Identification and Screening of Trace and Multityped Solvents Using Transpiration-Driven Electrokinetic Generation Principle.

Transpiration-driven electrokinetic power generators (TEPGs) hold promising potential for intelligent chemical sensing applications, enabling the efficient identification and screening of organic solvents. Here, we report a novel TEPG-based chemical sensor using MoS-doped cellulose filter paper for efficient detection of poplar solvents like water, alcohols, and methanol. TEPGs operate by leveraging capillary-driven transpiration to induce solvent flow through porous materials, leading to ion migration and the formation of electrical double layers (EDLs) at the solid-liquid interfaces.

Optimizing Biomimetic 3D Disordered Fibrous Network Structures for Lightweight, High-Strength Materials via Deep Reinforcement Learning.

3D disordered fibrous network structures (3D-DFNS), such as cytoskeletons, collagen matrices, and spider webs, exhibit remarkable material efficiency, lightweight properties, and mechanical adaptability. Despite their widespread in nature, the integration into engineered materials is limited by the lack of study on their complex architectures. This study addresses the challenge by investigating the structure-property relationships and stability of biomimetic 3D-DFNS using large datasets generated through procedural modeling, coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations, and machine learning.

Silk Fibroin Seed Coatings: Towards Sustainable Seed Protection and Enhanced Growth.

Seed coating technology is vital in agriculture, enhancing seed protection and growth. However, conventional coatings often include chemical fungicides that pose environmental risks, highlighting the need for sustainable alternatives. This study explores silk fibroin (SF), a natural biopolymer with excellent film-forming properties, as a potential seed coating agent, addressing its antimicrobial limitations by combining it with the commercial agent CRUISER and the antimicrobial peptide Nisin.

Sustainable Silk Fibroin Ionic Touch Screens for Flexible Biodegradable Electronics with Integrated AI and IoT Functionality.

The increasing prevalence of electronic devices has led to a significant rise in electronic waste (e-waste), necessitating the development of sustainable materials for flexible electronics. In this study, silk fibroin ionic touch screen (SFITS) is introduced, a new platform integrating natural silk fibroin (SF) with ionic conductors to create highly elastic, environmentally stable, and multifunctional touch interfaces. Through a humidity-induced crystallization strategy, the molecular structure of SF is precisely controlled to achieve a balanced combination of mechanical strength, electrical conductivity, and biodegradability.

Self-Reinforcing Ionogel Bioadhesive Interface for Robust Integration and Monitoring of Bioelectronic Devices with Hard Tissues.

Integrating bioelectronic devices with hard tissues, such as bones and teeth, is essential for advancing diagnostic and therapeutic technologies. However, stable and durable adhesion in dynamic, moist environments remains challenging. Traditional bioadhesives often fail to maintain strong bonds, especially when interfacing with metal electrodes and hard tissues.

Polymer removal and dispersion exchange of (10,5) chiral carbon nanotubes with enhanced 1.5 μm photoluminescence.

Singe-chirality single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) produced by selective polymer extraction have been actively investigated for their semiconductor applications. However, to fulfil the needs of biocompatible applications, the organic solvents in polymer-sorted SWCNTs impose a limitation. In this study, we developed a novel strategy for organic-to-aqueous phase exchange, which involves thoroughly removing polymers from the sorted SWCNTs, followed by surfactant covering and redispersing of the cleaned SWCNTs in water.

Iterative Strategy for Sorting Single-Chirality Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes from Aqueous to Organic Systems.

Significant advancements in electronic devices and integrated circuits have been facilitated by semiconducting single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) sorted by conjugated polymers (CPs). However, the variety of CPs with single-chirality selectivity is limited, and the sorting results are strongly dependent on the chiral distribution of the starting materials. To address this, we develop an iterative strategy to achieve single-chirality SWCNT separation from aqueous to organic systems, based on a multistep tandem extraction technique that allows a gentle and nondestructive separation of surfactants from SWCNTs, ensuring an efficient system transfer.

Biomimetic Spun Silk Ionotronic Fibers for Intelligent Discrimination of Motions and Tactile Stimuli.

Innovation in the ionotronics field has significantly accelerated the development of ultraflexible devices and machines. However, it is still challenging to develop efficient ionotronic-based fibers with necessary stretchability, resilience, and conductivity due to inherent conflict in producing spinning dopes with both high polymer and ion concentrations and low viscosities. Inspired by the liquid crystalline spinning of animal silk, this study circumvents the inherent tradeoff in other spinning methods by dry spinning a nematic silk microfibril dope solution.

Binary solvent-exchange-induced self-assembly of silk fibroin birefringent fibers for optical applications.

To generate birefringence in artificial materials has attracted increasing attention in terms of their potential for applications in sensor, tissue engineering and optical devices. Silk materials with patterned structures presented unique optical features, however, effectively fabricating of structural anisotropy in silk materials to directly tailor their birefringence is still challenging. Silk fibroin birefringent fibers (SBFs) with tunable birefringence were obtained in this study via a strategy that combined injection technique and binary solvent-exchange-induced self-assembly (BSEISA).

Cytoskeleton-inspired hydrogel ionotronics for tactile perception and electroluminescent display in complex mechanical environments.

The emerging applications of hydrogel ionotronics (HIs) in devices and machines require them to maintain their robustness under complex mechanical environments. Nevertheless, existing HIs still suffer from various mechanical limitations, such as the lack of balance between softness, strength, toughness, and fatigue fracture under cyclic loads. Inspired by the structure of the cytoskeleton, this study develops a sustainable HI supported by a double filamentous network.

Mechanically and electrically biocompatible hydrogel ionotronic fibers for fabricating structurally stable implants and enabling noncontact physioelectrical modulation.

Narrowing the mechanical and electrical mismatch between tissue and implantable microelectronics is essential for reducing immune responses and modulating physioelectrical signals. Nevertheless, the design of such implantable microelectronics remains a challenge due to the limited availability of suitable materials. Here, the fabrication of an electrically and mechanically biocompatible alginate hydrogel ionotronic fiber (AHIF) is reported, which is constructed by combing ionic chelation-assisted wet-spinning and mechanical training.

Electroassisted Core-Spun Triboelectric Nanogenerator Fabrics for IntelliSense and Artificial Intelligence Perception.

IntelliSense fabrics that can sense transient mechanical stimuli are widely anticipated in flexible and wearable electronics. However, most IntelliSense fabrics developed so far are only sensitive to quasi-static forces, such as stretching, bending, or twisting. In this work, a sheath-core triboelectric nanogenerator (SC-TENG) yarn was developed via a rational design, electroassisted core spinning technique, that consisted of a rough nanoscale dielectric surface and mechanically strong and electrically conductive core yarns.

Fire-Resistant and Hierarchically Structured Elastic Ceramic Nanofibrous Aerogels for Efficient Low-Frequency Noise Reduction.

Traffic noise has been regarded as one of the most annoying pollutions that induce severe hazards to human health, both physiological and psychological. The commonly used fibrous noise absorption materials are limited by their large density, poor sound absorption ability at low frequencies, and unsatisfactory fire-resistant ability. Here, we develop hierarchically structured elastic ceramic electrospun nanofibrous aerogels, which possess lightweight properties (density of 13.

Flexible ceramic nanofibrous sponges with hierarchically entangled graphene networks enable noise absorption.

Traffic noise pollution has posed a huge burden to the global economy, ecological environment and human health. However, most present traffic noise reduction materials suffer from a narrow absorbing band, large weight and poor temperature resistance. Here, we demonstrate a facile strategy to create flexible ceramic nanofibrous sponges (FCNSs) with hierarchically entangled graphene networks, which integrate unique hierarchical structures of opened cells, closed-cell walls and entangled networks.

Moderate conformational transition promotes the formation of a self-reinforced highly oriented silk fibroin network structure.

A highly oriented molecular network structure (HOMNS) is a common and favorable design in natural and regenerated silks to achieve self-reinforcement of the material. However, the fundamental issues related to the formation of the HOMNS in silk fibroin materials and its influence on mechanical performance have not yet been addressed. By combining experimental characterization and molecular dynamics simulation, this work revealed that moderate conformational transition of silk fibroin promoted the formation of a low-density crosslinking molecular network among proteins.

Structural Characterization of Silk Fibers by Small-Angle X-Ray Scattering.

Nature is rich in all kinds of unbelievably designed microstructures, which endows the natural materials with various fantastic performances. Unveiling the mystery of the sophisticated configurations and the relationship between those microstructures and the corresponding functions is helpful for the manufacture of artificial functional materials. Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) is an advanced tool to gain the microstructural features of materials within a spatial scale much larger than the atomic scale (1000 nm), which can be carried out along with WAXS to conduct more systematic investigation over different kinds of materials.

Synchrotron FTIR Microspectroscopy Methods to Understand the Conformation of Single Animal Silk Fibers.

Animal silks have received extensive attention in these years due to their unique mechanical properties. The study of the structure-property relationship of animal silks is not only critical for the understanding of the design secrets of natural materials but also can inspire the engineering material designs. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) has been used to study the secondary structure of animal silk, which is considered to be critical to the mechanical properties of animal silk.

Spinning Methods Used for Construction of One- and Two-Dimensional Fibrous Protein Materials.

Natural silk protein fibers have shown a great attraction to the researchers due to the extraordinary mechanical property, biocompatibility, and functional diversity. Unfortunately, the low yield and unevenness have hampered the scale use of the natural silk fibers. Herein, the appearance of the bioinspired artificial spinning strategy offers an effective way to fabricate silk fibers with controllable structures and functionality.

Electro-Blown Spun Silk/Graphene Nanoionotronic Skin for Multifunctional Fire Protection and Alarm.

Artificial protective skins are widely used in artificial intelligence robots, such as humanoid robots, mobile manipulation robots, and automatic probe robots, but their safety in use, especially flame retardancy, is rarely considered. As many artificial skins are designed for use in flammable or even explosive environments, flammability is a significant concern. Herein, a flame-retardant silk/graphene nanoionotronic (SGNI) skin is developed by using a rationally designed high-throughput electro-blown spinning technique, with a more efficient production efficiency than electrospinning.

Mechanical Training-Driven Structural Remodeling: A Rational Route for Outstanding Highly Hydrated Silk Materials.

Highly hydrated silk materials (HHSMs) have been the focus of extensive research due to their usefulness in tissue engineering, regenerative medicine, and soft devices, among other fields. However, HHSMs have weak mechanical properties that limit their practical applications. Inspired by the mechanical training-driven structural remodeling strategy (MTDSRS) in biological tissues, herein, engineered MTDSRS is developed for self-reinforcement of HHSMs to improve their inherent mechanical properties and broaden potential utility.

Self-adhesive and contractile silk fibroin/graphene nano-ionotronic skin for strain sensing of irregular surfaces.

Nanofiber-based artificial skin has shown promise for application in flexible wearable electronics due to its favorable breathability and comfortable wearability. However, the electrospinning method commonly used for nanofiber preparation suffers from poor spinning performance when used for ionotronic solutions. Moreover, the resulting membrane usually lacks self-adhesive and self-adapting properties when it is attached to an irregular subject, which greatly hinders its practical usage.

Hierarchically maze-like structured nanofiber aerogels for effective low-frequency sound absorption.

Noise has been regarded as an environmental pollutant that greatly affects people's physical and psychiatric health. Fibrous sound absorption materials are widely used to release the annoyance that brought by noise pollution, however, the fibrous materials are limited by poor sound absorption ability in low-frequency, heavyweight, and excessive thickness. Herein, composite nanofiber aerogels are designed with a hierarchical maze-like microstructure, which is fabricated by interweaving the cellulose nanocrystal lamellas with polyacrylonitrile electrospun nanofiber networks through the freeze-casting technique.

Mechanism of Mechanical Training-Induced Self-Reinforced Viscoelastic Behavior of Highly Hydrated Silk Materials.

Mechanical training is an operation where a sample is cyclically stretched in a solvent. It is accepted as an effective strategy to strengthen and stiffen the highly hydrated silk materials (HHSMs). However, the detailed reinforcement mechanism of the process still remains to be understood.