SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-026-4350-4
Flexible wearable sensors have transformed motion tracking, soft robotics, and human-machine interfaces by enabling precise movement detection and adaptability to curved surfaces. However, conventional composite sensors often face challenges such as limited sensitivity, detection range, linearity, and durability. In this study, we propose a stretchable auxetic sensing textile with a negative Poisson’s ratio (NPR) structure, incorporating reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and carbon nanotubes (CNT) by micro-crack engineering to enhance its mechanical durability and sensing performance. Integrating macro-scale NPR with micro-scale wrinkles, this innovative design achieves a high sensitivity of 11.2 within a wide detection range (0-100%), a more linear sensing range with an R2 value of 0.998, an ultra-low detection limit of 0.5%, and exceptional durability, outperforming conventional wearable sensors. Additionally, the textile sensor boasts excellent moisture permeability (32.7 g m⁻² h⁻¹) and a remarkable NPR value of -0.25, ensuring comfort and adaptability for various wearable applications. Integrated with deep learning algorithms, the auxetic sensing textile demonstrates 98% accuracy in recognizing soft robotic movements at various bending angles. It is capable of capturing both small-scale physiological signals, such as electrocardiograms, and large-scale movements, offering significant freedom of movement and adaptability to complex surfaces.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-3815-0
The development of bifunctional electrocatalysts capable of integrating biomass-derived platform molecule oxidation with organic reduction offers a promising strategy for simultaneously enhancing energy efficiency and generating high-value chemicals. However, designing catalysts that exhibit both high activity and stability in integrated systems remains a significant challenge. Herein, we report a self-supported electrode composed of nitrogen-doped carbonized wood (NCW) supported NiCo nanosheets (NiCo 0.3/NCW) that enables the electrocatalytic 5-hydroxymethylfurfural oxidation to produce 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA) and the nitrobenzene reduction to yield aniline in an integrated electrochemical cell. The NiCo 0.3/NCW electrode achieves the production of FDCA and aniline at a low cell voltage of 1.7 V, with ~99% anodic and ~92% cathodic Faradaic efficiencies, respectively. Experimental characterizations disclose that the hierarchical porous NCW architecture promotes the dispersion of active sites, while nitrogen doping strengthens metal–support interactions. In-situ spectroscopic experiments combined with density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal that cobalt incorporation tunes the electronic structure of nickel, thus optimizing substrate and intermediate adsorption, and lowering energy barriers. These effects ultimately enhance the performance of the natural wood-derived catalyst in integrated biomass valorization and selective organic electrosynthesis.
Environmental Chemistry•2026•DOI: 10.7524/j.issn.0254-6108.2025012401
Traditional excitation-emission matrix (EEM) fluorescence spectroscopy suffers from prolonged scanning times, data redundancy, high instrument cost, and bulkiness, hindering rapid on-site water pollution source tracing. This study proposes a novel classification method combining fixed characteristic excitation wavelength scanning with support vector machine (SVM) to enhance efficiency. A total of 180 EEM samples were collected from six pollution source categories: chemical fiber dyeing and finishing, wool textile dyeing and finishing, leather processing, metal surface processing, papermaking, and domestic sewage. Parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC) identified characteristic fluorescent components and excitation wavelengths. Correlation analysis and feature importance analysis further reduced these to seven characteristic excitation wavelengths. SVM and random forest (RF) models were constructed using both the reduced and original EEM datasets. Results demonstrated that models based on the seven characteristic excitation wavelengths maintained high recognition accuracy while significantly improving efficiency. The SVM model achieved the best performance, with runtime reduced from 243.05 s to 34.56 s (an 86% decrease) and recognition accuracy reaching 94.4%. Precision, recall, and F1-score metrics confirmed the robust performance of SVM with characteristic wavelengths, particularly for metal surface processing wastewater. This study provides an efficient and reliable method for rapid water pollution tracing by simplifying EEM scanning and integrating SVM, offering high application value. Future work will optimize feature selection strategies and explore additional sample categories and model combinations to broaden applicability.
Chinese Journal of Environmental Engineering•2026•DOI: 10.12030/j.cjee.202509020
The AAOA-MBR (anaerobic-anoxic-oxic-anoxic membrane bioreactor) process is widely used in municipal wastewater treatment, but its multi-stage internal recirculation complicates sludge retention time (SRT) and carbon source distribution. This study systematically regulated three reflux ratios (R1: membrane tank to oxic tank; R2: oxic tank to anoxic I tank; R3: anoxic II tank to anaerobic tank) in a pilot-scale system (0.24 m3·d−1) to reveal their effects on nutrient removal and membrane fouling. When R1:R2:R3 = 300%:200%:100%, effluent COD, TN, TP, and NH3-N met discharge standards. Reducing R1 and R2, thereby decreasing total reflux ratio from R=6 to R=3, shortened SRT, which suppressed nitrifier accumulation and increased effluent COD and TN, but decreased TP. High-throughput sequencing of anoxic I and oxic tanks showed that denitrifying bacteria (Thauera and Ottowia) relative abundances decreased from 0.68% to 0.42% and 0.51% to 0.24%, respectively, while the phosphorus-accumulating organism Candidatus_Accumulibacter increased from 0.78% to 1.12%, enhancing phosphorus removal. Additionally, lowering R1 to 200% caused sludge accumulation in the membrane tank, exacerbating membrane fouling. Thus, internal recirculation ratios must be adjusted based on influent characteristics to balance nutrient removal and membrane performance.
Chinese Journal of Environmental Engineering•2026•DOI: 10.12030/j.cjee.202509067
Marine litter poses a significant threat to coastal ecosystems globally, necessitating a comprehensive understanding of its multi-compartment distribution and driving mechanisms for effective management. This study investigated the occurrence, composition, and sources of beach, sea surface, and seafloor litter in the northeastern Daya Bay, a semi-enclosed bay, during August–October 2024. Sampling included 11 beach transects, 6 surface transects, and 25 seafloor transects. Results showed that the mean density of large and very large beach litter was 4.41×10^5 items·km−2, while medium beach litter reached 5.39×10^6 items·km−2. Surface litter densities were 5.82×10^2 and 9.90×10^3 items·km−2 for large/very large and medium fractions, respectively. Seafloor litter averaged 5.20×10^3 items·km−2. Plastics dominated all compartments, accounting for 74.0% (beach), 96.0% (surface), and 78.8% (seafloor) of total litter. Source apportionment using NOWPAP methodology indicated that beach and surface litter primarily originated from coastal recreational activities, whereas seafloor litter was mainly derived from shipping and fishing. Beach quality assessment revealed that 63.6% of beaches were moderately clean or better (grade II–IV), and 90.9% were moderately safe or better (grade I–III). Hotspots included tourism beaches, tidal gyre areas, coral reef zones, and fishing grounds. The study underscores the need for targeted management, including improved waste collection on tourist beaches, dynamic cleaning protocols, and port reception facilities for fishing waste.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-4067-4
Confined growth of metal halide perovskite quantum dots (QDs) in porous matrices yields improved stability and sensitivity for their implementation in luminescent chemical sensing applications. Here, we realized the synthesis of highly stable (water, photo, and thermal) and luminescent CsPbX3 QDs within nanoporous glass (NG). This is achieved by a nano-confined aqueous synthesis of CsPbBr3 QDs in Pb-anchored NG. Benefiting from strong Pb–O–Si chemical bonding between the perovskite QDs and the NG matrix, the stability of the encapsulated perovskite QDs is significantly enhanced. The emission of the perovskite NG can be tuned from 440 to 760 nm. By integrating green- and red-emitting perovskite NG onto a blue LED chip, stable WLEDs were successfully fabricated. This facile approach enables the integration of ultra-stable perovskite QDs within transparent porous monoliths toward diverse luminescent chemical sensing applications.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2025•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-024-3300-6
Photothermal therapy (PTT) is limited by heat shock protein (HSP) upregulation and mitochondrial-encoded thermoresistance in tumor cells. This study reports PtRhMo/Rh multi-metal nanozymes synthesized via a one-step method for cascade enzymatic therapy and enhanced PTT. The nanozymes exhibit a photothermal conversion efficiency of 55.6% and multiple enzyme-like activities: catalase (CAT), oxidase (OXD), peroxidase (POD), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), and NADH oxidase (NOX). These activities generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) and deplete NADH, disrupting the electron transport chain (ETC) and causing mitochondrial damage. This downregulates HSP70, sensitizing tumors to heat. In vivo biocompatibility tests at 400 ppm showed no hemolysis and no significant pathological changes in major organs. Hematological parameters remained stable. The synergistic approach directly kills tumor cells and weakens thermoresistance, offering a promising strategy for clinical translation.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2025•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-3347-1
Two-dimensional (2D) Dion–Jacobson (DJ) phase perovskites are promising for photodetection but suffer from inefficient charge carrier extraction and significant ion migration. This study introduces Br− doping into the axial halide sites of (DMPD)Pb(I0.96Br0.04)4 (DMPD = 3-(dimethylamino)-1-propylammonium), inducing local structural symmetry breaking. This symmetry breaking leads to energy band splitting, increased activation energy for ion migration, and relaxed microstrain, as confirmed by theoretical and experimental analyses. The modified lattice and electronic band structures synergistically reduce charge carrier recombination, enhance transport and extraction, and suppress ion migration. Consequently, the single-crystal photodetector achieves a detectivity of 7.12 × 10^12 Jones, among the highest for 2D DJ phase perovskite devices. These findings provide a design strategy for efficient 2D perovskites for advanced optoelectronics.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2025•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-3361-1
Laser phosphor display (LPD) technology offers high brightness, wide color gamut, and speckle-free operation, but the lack of laser-resistant bulk luminescent materials with narrow-band emission remains a critical bottleneck. This work presents a general strategy to fabricate phosphor-glass composites (PGCs) incorporating commercial red-emitting K2SiF6:Mn4+ (KSF:Mn4+) and green-emitting β-SiAlON:Eu2+ phosphors, achieving internal quantum efficiencies of 94.6% and 87.8%, respectively. The resulting phosphor wheels exhibit high luminous flux and efficiency: KSF:Mn-PGC reaches 684 lm and 21 lm W−1 mm−1, while β-SiAlON:Eu-PGC achieves 4770 lm and 172 lm W−1 mm−1, with mitigated thermal accumulation. Integrating these two PGCs into a patterned phosphor wheel yields a color gamut covering 125% of the Rec. 709 standard, significantly surpassing the 103% coverage of conventional YAG:Ce-based laser light sources. This approach enables the adaptation of commercial phosphors into bulk PGC materials, enhancing stability and promoting LPD development for next-generation display applications.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2025•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-3316-1
The tunable dielectric and magnetic properties of high entropy alloy (HEA) nanoparticles have attracted considerable interest for optimal impedance matching and microwave absorption. However, compositional engineering of HEA nanoparticles to regulate dielectric-magnetic balance for high-performance microwave absorption remains challenging. Herein, a vapor-phase synthesis method is employed to prepare C-coated CoNiFeCuCrx HEA nanoparticles with tunable Cr content. The prepared HEA nanoparticles, with a size of less than 10 nm, exhibited typical soft ferromagnetic characteristics. In conjunction with additional contributions of interfacial polarization, graphitization of the C-shell, and tunable Cr content to the regulation of electromagnetic parameters, the C-coated CoNiFeCuCr0.5 nanoparticles exhibit a minimum reflection loss (RLmin) of −63.9 dB and an effective absorption bandwidth (EAB) of 5.52 GHz, with an optimal thickness of 2.1 mm. Moreover, by employing a gradient three-layer architectural design, the EAB can be further extended to 12.22 GHz. Simultaneously, simulated radar cross-section (RCS) results highlight exceptional radar stealth performance, with RCS values remaining below −20 dBm2 across a wide angular range of −85° to 85°. This study offers valuable perspectives on designing high-performance HEA-based electromagnetic wave absorbing materials, achieving outstanding microwave absorption and radar stealth capabilities through careful compositional engineering.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2025•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-3385-4
Two-dimensional transition metal carbides/nitrides (MXenes) exhibit exceptional mechanical and electrical properties, positioning them as promising candidates for electronics, aerospace, and energy storage. However, assembling MXene nanosheets into high-performance macroscopic nanocomposites remains challenging due to low stress-transfer efficiency between nanosheets. This review systematically examines the role of voids within MXene-based nanocomposites, revealing that voids can paradoxically enhance performance under specific conditions. We discuss strategies to mitigate detrimental voids, including synergistic interfacial interactions, nanosheet filling, fabrication process optimization, and nanoconfined assembly. Empirical data from referenced studies indicate that void content critically influences mechanical reinforcement; for instance, graphene oxide monolayers exhibit a Young's modulus of approximately 200 GPa, while MXene monolayers reach 330 GPa. The review also highlights that controlled nanovoid dispersion in metals can increase strength by up to 50% without sacrificing ductility. We provide a roadmap for fabricating high-performance MXene-based nanocomposites, emphasizing the need to balance void elimination with intentional void engineering. This work consolidates current understanding and identifies pathways to overcome the stress-transfer bottleneck, enabling scalable production of MXene composites with tailored properties for demanding applications.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2025•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-3459-7
Bacterial infection remains a critical impediment in clinical wound management, with conventional antibiotic therapies compromised by cytotoxicity and escalating drug resistance. Existing photodynamic therapy (PDT) and nanozyme-based antibacterial strategies often lack microenvironment specificity, exhibiting persistent activity that risks collateral tissue damage. This study reports the development of bacterial microenvironment-responsive Fe-Ce6 nanoparticles (NPs) that enable in situ generation of peroxidase (POD)-like activity and PDT activation for enhanced antibacterial wound therapy. Under stimulation by bacteria-secreted adenosine triphosphate (ATP), Fe-Ce6 NPs undergo disassembly and in situ formation of Fe-ATP complexes, synchronously releasing the Ce6 photosensitizer. The Fe-ATP complex, possessing POD-like activity, catalyzes the conversion of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) into hydroxyl radicals (·OH), while Ce6 generates singlet oxygen (1O2) under 671 nm laser irradiation, synergistically augmenting nanozyme-PDT antibacterial effects. Intracellular ATP released from lysed bacteria further amplifies this cascade, promoting Fe-ATP complex formation and Ce6 release, ultimately inducing an avalanche effect that efficiently kills bacteria and reinforces therapeutic action. In vitro, the system demonstrates remarkable antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli in simulated bacterial environments. In vivo, it exhibits substantial bactericidal efficacy and accelerates wound healing. This study presents the Fe-Ce6 NPs smart system activated by bacterial microenvironments via an off-on mechanism, enabling precise reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation control, significantly reducing non-target tissue damage associated with traditional therapies, and offering a novel paradigm for developing microenvironment-responsive intelligent antibacterial systems.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2025•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-3562-3
The global transition to low-carbon economies necessitates scalable hydrogen production via water electrolysis powered by renewable energy. Industry forecasts project global hydrogen demand to exceed 469 million tons per year by 2050, with clean hydrogen comprising 93% of the total. Meeting an annual clean hydrogen demand of 436 Mt would require daily water consumption of 15 Mt, yet major wind and solar installations are concentrated in arid and semi-arid regions with limited freshwater resources. China exemplifies this mismatch: Xinjiang added 42.11 GW of renewable capacity in 2024, far exceeding Fujian's 7.93 GW, while possessing only 80 billion cubic meters of freshwater compared to Fujian's 130 billion. This geographical constraint renders freshwater-dependent electrolysis technologies—alkaline water electrolyzers (AWE), proton exchange membrane electrolyzers (PEMWE), and anion exchange membrane electrolyzers (AEMWE)—increasingly untenable for large-scale deployment. Seawater electrolysis, either indirect (desalination followed by electrolysis) or direct (corrosion-resistant electrodes in untreated seawater), offers a viable pathway. However, inherent impurities including Ca2+, Mg2+, and Cl− impose severe cathodic and anodic challenges. Recent advances in corrosion-resistant, highly active, and selective electrodes now meet industrial requirements for alkaline seawater electrolysis. Electrodes with anti-fluctuation capabilities and electrolyte engineering strategies enable stable operation with intermittent renewable power. Lower water quality requirements simplify system architecture and reduce land footprint, while Cl− tolerance permits treatment of complex water sources. These developments position seawater electrolysis as a critical component of future zero-carbon energy systems.