to boost the performance of perovskite solar cells (PSCs).

Organic ligand facilitated in situ exsolution of CoFe alloys over Ba_0.5Sr_0.5Co_0.8Fe_0.2O₃ perovskite toward enhanced oxygen electrocatalysis for rechargeable Zn-air batteries.

GF/PANI separators were prepared by in situ polymerization of aniline monomers on GF. A PANI layer homogenizes the electric field distribution and induces the uniform deposition of zinc, thereby improving the electrochemical performance of batteries.

Utilization of bifunctional high-efficiency non-precious electrocatalysts for stable and effective water splitting is crucial to the growth of the clean energy industry.

A rapid synthesis of TiO₂ hybrids with significant enhancement in photocatalytic activity is reported. Using state-of-the-art techniques including sophisticated DFT calculations, we report insight into the charge transfer and modulation of the energy band edges.

We establish a robust and broadly applicable multistep workflow using machine learning algorithms to construct well-trained data-driven models for predicting the hydrogen evolution reaction activity of 4500 MM′XT₂-type MXenes.

We proposed a facile porous organic cage (POC) composite membrane fabricated with the RCC3 cage crosslinked by terephthaloyl chloride for CO₂/N₂ and CH₄/N₂ separation. The amine-rich subnanochannel provided by RCC3 promoted the rapid penetration of CO₂.

Fe, Cu dual metal single atom catalyst on commercial carbon black exhibited excellent oxygen reduction reaction performance.

Novel gamma-phase Ni–Co oxyhydroxides nanoplate networks with cationic vacancy defects and crystalline–amorphous interfaces achieve ultrahigh mass/areal/volumetric energy-density flexible all-solid-state asymmetric supercapacitor.

The relationship between the sliding speed, concentration of moving droplet and transferred charge at a liquid–solid interface, is probed using a droplet triboelectric nanogenerator.

Ti₃C₂T_x MXene-integrated porous carbon nanofiber freestanding/flexible electrodes are engineered and the optimized MX-5@PCNF is used for the fabrication of flexible symmetric and asymmetric supercapacitor devices with high energy density.

For the first-time, recycled RW waste is decorated with a ZIF-67, MXene and reduced graphene oxide as the photothermal evaporator. Solar-thermal conversion efficiency of 153.7% was achieved under 1 sun illumination.

The novel nanomaterials Au_xPd_y@ZIF-8 catalyze H₂-producing ammonia borane methanolysis; the reaction is considerably boosted by visible-light irradiation and ZIF-8 surpassing other supports. KIE studies and DFT calculations delineate the mechanism.

A lithium/sulfide/polysulfide cell design with a solid-state sulfide electrolyte and a polysulfide cathode shows a liquid–solid interface with a fast charge-transfer path, high polysulfide retention, and smooth lithium-ion diffusion.

During their lifetime, the electrocatalytically active NiFe LDH platelets show impressive, but unstable water-splitting capabilities due largely to compositional degradation.

A facile deprotection-free method to in situ grow GDY on a C₃N₄ surface is developed. This straightforward strategy enables the formation of an integral GDY@C₃N₄ heterojunction, leading to an enhanced photocatalytic activity.

We demonstrate a Ti₃C₂T_x MXene coated textile supercapacitor configured as five cells stacked in series with a high operating potential range of 6 V, capable of real time operation of a wireless sensor for over 90 minutes.

This work presents red emissive CDs as a promising fluorescent sensor with excellent photostability, high fluorescence quantum yield, and negligible cytotoxicity for real-time sensing and visualizing polarity changes in mitochondria and lysosomes.

NaCl crystals are employed as a substrate to grow MoS₂ nanosheets. On dissolving NaCl, the nanosheets are introduced to silicon nanoparticles using layer-by-layer assembly forming robust MoS₂@Si anodes for lithium-ion batteries.

Using diphenyl ether as additive in an environmentally friendly fabrication process for non-fullerene acceptor organic solar cells, the nanostructure of the active layer can be fine-tuned to improve efficiency and stability of the devices.

An S-scheme heterojunction of core–shell MoO_3−x@ZnIn₂S₄ is first constructed for photothermal-coupled solar photocatalytic CO₂ reduction with high efficiency and selectivity.

Hydrophobic side chain grafted poly(fluorenyl-co-aryl piperidinium) ionomers simultaneously possess outstanding peak power density of 2.6 W cm⁻² at 80 °C along with durable in situ stability of 0.4 mV h⁻¹ voltage decay rate under 0.6 A cm⁻² at 70 °C.

Pt/SrTiO₃ nanoparticle catalysts have been synthesized by surface organometallic chemistry in solution on a 5 g scale. Pt/SrTiO₃ selectively and repeatedly upcycles isotactic polypropylene into uniform liquid products with M_n ∼ 200 Da.

A PTZ-based D–A COF with low exciton binding energy and high charge separation efficiency exhibited an enhanced photocatalytic performance in oxidative amine coupling and cyclization of thioamide reactions.

A four-step method was applied to biomass and waste polysaccharides, obtaining char-based bifunctional catalysts active in CO₂ conversion into cyclic carbonates.