Journal of Environmental Engineering Technology•2026•DOI: 10.13205/j.hjgc.202604017
The Shule River Basin, a typical arid inland river basin, faces critical water scarcity that threatens ecological security and sustainable development. This study integrated the FLUS and InVEST models to simulate water yield in 2030 and 2050 under three climate scenarios (SSP119, SSP245, SSP585). Geographic detectors quantified the driving mechanisms of natural and human factors. Results showed: (1) Desert dominates land use (78.6% in 2020). Under SSP119, desert area decreases by 0.69% by 2050, while under SSP585 it expands by 5.7%, with grassland loss of 23.0%, indicating severe ecological degradation. (2) Water yield exhibits a south-high, north-low spatial pattern, with high values in glacier-covered and high-altitude areas. SSP119 yields the most significant increase (147.6×10^8 t by 2050), whereas SSP585 shows minimal increase (43.9×10^8 t) due to extreme climate. (3) Precipitation and DEM are core driving factors; the interaction between land use type and precipitation has the strongest influence, implying that artificial land use changes can significantly regulate water yield. This multi-scenario framework provides decision support for water resource management and ecological governance in arid inland river basins.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-026-4054-x
The sluggish kinetics and high onset potentials of the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) at the anode of alkaline water/seawater electrolyzers limit overall energy efficiency. Noble-metal oxides like RuO2 are active but suffer from high cost, agglomeration, and dissolution under oxidizing potentials, especially in chloride-rich electrolytes where competing chloride oxidation reaction (ClOR) occurs. Here, we report a mild two-step dry-wet milling strategy to achieve throughout lattice doping of F− into MnO2 (F-MnO2) and subsequent anchoring of atomically dispersed Ru via Ru–O/F hybrid bonds. The strengthened Mn 3d–O/F 2p hybridization and negative charge shielding of surface F− enhance OER activity/selectivity relative to ClOR and impart superior Cl− tolerance and corrosion resistance. The resulting F-Ru-MnO2-TH electrocatalyst exhibits overpotentials of 280 mV and 200 mV at 10 mA cm−2 in alkaline water and simulated seawater, respectively. It retains ~100% of initial activity after 200 h continuous operation in alkaline media and >95% after 300 h in simulated seawater, significantly outperforming Ru-MnO2 and commercial RuO2. This work provides a scalable route to durable, high-performance OER catalysts for seawater electrolysis.
New Carbon Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1016/S1872-5805(26)61094-3
Aqueous zinc-iodine (Zn-I2) batteries are promising for large-scale energy storage due to their intrinsic safety, low cost, and high theoretical capacity (211 mAh g−1 for iodine). However, their practical application is hindered by the poor electronic conductivity of iodine, sluggish redox kinetics, and the shuttle effect of polyiodides. This review systematically analyzes the reaction mechanisms of iodine cathodes, including two-electron (I−/I2) and multi-electron (I−/I2/I+ and I−/I2/I+/IO3−) pathways, and identifies key bottlenecks. It then comprehensively summarizes recent advances in iodine host materials, categorized into three strategies: physical confinement, chemical adsorption, and electrocatalysis. Representative host materials such as porous carbons, covalent organic frameworks (COFs), porous aromatic frameworks (PAFs), polymers, MXenes, and Prussian blue analogs (PBAs) are discussed, with emphasis on the structure–performance relationships. The review highlights that heteroatom doping (e.g., nitrogen) enhances chemical adsorption of iodine species, while single-atom catalysts (e.g., Co, Zn) provide electrocatalytic sites that accelerate conversion kinetics. Finally, future research directions are proposed, including exploration of multi-electron systems, mechanistic elucidation of iodine conversion, development of advanced host materials, and optimization of zinc anodes, to accelerate the commercialization of Zn-I2 batteries.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-3993-y
Conventional liquid-phase in-situ synthesis of Cu-TiB2 composites often suffers from coarse and non-uniformly distributed reinforcements, stemming from insufficient understanding and control over the in-situ nucleation and growth mechanisms of TiB2 particles. This study introduces a novel melt dispersion-turbulent mixing (MDTM) in-situ reaction technology to fabricate high-performance Cu-TiB2 composites. The MDTM strategy synergistically refines reaction micro-regions by reducing the initial melt droplet size via melt dispersion while enhancing solute convection via turbulence, promoting high-density nucleation and refinement of TiB2 particles. Based on turbulence characteristics and in-situ reaction kinetics, we optimized the melt disperser parameters and established a quantitative model linking particle size to disperser rotation speed and reactant solute concentration. It was found that disperser rotation speed governs three distinct nucleation and growth mechanisms for TiB2 particles. Low-density nucleation at low disperser rotation speeds (0–50 r/min) leads to coarse TiB2 particles. At medium rotation speeds (100–150 r/min), the refinement of micro-regions in the dual-melt reaction achieves high-density TiB2 nucleation. Conversely, at high rotation speeds (150–200 r/min), intense turbulence weakens the nucleation driving force and induces TiB2 particle coarsening. This work provides new insights into liquid-phase in-situ reaction mechanisms and offers a novel, controllable route for fabricating high-performance micro/nano particle-reinforced metal matrix composites.
Journal of Fuel Chemistry and Technology•2026•DOI: 10.1016/S1872-5813(26)60701-3
Hydrodenitrogenation (HDN) is an effective method for removing nitrogen-containing heteroatom compounds from inferior feedstocks, with the core challenge being the development of catalysts that combine low cost and high performance. In this study, a FeZn-supported catalyst was modified by introducing six different metal promoters (La, Ti, Ce, Mn, Mg, and Cr). It was found that Cr exhibited a pronounced promotional effect on HDN performance. The promoting effect of Cr on the FeZn catalyst's activity originates from its electronic interaction with sulfided Fe species, rather than functioning as an independent active site. Specifically, Cr and Zn species act synergistically as electron donors, transferring electron density to the sulfided Fe species, thereby modulating the electronic structure of Fe to render it in an electron-rich state. This increased electronic density weakens the Fe–S bonds in the active phase, promoting their cleavage and facilitating the formation of hydrogenation active sites known as coordinated unsaturated sulfur vacancies (CUS). After introducing 3% Cr, under conditions of 340–380 °C, 4 MPa pressure, and a high weight hourly space velocity (WHSV) of 8.7 h−1, the catalyst's HDN conversion rate for the basic nitrogen compound quinoline increased by 14.5%–19.7% compared to the unmodified catalyst, reaching 81.9% at 380 °C. Furthermore, Cr introduction increased the number of medium-strength Lewis acid sites, which work synergistically with the increased CUS sites to enhance overall hydrogenation activity. Cr addition effectively governs the selectivity of the HDN pathway, with the reaction rate constant for the deep hydrogenation pathway over the FeZn3Cr@GA catalyst reaching 3.2 times that of the unmodified FeZn@GA catalyst. In summary, using Fe as the primary active metal component and regulating its electronic structure through promoters represents an effective approach for designing low-cost, high-performance HDN catalysts.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-4034-3
The local concentration and configuration of active sites critically influence the selectivity of CO2 electroreduction, yet constructing well-defined structures to probe this relationship remains challenging. Here, we report a molten salt-assisted strategy to synthesize Ce-Ov-Cu cascade catalysts with tunable configurations and relative concentrations of Cu and Ce-Ov sites. Two distinct geometries were engineered: one with dense Cu sites surrounding Ce-Ov (Cu10CeOx) and another with isolated Cu centers encapsulated by Ce-Ov (CuCe10Ox). These configurations direct key intermediates (*CHO or *COH) toward either C-C coupling or deep hydrogenation, thereby switching product selectivity. CuCe10Ox achieves a CH4 Faradaic efficiency (FE) of 61.7% at -1.6 V vs. RHE, whereas Cu10CeOx favors C2 production with a maximum FE of 61.5% at -1.4 V vs. RHE. Mechanistic studies reveal that locally concentrated Cu sites exhibit strong *CO2 binding affinity, enhancing *CO surface coverage and facilitating *CO-*COH coupling. In contrast, Ce-Ov-rich regions with isolated copper centers supply abundant *H, promoting deep protonation of *CHO toward CH4. This work provides insights into catalyst design, demonstrating that manipulating structural chemistry can guide CO2RR toward targeted products.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-4057-4
The escalating use of ionizing radiation in medical and industrial applications necessitates lead-free, flexible, and sustainable shielding materials. Current development relies on empirical trial-and-error, which is inefficient. This study introduces a machine learning-assisted Monte Carlo simulation strategy for rapid optimization of metal filler compositions for X-ray attenuation across 40–120 kV. Guided by this AI-driven approach, polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)-based gels containing uniformly dispersed Bi/W/Gd2O3 nanoparticles were developed, forming within 1 minute at -20°C using a PVA-DMSO/H2O co-solvent system. The optimized gel with 50 wt% metal loading exhibits exceptional mechanical properties: tensile strength of 1.76 MPa, toughness of 6.3 MJ m−3, and elongation of 600%. It achieves >98% X-ray shielding efficiency at 5 mm thickness, outperforming lead composites at 120 kV. The physically cross-linked network provides recyclability and anti-freezing capability, retaining flexibility at -50°C. This work establishes a data-driven paradigm for designing high-performance radiation-shielding materials, demonstrating AI's potential to accelerate materials discovery and enable scalable fabrication of eco-friendly protective systems.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-025-4051-x
Graphite lubricants are critical for high-quality and high-efficiency drawing of refractory metal wires, yet inadequate dispersion stability frequently challenges their practical application. Inspired by the bio-surfactant synergic mechanism that combines different bio-surfactants to collectively reduce surface energy and friction, a binary anionic surfactant system comprising sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate (SDBS) and sodium lignosulfonate (SL) was engineered to enhance dispersion and stability via a synergistic effect. The synergistic parameter β was calculated to be −2.34, indicating strong synergism. The resulting graphite lubricants maintained homogeneous dispersion for up to 60 days. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations combined with density functional theory (DFT) calculations confirmed that the synergistic effects originate from steric hindrance, electrostatic repulsion, π-π stacking, and hydrogen bonding. These hierarchical secondary interactions collectively increased the interfacial formation energy at the graphite/surfactant/water tri-phase interface, thereby effectively wetting particle powders and enhancing stability. During metal wire drawing, the graphite lubricants reduced the friction coefficient between the die and metal wires to 0.06, ultimately enabling drawn tungsten wires with superior surface integrity, expanded loop diameter, and enhanced tensile strength relative to single-surfactant benchmarks. This study provides experimental and theoretical guidance to design effective graphite lubricants for high-quality drawn metal wires.
SCIENCE CHINA Materials•2026•DOI: 10.1007/s40843-026-4181-6
Green hydrogen production via electrocatalytic water splitting is pivotal for sustainable energy, yet the high cost and scarcity of platinum (Pt) catalysts impede large-scale adoption. Ruthenium (Ru)-based materials emerge as promising alternatives, but their performance requires enhancement. Two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), particularly ReS2, offer intrinsic 1T' phase with good conductivity and stability, yet suffer from inert surfaces limiting water adsorption. Here, we report a heterostructure comprising Ru nanoclusters anchored on ReS2 nanosheets (Ru/ReS2) to modulate electronic structure via d-p coupling. This design enhances water dissociation kinetics and optimizes hydrogen adsorption free energy (ΔG_H*). The Ru/ReS2 catalyst exhibits superior hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) activity in acidic media, achieving an overpotential of 47 mV at 10 mA cm−2 and a Tafel slope of 38 mV dec−1, outperforming commercial Pt/C (overpotential 54 mV, Tafel slope 45 mV dec−1). Notably, it demonstrates exceptional stability, with negligible degradation after 10,000 cyclic voltammetry cycles, contrasting with Pt/C's 54 mV overpotential increase. Density functional theory calculations reveal that d-p coupling between Ru and ReS2 optimizes the electronic structure, facilitating water adsorption and dissociation. This work provides a rational strategy for designing efficient, durable, and cost-effective HER electrocatalysts for green hydrogen production.