Spin Polarization of 2D Weyl Semimetal FeSn Enabling High Hydrogen Evolution Reaction Activity.

It is well known that magnetic field is one of the effective tools to improve the activity of hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), but considering the inconvenient application of an external magnetic field, it is essential to find a ferromagnetic material with high HER activity itself. Fortunately, recent study has shown that the two-dimmention (2D) FeSn monolayer is a stable ferromagnetic topological Weyl semimetal material with high T of 433 K. Here, we report the FeSn monolayer can be used as an alternative HER catalyst compared with expensive platinum (Pt).

Gram-level NH Electrosynthesis via NO reduction on a Cu Activated Co Electrode.

Ambient electrochemical ammonia (NH ) synthesis is one promising alternative to the energy-intensive Haber-Bosch route. However, the industrial requirement for the electrochemical NH production with amperes current densities or gram-level NH yield remains a grand challenge. Herein, we report the high-rate NH production via NO reduction using the Cu activated Co electrode in a bipolar membrane (BPM) assemble electrolyser, wherein BPM maintains the ion balance and the liquid level of electrolyte.

A Bifunctional Catalyst for Green Ammonia Synthesis from Ubiquitous Air and Water.

Ammonia (NH ) is essential for modern agriculture and industry, and, due to its high hydrogen density and no carbon emission, it is also expected to be the next-generation of "clean" energy carrier. Herein, directly from air and water, a plasma-electrocatalytic reaction system for NH production, which combines two steps of plasma-air-to-NO and electrochemical NO reduction reaction (eNO RR) with a bifunctional catalyst, is successfully established. Especially, the bifunctional catalyst of CuCo O /Ni can simultaneously promote plasma-air-to-NO and eNO RR processes.

Asymmetric spin splitting of Laguerre-Gaussian beams in chiral PT-symmetric metamaterials.

We systematically study the spin Hall effect of light (SHEL) in chiral PT-symmetric metamaterials when Laguerre Gaussian beams (LG beams) are incident and discover that cross-polarization (r, r) and intrinsic orbital angular momentum (IOAM) result in an asymmetric splitting of left-spin circularly polarized (LCP) light and right-spin circularly polarized (RCP) light. Additionally, there are spin Hall shift peaks near |r | ≪ |r | (r and r are Fresnel reflection coefficients). Altering the topological charge number ℓ, the chiral parameter κ, the dimensionless frequency M, and the incident angle θ may also influence the asymmetric spin splitting and displacement peak.

Boosting Electrochemical Carbon Dioxide Reduction on Atomically Dispersed Nickel Catalyst.

Single-atom catalysts (SACs) with metal-nitrogen (M-N) sites are one of the most promising electrocatalysts for electrochemical carbon dioxide reduction (ECOR). However, challenges in simultaneously enhancing the activity and selectivity greatly limit the efficiency of ECOR due to the improper interaction of reactants/intermediates on these catalytic sites. Herein, we report a carbon-based nickel (Ni) cluster catalyst containing both single-atom and cluster sites (NiNx-T, T = 500-800) through a ligand-mediated method and realize a highly active and selective electrocatalytic COR process.

Boosting Production of HCOOH from CO Electroreduction via Bi/CeO.

Formic acid (HCOOH) is one of the most promising chemical fuels that can be produced through CO electroreduction. However, most of the catalysts for CO electroreduction to HCOOH in aqueous solution often suffer from low current density and limited production rate. Herein, we provide a bismuth/cerium oxide (Bi/CeO ) catalyst, which exhibits not only high current density (149 mA cm ), but also unprecedented production rate (2600 μmol h  cm ) with high Faradaic efficiency (FE, 92 %) for HCOOH generation in aqueous media.

Ultrahigh conductivity of graphene nanoribbons doped with ordered nitrogen.

Graphene is an attractive candidate for developing high conductivity materials (HCMs) owing to an extraordinary charge mobility. While graphene itself is a semi-metal with an inherently low carrier density, and methods used for increasing carrier density normally also cause a marked decrease in charge mobility. Here, we report that ordered nitrogen doping can induce a pronounced increase in carrier density but does not harm the high charge mobility of graphene nanoribbons (GNRs), giving rise to an unprecedented ultrahigh conductivity in the system.

A Simple and Effective Principle for a Rational Design of Heterogeneous Catalysts for Dehydrogenation of Formic Acid.

Efficient and selective dehydrogenation of formic acid is a key challenge for a fuel-cell-based hydrogen economy. Though the development of heterogeneous catalysts has received much progress, their catalytic activity remains insufficient. Moreover, the design principle of such catalysts are still unclear.