Photovoltaic-Driven Battery Deionization System for Efficient and Sustainable Seawater Desalination.

Seawater desalination via electrochemical battery deionization (BDI) has shown significant potential for freshwater production. However, its widespread application has been limited by the high energy costs involved. To facilitate the commercialization of BDI technology, it is crucial to develop innovative integrated BDI systems that utilize sustainable energy sources and assess their practical performance for desalination of natural seawater.

Electronic structure modulation single atom interfacial engineering for selective atmospheric CO photoreduction.

Single-atom iridium was interfacially engineered on CuFeS quantum dots (QDs) with highly efficient CO photoreduction performance. The electronic structure modulation yielded a remarkable CO yield rate of 32.5 μmol g h with 92.

Photovoltaic-driven dual-oxidation seawater electrolyzer for sustainable lithium recovery.

The insatiable demand for lithium in portable energy storage necessitates a sustainable and low-carbon approach to its recovery. Conventional hydrometallurgical and pyrometallurgical methods heavily involve hazardous chemicals and significant CO emissions. Herein, by integrating electrode oxidation with electrolyte oxidation, we establish a photovoltaic-driven "dual-oxidation" seawater electrolyzer system for low-carbon footprint and high lithium recovery.

Coupling Direct Atmospheric CO Capture with Photocatalytic CO Reduction for Highly Efficient CH Production.

As massive amounts of carbon dioxide (CO) have been emitted into the atmosphere causing severe global warming problems, developing carbon-negative techniques to control atmospheric CO concentrations is enormously urgent. Herein, by coupling the direct atmosphere CO capture adsorbent ZSM-5 with the CO reduction photocatalyst NiVSe, we present the first synergistic approach for concentrating and converting atmospheric CO into C solar fuels. A CH yield of 1.

Dual Lewis Acid-Base Sites Regulate Silver-Copper Bimetallic Oxide Nanowires for Highly Selective Photoreduction of Carbon Dioxide to Methane.

Highly selective photoreduction of CO to valuable hydrocarbons is of great importance to achieving a carbon-neutral society. Precisely manipulating the formation of the Metal ⋅⋅⋅C=O⋅⋅⋅Metal (M ⋅⋅⋅C=O⋅⋅⋅M ) intermediate on the photocatalyst interface is the most critical step for regulating selectivity, while still a significant challenge. Herein, inspired by the polar electronic structure feature of CO molecule, we propose a strategy whereby the Lewis acid-base dual sites confined in a bimetallic catalyst surface are conducive to forming a M ⋅⋅⋅C=O⋅⋅⋅M intermediate precisely, which can promote selectivity to hydrocarbon formation.

Interfacial Coordinational Bond Triggered Photoreduction Membrane for Continuous Light-Driven Precious Metals Recovery.

Chemical/electric energy-driven processes dominate the traditional precious metal (PM) recovery market. The renewable energy-driven selective PM recycling approach crucial for carbon neutrality is under exploration. Herein, via an interfacial structure engineering approach, coordinational-active pyridine groups are covalently integrated onto the photoactive semiconductor SnS surface to construct Py-SnS.

Interfacial Coordination Bonding-Assisted Redox Mechanism-Driven Highly Selective Precious Metal Recovery on Covalent-Functionalized Ultrathin 1T-MoS.

Rational design of functional material interfaces with well-defined physico-chemical-driven forces is crucial for achieving highly efficient interfacial chemical reaction dynamics for resource recovery. Herein, via an interfacial structure engineering strategy, precious metal (PM) coordination-active pyridine groups have been successfully covalently integrated into ultrathin 1T-MoS (Py-MoS). The constructed Py-MoS shows highly selective interfacial coordination bonding-assisted redox (ICBAR) functionality toward PM recycling.

Wood-Based Self-Supporting Nanoporous Three-Dimensional Electrode for High-Efficiency Battery Deionization.

Developing highly efficient advanced battery deionization (BDI) electrode materials at a low cost is vital for seawater desalination. Herein, a high-efficiency wood-based BDI electrode has been fabricated for seawater desalination, benefiting from the self-supporting three-dimensional (3D) nanoporous structure and rich redox-active sites. The finely tuned rich electrochemical redox active C═O groups on the surface of the wood electrode derived from the facile thermochemical conversion of lignin play a crucial role in the Faradaic cation removal dynamics of BDI.

Photo-assisted reductive cleavage and catalytic hydrolysis-mediated persulfate activation by mixed redox-couple-involved CuFeS for efficient trichloroethylene oxidation in groundwater.

Persulfate (PS, SO) activation through transition metal sulfides (TMS) has gained increasing attention since it can decompose a wide variety of refractory halogenated organic compounds in groundwater and wastewater. However, the processes of PS activation by TMS and particularly the formation of •OH radical under anoxic and acidic conditions (pH ∼2.8) remain elusive.

Molecular Dynamics Beyond the Monolayer Adsorption as Derived from Langmuir Curve Fitting.

Langmuir adsorption model is a classic physical-chemical adsorption model and is widely used to describe the monolayer adsorption behavior at the material interface in environmental chemistry. Traditional adsorption dynamic modeling solely considered the surface physiochemical interaction between the adsorbent and adsorbate. The surface reaction dynamics resulting from the heterogeneous surface and intrinsic electronic structure of absorbents were rarely considered within the reported adsorption experiments.

Unlocking bimetallic active sites via a desalination strategy for photocatalytic reduction of atmospheric carbon dioxide.

Ultrathin two-dimensional (2D) metal oxyhalides exhibit outstanding photocatalytic properties with unique electronic and interfacial structures. Compared with monometallic oxyhalides, bimetallic oxyhalides are less explored. In this work, we have developed a novel top-down wet-chemistry desalination approach to remove the alkali-halide salt layer within the complicated precursor bulk structural matrix PbBiCsOCl, and successfully fabricate a new 2D ultrathin bimetallic oxyhalide PbBiOCl.

Hydroxylamine mediated Fenton-like interfacial reaction dynamics on sea urchin-like catalyst derived from spent LiFePO battery.

Herein, we converted spent LiFePO battery to the sea urchin-like material (SULM) with a highly efficient and environment-friendly method, which can contribute to building a zero-waste city. With SULM as a Fenton-like catalyst, a highly-efficient degradation process was realized for organic pollutants with interface and solution synergistic effect. In our SULM+NHOH+HO Fenton-like system, NHOH can effectively promote the interface iron (Fe(Ⅲ)/Fe(Ⅱ)) and solution iron (Fe(Ⅲ)/Fe(Ⅱ)) redox cycle, thus promoting the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS).

BiO/BiO Nanoheterojunction for Highly Efficient Electrocatalytic CO Reduction to Formate.

Heterostructure engineering plays a vital role in regulating the material interface, thus boosting the electron transportation pathway in advanced catalysis. Herein, a novel BiO/BiO heterojunction catalyst was synthesized via a molten alkali-assisted dealumination strategy and exhibited rich structural dynamics for an electrocatalytic CO reduction reaction (ECORR). By coupling in situ X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy measurements, we found that the as-synthesized BiO/BiO heterostructure can be transformed into a novel Bi/BiO Mott-Schottky heterostructure, leading to enhanced adsorption performance for CO and *OCHO intermediates.

Transferring waste red mud into ferric oxide decorated ANA-type zeolite for multiple heavy metals polluted soil remediation.

Herein, a novel "waste reclamation for soil remediation" strategy has been developed for both alkaline waste red mud (RM) recycling and heavy metal (HM) polluted soil remediation. Through a direct one-pot hydrothermal reaction process, the Al, Si, alkali, and FeO components in waste RM have been transferred into ferric oxide decorated ANA-type zeolite (FeO-ANA). As tested by the HMs polluted soil remediation and oilseed rape planting experiment, when 25 g/kg FeO-ANA is added into the Pb, Cu, Cr and anionic AsO polluted soil (HM concentration: 100-200 mg/kg), it can effectively suppress the HMs mobility in soil and reduce the bio-accumulation concentrations of HMs in the harvested oilseed rape (reduce ratio: 37.

Enhanced Cr(VI) reduction on natural chalcopyrite mineral modulated by degradation intermediates of RhB.

Wastewater with complex compositions of both heavy metals and organic pollutants is of critical environmental and socioeconomic threat worldwide, which urgently requires feasible remediation technologies to target this challenge. In this study, natural chalcopyrite (CuFeS, NCP), the most abundant copper-based mineral in the Earth's crust, has been discovered to be a heterogeneous catalyst that can activate peroxydisulfate (PDS) for the simultaneous degradation of organic pollutant Rhodamine B (RhB) and reduction of hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)). Batch experimental results indicate that both RhB and Cr(VI) could be simultaneously removed under a near-neutral condition in NCP/PDS combined system.

Interfacial engineering of CuFeS quantum dots via platinum decoration with enhanced Cr(VI) reduction dynamics under UV-Vis-NIR radiation.

Configuring reactive and stable catalytic interfaces is crucial to design efficient photocatalysts for Cr(VI) reduction. Herein, via the platinum decoration approach based on interfacial engineering, we developed an effective catalytic interface within novel semiconducting chalcopyrite quantum dots (Pt/CuFeS QDs). Benefiting from the catalytic merits of the Pt modulated interfacial structure and electronic structure, Pt/CuFeS QDs show a broader light absorption capability extending to near-infrared radiation (NIR) range with superior carriers separation performance and faster charge transfer efficiency, which delivers a three-folder faster photocatalytic Cr(VI) reduction efficiency comparing to the original CuFeS QDs.

Converting Spent LiFePO Battery into Zeolitic Phosphate for Highly Efficient Heavy Metal Adsorption.

Developing efficient recycling technologies for large-scale spent batteries is the key to build a zero-waste city. Herein, a [AlFePO]·[CHN]·[Li·4HO]·[12HO] (AlFePO-Li) zeolite, crystallizing in space group 4̅3 with = 16.6778(3) Å, has been constructed via the hydrothermal treatment of spent LiFePO battery.

Electrochemical Driven Phase Segregation Enabled Dual-Ion Removal Battery Deionization Electrode.

Battery deionization (BDI) offers a powerful platform for integrating water treatment and energy conversion. Exploring novel BDI electrode materials with high energy storage capacity and high efficiency for both cations and anions removal is the key to advancing the BDI technique. Herein, we report the first BDI electrode material capable of simultaneously removing Cl (58.

Converting loess into zeolite for heavy metal polluted soil remediation based on "soil for soil-remediation" strategy.

Both soil erosion and soil contamination pose critical environmental threats to the Chinese Loess Plateau (CLP). Green, efficient and feasible remediation technologies are highly demanded to meet these challenges. Herein we propose a unique "soil for soil-remediation" strategy to remediate the heavy metal polluted soil in CLP by converting loess into zeolite for the first time.

High-efficiency core-shell magnetic heavy-metal absorbents derived from spent-LiFePO Battery.

Search for simple and efficient recycling methods to utilize spent lithium-ion batteries is crucial for achieving sustainable resource development and reducing the hazardous materials released from the spent batteries. Herein, we have developed a new strategy to utilize the spent LiFePO batteries by utilizing the cathode plate as raw material to synthesize mesoporous core-shell adsorbent Mm@SiO (Mm denoted as the magnetic material) through a simple alkaline leaching process. The as-converted material exhibits excellent adsorption capacity when it has been used to remove heavy metal ions in heavy metal polluted water.

Mixed Redox-Couple-Involved Chalcopyrite Phase CuFeS Quantum Dots for Highly Efficient Cr(VI) Removal.

Iron-based nanosized ecomaterials for efficient Cr(VI) removal are of great interest to environmental chemists. Herein, inspired by the "mixed redox-couple" cations involved in the crystal structure and the quantum confinement effects resulting from the particle size, a novel type of iron-based ecomaterial, semiconducting chalcopyrite quantum dots (QDs), was developed and used for Cr(VI) removal. A high removal capacity up to 720 mg/g was achieved under optimal pH conditions, which is superior to those of the state-of-the-art nanomaterials for Cr(VI) removal.

Ruthenium Complex-Incorporated Two-Dimensional Metal-Organic Frameworks for Cocatalyst-Free Photocatalytic Proton Reduction from Water.

Ultrathin two-dimensional (2D) nanosheets with efficient light-driven proton reduction activity were obtained through the exfoliation of novel metal-organic frameworks (MOF), which were synthesized by using a bis(4'-carboxy-2,2':6',2″-terpyridine) ruthenium complex as a linker and transition-metal (Mn, Co, Ni, and Zn) anions as nodes. The nanosheet of the Ni node exhibits a photocatalytic hydrogen evolution rate of 923 ± 40 μmol g h at pH = 4.0, without the presence of any cocatalyst or cosensitizer.

4-Mercaptophenylboronic acid-modified spirally-curved mesoporous silica nanofibers coupled with ultra performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry for determination of brassinosteroids in plants.

Herein, for the first time, thiol-functionalized mesoporous silica (mSiO-SH) nanofibers with a spirally-curved twisted hexagonal morphology were synthesized via a simple one-pot protocol. 4-Mercaptophenylboronic acids (4-MPBA) were attached onto the mSiO-SH nanofibers via disulfide bond, serving as boronate affinity sorbent to selectively capture brassinosteroids (BRs) from plant extract. The resulting BRs-MPBA derivatives were easily eluted from the sorbent by cleaving the disulfide bond, which was subsequently subjected to ultra performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS) analysis.

Synthesis of Multi-Au-Nanoparticle-Embedded Mesoporous Silica Microspheres as Self-Filtering and Reusable Substrates for SERS Detection.

Surface-enhanced Raman-scattering-based (SERS-based) biosensing in biological fluids is constrained by nonspecific macromolecule adsorptions and disposable property of the SERS substrate. Here, novel multi-Au-nanoparticle-embedded mesoporous silica microspheres (AuNPs/mSiO) were prepared using a one-pot method, which served as reliable substrates for SERS enhancement associated with salient features of self-filtering ability and reusability. The fabrication and physical characterization of AuNPs/mSiO microspheres were discussed, and SERS activity of this novel substrate was investigated by using 4-mercaptobenzoic acid (4-MBA) as Raman probe.

Target-guided isolation of polar antioxidants from Abelmoschus esculentus (L). Moench by high-speed counter-current chromatography method coupled with wavelength switching and extrusion elution mode.

An off-line two-dimensional high-speed counter-current chromatography strategy combined with the wavelength switching technique and extrusion elution mode was successfully developed and applied to the isolation of polar antioxidants from Abelmoschus esculentus (L).Moench. Target-guided by the result of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl screening assay, four antioxidants were obtained with purities over 90% through orthogonal high-speed counter-current chromatography separation.