Two-Dimensional Sodium Channels with High Selectivity and Conductivity for Osmotic Power Generation from Wastewater.

Conducting target ions rapidly while rejecting rival ions efficiently is challenging yet highly demanded for ion separation related applications. Two-dimensional (2D) channels are widely used for ion separation, but highly selective 2D channels generally suffer from a relatively low ionic conductivity. Here we report that the 2D vermiculite channels have a Na conductivity higher than bulk and at the same time reject heavy metal ions with a selectivity of a few hundreds.

Biomimetic Superhydrophobic Materials through 3D Printing: Progress and Challenges.

Superhydrophobicity, a unique natural phenomenon observed in organisms such as lotus leaves and desert beetles, has inspired extensive research on biomimetic materials. Two main superhydrophobic effects have been identified: the "lotus leaf effect" and the "rose petal effect", both showing water contact angles larger than 150°, but with differing contact angle hysteresis values. In recent years, numerous strategies have been developed to fabricate superhydrophobic materials, among which 3D printing has garnered significant attention due to its rapid, low-cost, and precise construction of complex materials in a facile way.

Non-covalent metalation of carbon nitride for photocatalytic NADH regeneration and enzymatic CO reduction.

An artificial photocatalyst with a Rh complex immobilized onto polymeric carbon nitride (CN) through non-covalent interaction was constructed for photocatalytic NADH regeneration. DFT calculations verified the adsorption of the bipyridine ligand onto the CN photocatalyst. By further coupling the formed NADH with FDH immobilized on a hydrophobic membrane, an enhanced HCOOH production (3.

Electric field modulated water permeation through laminar TiCT MXene membrane.

Controlling water transport is central to a wide range of water-related energy and environment issues. In particular, enhancing the water permeation is highly demanded for practical membrane applications such as water treatment. In this work, we demonstrate that the water permeation through the laminar and electrically conductive MXene membrane can be facilely modulated with electric field.

Biomimetic Nanochannels: From Fabrication Principles to Theoretical Insights.

Biological nanochannels which can regulate ionic transport across cell membranes intelligently play a significant role in physiological functions. Inspired by these nanochannels, numerous artificial nanochannels have been developed during recent years. The exploration of smart solid-state nanochannels can lay a solid foundation, not only for fundamental studies of biological systems but also practical applications in various fields.

Graphdiyne-Supported Atomic Catalysts: Synthesis and Applications.

Graphdiyne (GDY) has been ideal candidate support for atomic catalysts (ACs) due to its unique conjugated two-dimensional (2D) structure comprising both sp- and sp -hybrid carbon atoms. ACs/GDY can display excellent catalytic ability and high selectivity, emerging as a cutting-edge research area in the past few years. Recently, a growing body of work has been done in ACs/GDY, ranging from screening appropriate combinations theoretically, continuous improvement to prepare few-layered GDY to meet the critical challenge in this area, and successfully fabricating ACs/GDY in facile way.

Charge transfer co-crystals based on donor-acceptor interactions for near-infrared photothermal conversion.

A co-crystal was obtained based on donor-acceptor interactions. The obvious charge transfer from the linear donor to the triangular acceptor units results in a quasi-two-dimensional CT complex with excellent near-infrared photothermal conversion efficiency. The co-crystals further acted as an excellent photothermal material in seawater desalination.

Confined Interfacial Synthesis of Highly Crystalline and Ultrathin Graphdiyne Films and Their Applications for N Fixation.

Graphdiyne (GDY), as a new carbon allotrope, possessing both sp- and sp -hybridized carbon atoms, has attracted extensive attention due to great application potentials in various fields. To realize a fundamental understanding of the intrinsic properties of GDY, the controllable synthesis of ultrathin and highly crystalline GDY is necessary and challenging. Herein, a confined interfacial synthetic strategy towards highly crystalline ultrathin GDY at the water/oil/organogel interface, with greatly improved control over GDY structures, is reported.

Computer-Guided Discovery of a pH-Responsive Organic Photocatalyst and Application for pH and Light Dual-Gated Polymerization.

In this work, we adopted a fully computer-guided strategy in discovering an efficient pH-switchable organic photocatalyst (OPC), unprecedentedly turning colorless at pH 5 and recovering strong visible-light absorption and photoactivity at pH 7. This is the first example of an OPC design fully guided by comprehensive density functional theory (DFT) studies covering electrostatic, electrochemical, and photophysical predictions. Characterization of the designed OPC after synthesis confirmed the computational predictions.

Preparation of N-Graphdiyne Nanosheets at Liquid/Liquid Interface for Photocatalytic NADH Regeneration.

Two-dimensional (2D) N-graphdiyne (N-GDY) nanosheets containing different number of N were synthesized by polymerization of triazine, pyrazine, and pyridine-based monomers at liquid/liquid interface. The configurations and nanostructures of N-GDY were well-characterized. The wettability changed to more hydrophilic as the N contents increased.

Interfacial Synthesis of Conjugated Two-Dimensional N-Graphdiyne.

We explored the interfacial synthesis of 2D N-graphdiyne films at the gas/liquid and liquid/liquid interfaces. Triazine- or pyrazine-based monomers containing ethynyl group were polymerized through the Glaser coupling reactions at interfaces. Several layered, highly ordered and conjugated 2D N-graphdiyne were obtained.

A Dewetting-Induced Assembly Strategy for Precisely Patterning Organic Single Crystals in OFETs.

Simple methods for patterning single crystals are critical to fully realize their applications in electronics. However, traditional vapor and solution methods are deficient in terms of crystals with random spatial and quality distributions. In this work, we report a dewetting-induced assembly strategy for obtaining large-scale and highly oriented organic crystal arrays.

A general strategy for assembling nanoparticles in one dimension.

Alignment of 1D assemblies of a wide variety of nanoparticles (e.g., metal, metal oxide, semiconductor quantum dots, or organic microspheres) in one direction upon diverse substrates (including industrial silicon wafers and transparent glass plates) by a general strategy is demonstrated.