SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-026-4260-5
Lithium-sulfur batteries (LSBs) are recognized as a leading candidate for next-generation energy storage due to their high theoretical specific capacity (1675 mAh g⁻¹). However, the shuttle effect of lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) severely limits cycle life and energy efficiency. Here, we report a multi-interface engineering strategy employing a MnO₂-TiO₂@Ti₃C₂ MXene (MT@MX) heterojunction, synthesized via a facile redox reaction between MXene and KMnO₄, to modulate bidirectional polysulfide conversion. The 2D structure with high conductivity and abundant heterogeneous interfaces facilitates fast ion/electron transfer, reduces reaction energy barriers, and enhances adsorption via d-band center effects. The stepped built-in electric field (BIEF) in MT@MX lowers the migration energy barrier of LiPSs from catalytic MXene to TiO₂ and then to adsorptive MnO₂, enabling reversible migration across multi-interfaces. Optimized heterointerfaces synergistically integrate adsorption, diffusion, and catalytic conversion, yielding excellent cycling stability even at a high sulfur loading of 6.4 mg cm⁻². This work demonstrates that constructing heterojunctions with stepped BIEF offers a feasible approach to modulate interfacial diffusion and provides a new design strategy for high-performance LSB electrocatalysts.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-026-4359-0
Organic solar cells (OSCs) require cathode interlayers (CILs) that combine high charge transport, defect passivation, and thickness insensitivity for scalable manufacturing. Here, we report the synthesis of a novel A-D-A-A'-type polymer, PDPP2F-NDI-N, via the green and efficient direct arylation polymerization (DArP) method. The multiple electron-deficient units in the backbone confer strong electron-withdrawing character, effective work function modulation, enhanced built-in potential, high crystallinity, and ordered molecular packing. PDPP2F-NDI-N exhibits a high electron mobility of 1.01 × 10⁻³ cm² V⁻¹ s⁻¹ and electrical conductivity of 3.13 × 10⁻³ S m⁻¹, facilitating efficient charge extraction and transport. Its interfacial modification capability suppresses interfacial defects and reduces non-radiative recombination losses. In ternary OSCs, PDPP2F-NDI-N achieves a high power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 20.44%, with outstanding thickness insensitivity retaining 92.8% of peak PCE at a 30 nm CIL thickness, and a T80 lifetime exceeding 1700 hours under photo-thermal aging. This work demonstrates that poly(A-D-A-alt-A') backbone design combined with DArP synthesis provides an effective strategy for developing high-performance, thickness-insensitive, and stable polymeric CILs, advancing efficient, stable, and scalable OSC applications.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-026-4194-2
Lanthanide-doped upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) exhibit distinctive optical characteristics, including excellent photostability, large anti-Stokes shifts, narrow emission bands, and tunable luminescence lifetimes. Despite their advantages, UCNPs suffer from inherently weak light absorption because of the 4f-4f transitions of lanthanide ions. Near-infrared dye-sensitization has emerged as an effective strategy to enhance their absorption, yet the photoconversion performance remains constrained by photobleaching and interfacial energy losses. In this review, we systematically analyze the surface coordination environments and energy transfer pathways that govern dye-sensitized UCNPs. We evaluate critical molecular parameters, such as dye frameworks, surface binding affinity, and triplet-state energy alignment, in conjunction with nanoparticle structural features, including dopant concentration, core-shell architectures, and surface electronic configurations. By providing a fundamental assessment of these photophysical and photochemical processes, we propose targeted optimization strategies to enhance the performance and stability of these hybrid materials for advanced applications.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-3583-6
Water scarcity and the increasing demand for clean water have driven the development of efficient solar desalination technologies. Interfacial solar steam generation (ISSG) is promising, yet its practical deployment is hindered by insufficient light harvesting and salt crystallization on photothermal surfaces. Here, we report a Janus hydrogel evaporator in which tubular Co9S8 nanocrystals are uniformly embedded in a polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) matrix with a concave pyramid pattern, creating a broadband light-trapping architecture (200–2500 nm) with 96% solar absorption. The top surface is further coated with hydrophobic zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8), while the bottom retains intrinsic hydrogel hydrophilicity, establishing asymmetric wettability that sustains rapid water supply yet suppresses salt deposition. Under one-sun illumination (1 kW m−2), the Janus evaporator achieves an evaporation rate of 2.69 kg m−2 h−1 and a solar-to-vapor efficiency of 98.15%. Continuous operation in 3.5 wt% brine shows stable performance for 11 h without observable salt crystallization. This work offers an effective, durable pathway toward high-performance solar desalination and wastewater purification.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-3662-4
Luminescent thermometry has become a research hotspot due to its high spatial resolution, fast response, and non-invasive nature. However, achieving high-performance temperature imaging requires both luminescent materials with high temperature sensitivity and efficient imaging methods, which remains a significant challenge. In this study, a series of pure-phase rubidium germanate phosphors doped with manganese were synthesized and encapsulated into polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) films to improve chemical stability. The dramatic temperature-dependent luminescence behavior of Mn4+ in the Rb2Ge4O9 matrix provides reliable and efficient methods for temperature sensing. The high-sensitivity temperature sensing capability of the Rb2Ge4O9:0.002 Mn4+ fluorescent film has been confirmed, leveraging temperature-dependent emission intensity, luminescence decay lifetime, and time-resolved intensity ratio techniques. Notably, Rb2Ge4O9:Mn4+ fluorescent film exhibits a strikingly high relative sensitivity of 17.03% K−1 at 330 K in the time-resolved thermometry scheme, which is the highest relative temperature sensitivity within the physiological temperature range known to us. High-performance temperature imaging of the fluorescent film is achieved through the time-resolved intensity ratio strategy with a best practical temperature resolution of 0.08 K at 325 K. Furthermore, the temperature images of an operating nickel circuit with a line width of 20 μm under different working currents were recorded, showing a clear circuit microstructure and temperature gradient. These findings pave a novel path for realizing high-performance temperature imaging.
New Carbon Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1016/S1872-5805(26)61067-0
The reduction of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) to 4-aminophenol (4-AP) in wastewater faces challenges in conversion rate and stability. We used coal tar pitch-based activated carbon fibers (ACFs) as a support material for loading transition metal catalysts to catalyze the reaction. Fe–Ni nanoparticles were loaded onto the coal tar pitch-based ACF through a simple hydrothermal–calcination method. The results showed that the coal tar pitch-based ACFs had a high specific surface area (1847 m2/g) and a unique microporous structure, and the metals were loaded onto them. The average diameter of the nanoparticles formed was approximately 100 nm. By changing the metal loading it was shown that the performance was best when the reaction temperature was 45 °C, the 4-NP concentration was 2.5 mmol L−1, and the molar concentration ratio of Fe3+ to Ni2+ was 1∶2 (total 7.5 mmol L−1). Under these conditions the conversion efficiency reached 99.88%. Fe2.5/Ni5–ACF exhibited excellent catalytic activity and recyclability for 4-NP after five cycles. The inherent advantages of nanomaterials increase the catalytic efficiency of 4-NP, which expands the use of coal tar pitch-based ACFs as supporting materials in the field of catalysis.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-3697-8
Multi-site coupling is a promising strategy for developing highly efficient and CO-resistant hydrogen oxidation reaction (HOR) catalysts for proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). However, designing multifunctional synergistic schemes for single-atom sites remains a significant challenge. Herein, we propose a dual-template-confined oxophilic engineering strategy to construct well-dispersed iridium-nickel (IrNi) atomic dimers adjacent to IrNi nanoclusters on porous nitrogen-doped carbon (IrNi Dimer/NC1.8-PNC). The paired IrNi dimer features an asymmetric Ir-N3 configuration coordinated with heteroatomic Ni-N3O via an N-bridge. Remarkably, IrNi Dimer/NC1.8-PNC exhibits a ~23-fold enhancement in mass activity (4.36 A mg−1 Ir at 20 mV) and 5-fold longer stability compared to benchmarking Pt/C toward HOR, while achieving a high rated power density of 1.18 W cm−2 in PEMFC anode applications. Furthermore, IrNi Dimer/NC1.8-PNC demonstrates superior CO tolerance over monometallic Ir and Pt/C in both half-cell and full-cell devices. Combined experimental and density functional theory studies reveal that oxophilic Ni modulates the electronic environment of Ir through alloying and dimer interactions, thereby enhancing HOR activity. Importantly, the asymmetric IrNi dimer enables efficient CO* and OH* co-adsorption while facilitating CO2* desorption, synergistically mitigating CO poisoning and improving atom utilization efficiency. This work provides a design strategy and fundamental insights for multi-site synergistic catalysts in PEMFC anodes.
Journal of Fuel Chemistry and Technology•2026•DOI: 10.3724/2097-213X.2025.JFCT.0026
The catalytic hydrogenation of carbon dioxide (CO2) to light olefins (C2–C4) represents a pivotal route for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions while producing high-value chemical feedstocks. This review systematically examines the two principal technological pathways: CO2-Fischer-Tropsch synthesis (CO2-FTO) and CO2-methanol-to-olefins (CO2-MTO). The CO2-FTO route couples reverse water-gas shift (RWGS) with Fischer-Tropsch synthesis, whereas CO2-MTO proceeds via methanol intermediate. Key challenges arise from the thermodynamic stability of CO2 (C=O bond dissociation energy ~750 kJ/mol) and kinetic limitations. The review critically evaluates the influence of catalyst promoters (e.g., Na, Mn, Cu), support structures, and surface defect site concentrations on CO2 activation and olefin selectivity. For zeolite-based catalysts, pore architecture and acidity are shown to govern methanol conversion to olefins. Representative data from the literature indicate that Fe-based catalysts with Na promotion achieve CO2 conversion up to 40% with olefin selectivity exceeding 50% under optimized conditions. The review underscores the necessity of integrating catalyst design with reactor engineering to overcome thermodynamic constraints and achieve industrially viable performance.
Environmental Chemistry•2026•DOI: 10.7524/j.issn.0254-6108.2024121201
A method for the simultaneous determination of 19 sulfonamide antibiotics in environmental aqueous samples was developed by integrating solid-phase extraction (SPE) and gel permeation chromatography (GPC) with ultra-performance liquid chromatography–triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS). Aqueous samples were filtered through 0.45 μm membranes, adjusted to pH 6, and treated with Na2EDTA at 2.5 mg·L−1 to mitigate matrix effects. Analytes were enriched on Oasis HLB cartridges, purified by GPC, and separated on a Hypersil GOLD C18 column (2.1 mm ID × 100 mm, 1.9 μm) using gradient elution with 0.05% (V/V) formic acid in water and methanol. Detection was performed in multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mode with internal standard quantification. Under optimal conditions, limits of detection (LOD) and quantification (LOQ) ranged from 0.7–4.4 ng·L−1 and 2.8–17.6 ng·L−1, respectively. Recoveries from spiked real samples at 10, 200, and 400 ng·L−1 were 44.5%–102%, 47.7%–97.5%, and 51.4%–115%, with relative standard deviations (RSDs) of 1.8%–10%, 0.64%–5.9%, and 0.71%–4.6%, respectively. The method was applied to three surface waters and three municipal wastewater treatment plant effluents, detecting five sulfonamides at concentrations ranging from 1.82 to 3864 ng·L−1. The combined SPE-GPC cleanup effectively reduced matrix suppression, offering high sensitivity, precision, and robustness for routine monitoring of sulfonamide antibiotics in environmental waters.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-3829-7
Circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) is pivotal for advanced photonic applications, yet achieving concurrent high emission efficiency and large dissymmetry factors remains challenging. Here, we report a chiral reticular chemistry strategy to construct homochiral porous metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) as efficient CPL-active materials. By co-assembling enantiopure R/S-binol with achiral luminescent ligands, three pairs of enantiomeric pillar-layered MOFs were synthesized. These frameworks exhibit significantly amplified CPL responses, with |g_lum| values enhanced by up to two orders of magnitude compared to free ligands, reaching levels comparable to state-of-the-art chiral assemblies, while maintaining high photoluminescence efficiencies (Φ_PL up to 67%). Mechanistic investigations reveal that CPL originates primarily from the global chirality of the hierarchical frameworks rather than the intrinsic chirality of the precursors. This work establishes a robust design principle for porous CPL-active materials, offering new insights into chirality transfer and opening avenues to integrate strong luminescence with stable chirality in extended frameworks.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-3944-9
Hard carbon (HC) is a promising anode material for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) but suffers from low initial Coulombic efficiency (ICE) and unstable solid electrolyte interphase (SEI). Here, we report a dual-functional strategy combining surface engineering and solution chemical pre-sodiation. A graphitic carbon coating on HC acts as a conductive buffer network and shields surface defects, while sodium biphenyl (Na-Bp) pre-sodiation drives sodium ions into the material via a potential difference, inducing a pre-SEI layer that matures into a thin, dense, NaF-rich inorganic SEI during cycling. This approach compensates for irreversible sodium loss and enhances cycling stability. The pre-sodiated electrode (pCH4-HC) achieves an ICE of 99.5% and a reversible capacity of 321.7 mAh g−1, compared to 54.2% for untreated HC. Long-term cycling shows 74.0% capacity retention after 1000 cycles at 300 mA g−1. In full-cells with NaNi1/3Fe1/3Mn1/3O2 (NFM) cathode, pCH4-HC||NFM delivers 81.9 mAh g−1 after 100 cycles, demonstrating excellent stability and rate performance. This dual-strategy approach validates the adaptability of pre-sodiation technology for high-performance SIBs.
Environmental Chemistry•2026•DOI: 10.7524/j.issn.0254-6108.2025102801
This study develops a multivariate time-series forecasting model for water quality in the Lhasa River, focusing on four key indicators: water temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, and turbidity. Data preprocessing integrated multiple missing-value imputation strategies and interquartile range (IQR) outlier removal. Boxplots and relative standard deviation (RSD) assessed data distribution and dispersion, while autocorrelation and Pearson correlation analyses revealed periodic patterns and inter-variable relationships. Four representative algorithms—Support Vector Regression (SVR), Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost), CNN-BiLSTM-Attention, and TCN-Transformer—were optimized via Bayesian hyperparameter tuning. Model performance was evaluated using MAE, MSE, RMSE, and R². The study systematically compared the effects of different missing-value handling methods, both independently and combined with IQR outlier removal. Results indicate that CNN-BiLSTM-Attention excels in water temperature prediction, suitable for relatively stable and simple patterns. In contrast, TCN-Transformer demonstrates superior performance for pH, dissolved oxygen, and turbidity, which exhibit strong nonlinearity and long-term dependencies, effectively capturing temporal dependencies and coupling relationships. The findings provide a viable technical route and theoretical reference for river water quality monitoring and intelligent early-warning systems.
Environmental Chemistry•2026•DOI: 10.7524/j.issn.0254-6108.2025042103
This study investigated the spatiotemporal distribution, ecological risk, and sources of seven heavy metals (Cr, Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn, As) in surface sediments of Ranwu Lake, Xizang. Twelve samples were collected during the glacial ablation period (July 2024) and late glacial ablation period (November 2024). Concentrations were determined and analyzed using inverse distance weighting (IDW) for spatial patterns, geo-accumulation index (Igeo) and potential ecological risk index (RI) for risk assessment, and correlation analysis (CA), principal component analysis (PCA), and absolute principal component score-multiple linear regression (APCS-MLR) for source apportionment. Results showed that during glacial ablation, mean Cr, Cd, Pb, and As exceeded Xizang soil background values, while in the late ablation period only Cd, Pb, and As remained elevated. Spatial distribution varied between periods, with high concentrations in the middle and lower lake during ablation, shifting to the lower lake in the late period. Igeo and RI indicated overall low ecological risk, with Cd as the primary risk factor; mean RI values were 81.79 and 98.30 for the two periods, respectively. Source apportionment revealed that heavy metals mainly originated from natural and transportation sources, with traffic emissions being the major contributor to ecological risk. Specifically, Cr, Ni, and As were predominantly natural, Cd and Pb were mainly traffic-related, and Cu and Zn were influenced by both natural and traffic sources.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-4084-1
Alkali metal halides such as KCl are typical insulators with broad bandgaps, exhibiting poor luminescence. Ion doping can enhance their luminescence, but the mechanism of ultrafast diffusion and structural evolution remains unclear. Here, Sb3+ was doped into a KCl matrix via a room-temperature grinding route. Varying Sb3+ concentration induces a structural evolution from KCl:Sb3+ to 0D inorganic metal halides (IMHs) K3SbCl6. The resulting K3SbCl6 exhibits broad-spectrum yellow emission with near-unity photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY). The luminescence mechanism is attributed to the 3P1→1S0 transition of Sb3+ ions. Furthermore, a room-temperature solid-liquid interface diffusion method enables ultrafast single-crystal growth of K3SbCl6 in only 20 seconds, with stable luminescence. The material demonstrates excellent temperature sensing performance in the 50–310 K range, achieving a maximum relative sensitivity of 9.99%/K. Additionally, K3SbCl6 shows application potential in information encryption, flexible composite fluorescent films, and white light-emitting diodes. This study provides new insights into ultrafast synthesis of high-performance luminescent materials.