Titanium nitride sensor for selective NO detection.

Efficient detection methods are needed to monitor nitrogen dioxide (NO), a major NO pollutant from fossil fuel combustion that poses significant threats to both ecology and human health. Current NO detection technologies face limitations in stability and selectivity. Here, we present a transition metal nitride sensor that exhibits exceptional selectivity for NO, demonstrating a sensitivity 30 times greater than that of the strongest interfering gas, NO.

Synergy of Copper Doping and Carbon Defect Engineering in Promoting C-C Coupling for Enhanced CO Photoreduction to Ethanol Activity.

Photocatalytic conversion of carbon dioxide (CO) to fuel provides an ideal pathway to achieving carbon neutrality. One significant hindrance in achieving the reduction of CO to higher energy density multicarbon products (C) was the difficulty in coupling C-C bonds efficiently. Copper (Cu) is considered the most suitable metal catalyst for C-C coupling to form C products in the CO reduction reaction (CORR), but it encounters challenges such as low product selectivity and slow catalytic efficiency.

Tunable aptamer-MXene sensing interface for label-free and real-time detection of toxic pollutants in water samples.

Stable and low-cost field-effect transistor (FET)-based biosensors are vital for the on-site detection of toxic pollutants in environmental monitoring applications. In this study, a tunable aptamer-MXene sensing interface was constructed to develop renewable FET biosensors. This was achieved through the reversible disulfide bond (-S-S-) reaction between the SH-TiCT film and thiolated aptamer.

Using Zebrafish G Protein-Coupled Receptors to Obtain a Better Appreciation of the Impact of Pharmaceuticals in Wastewater to Fish.

Pharmaceutical discharge to the environment is of concern due to its potential adverse effects on aquatic species. It is estimated that around 40% of pharmaceuticals target G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). The transforming growth factor- (TGF) shedding assay was applied to measure the antagonistic activities of pharmaceuticals against human GPCRs.

Material Cycles, Environmental Emissions, and Ecological Risks of Bisphenol A (BPA) in China and Implications for Sustainable Plastic Management.

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a high-production-volume plastic chemical, with ∼98% of its usage in China allocated to producing polycarbonate and epoxy resin, and its fugitive release threatens ecosystems. However, knowledge of its anthropogenic cycles, environmental emissions, and ecological risks remains incomplete, hindering effective plastic lifecycle management. Herein, material flow analysis, multimedia environmental modeling, and ecological risk assessment were integrated to comprehensively map BPA dynamics in China.

Rapid NO Formation from N on Water Droplet Surfaces.

Nitrogen (N) has long been considered as stable atmospheric reservoir for N element and has a persistence time of hundreds of years. This study reveals that oxygen (O) at typical tropospheric concentrations can rapidly activate N, leading to substantial production of nitrous oxide (NO), the third most impactful greenhouse gas, at rates approaching 2.83±0.

Revealing the key role of interfacial oxygen activation over CoMnO@MnO in the catalytic oxidation of acetone.

The accumulation of intermediate products on the catalyst surface caused by insufficient oxygen activity is an important reason for the poor activity of catalysts towards oxygenated volatile organic compounds (OVOCs). CoMnO@MnO heterogeneous catalysts were fabricated to decipher the interfacial oxygen activation mechanism for efficient acetone oxidation. Experimental and theoretical explorations revealed that oxygen vacancies were easily formed at the interface.

Transfer Learning with a Graph Attention Network and Weighted Loss Function for Screening of Persistent, Bioaccumulative, Mobile, and Toxic Chemicals.

methods for screening hazardous chemicals are necessary for sound management. Persistent, bioaccumulative, mobile, and toxic (PBMT) chemicals persist in the environment and have high mobility in aquatic environments, posing risks to human and ecological health. However, lack of experimental data for the vast number of chemicals hinders identification of PBMT chemicals.

An inconvenient impact: Unveiling the overlooked differences in crystalline forms of iron (hydro)oxides on anaerobic digestion.

Iron (hydro)oxides are commonly used to enhance anaerobic digestion due to their cost-effectiveness and versatility. However, the influence of crystalline structure on digestion performance is often overlooked despite their unique characteristics. In this study, we investigated how different crystalline forms of FeOOH affect substrate utilization, sludge activity, and the microbiomes in up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactors.

Activated carbon and anthraquinone-2,6-disulfonate as electron shuttles for enhancing carbon and nitrogen removal from simultaneous methanogenesis, Feammox and denitrification system.

Anthraquinone-2,6-disulfonate (AQDS) and activated carbon (AC) were employed as exogenous electron shuttles (ESs) for enhancing the performance of an integrated simultaneous methanogenesis, Feammox, and denitrification (SMFD) system treating fish sludge. The addition of AQDS and AC led to an increased total nitrogen removal efficiency by 30.2 % and 66.

-to- Extrapolation on Lung Toxicity Induced by Metal Oxide Nanoparticles Data-Mining.

While analyses are commonly employed for chemical risk assessments, predicting chronic lung toxicity induced by engineered nanoparticles (ENMs) still faces many challenges due to complex interactions at multiple nanobio interfaces. In this study, we developed a rigorous method to compile published evidence on the lung toxicity of metal oxide nanoparticles (MeONPs) and revealed previously overlooked -to- extrapolation (IVIVE) relationships. A comprehensive multidimensional data set containing 1102 data points, 75 pulmonary toxicological biomarkers, and 20 features (covering effects, physicochemical properties, and exposure conditions) was constructed.

Comediation of voltage gating and ion charge in MXene membrane for controllable and selective monovalent cation separation.

Artificial ion channels with controllable mono/monovalent cation separation fulfill important roles in biomedicine, ion separation, and energy conversion. However, it remains a daunting challenge to develop an artificial ion channel similar to biological ion channels due to ion-ion competitive transport and lack of ion-gating ability of channels. Here, we report a conductive MXene membrane with polydopamine-confined angstrom-scale channels and propose a voltage gating and ion charge comediation strategy to concurrently achieve gated and selective mono/monovalent cation separation.

Design of a Dual-Phase TiN-WN electrochemical sensor for HS detection.

Electrode materials are pivotal in fuel cell-based gas sensors, yet conventional Pt-based catalysts often suffer from limitations in electronic structure and stability, restricting the practical application of HS detection. Here, we introduce a Pt catalyst supported by a titanium-tungsten nitride (TiN-WN) composite for an electrochemical HS sensor. Leveraging the multilevel electron transfer of the Pt/TiN-WN composite, this sensor achieves electron accumulation on the Pt surface, yielding enhanced conductivity and abundant active sites for high HS sensitivity.

Improving methane production and 4-chlorophenol removal in anaerobic digestion of corn straw by adding Phanerochaete chrysosporium and biochar under microaerobic conditions.

The stable lignocellulose structure in the straw is the main obstacle for methane production during its anaerobic digestion, and the residual chlorophenols in the straw further increase the difficulty. In this study, the anaerobic digestion of corn straw containing 4-chlorophenol was enhanced by the addition of Phanerochaete chrysosporium and biochar. The results revealed that P.

Selenophene-containing silicon-rhodamine: A novel near-infrared fluorescent probe for Hg detection and its application in cell imaging.

Monitoring of mercury ion (Hg) pollution is one of the eternal themes due to its notorious toxicity. Herein, we elaborately designed a novel fluorescent probe N'-((selenophen-2-yl)methylene)Si-rhodamine B hydrazide (Se-SiRH) by integrating 2-formylselenophene with Si-rhodamine B hydrazide. Se-SiRH exhibited an excellent near-infrared response towards Hg in MeOH/PBS solution (1:1, v/v, pH = 7.

Photoformation of Environmentally Persistent Free Radicals During Phototransformation of Poly-Cyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) on Particles in an Aqueous Solution: The Hydrogenation of PAHs and Effect of Co-Existing Water Matrix Factors.

Environmentally persistent free radicals (EPFRs) generated on particles under irradiation in water have attracted particular attention, and their formation mechanisms are not well understood. This study investigated the photoformation of EPFRs on both actual samples collected from an oil production plant in Panjin, Liaoning, China, and simulated Fe(III)-montmorillonite samples in water. The EPFRs detected on actual samples were not easily generated compared with those in the soil or in the air, based on the concentrations of identified PAHs.

Engineered Nickel-Iron Nitride Electrocatalyst for Industrial-Scale Seawater Hydrogen Production.

Seawater electrolysis under alkaline conditions is a crucial technology for sustainable hydrogen production. However, achieving the long-term stability of the electrocatalyst remains a significant challenge. In this study, it is demonstrated that surface reconstruction of a transition metal nitride (TMN) can be used to develop a highly stable oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrocatalyst.

Construction of interpretable ensemble learning models for predicting bioaccumulation parameters of organic chemicals in fish.

Accurate prediction of bioaccumulation parameters is essential for assessing exposure, hazards, and risks of chemicals. However, the majority of prediction models on bioaccumulation parameters are individual models based on a single algorithm and lack model interpretation, resulting in unsatisfactory prediction accuracy due to inherent constraints of the algorithm and weak interpretability. Ensemble learning (EL) that combine multiple algorithms, coupled with SHapley Additive exPlanation (SHAP) method, may overcome the limitations.

Applicability analysis of algae biochar for anaerobic membrane bioreactors in wastewater treatment: A review from a sustainability assessment perspective.

The incorporation of biochar can significantly enhance the performance of anaerobic membrane bioreactors (AnMBRs), achieving up to a 95 % increase in pollutant removal efficiency and an 86 % improvement in methane production. Algae biochar, in particular, shows great promise as an effective additive in AnMBR systems because of its low cost (approximately $0.470/kg) and the abundance of raw material sources.

Enhanced Photocatalytic Synthesis of Urea from co-Reduction of N and CO on Z-Schematic SrTiO-FeS-CoWO Heterostructure.

The photocatalytic co-reduction of CO and N is a sustainable method for urea synthesis under mild conditions. However, high-yield synthesis of urea is a challenge due to the sluggish kinetics of the C-N coupling reaction. Herein, we have successfully engineered a Z-scheme photocatalyst, SrTiO-FeS-CoWO, for boosting photocatalytic urea synthesis via enhancing the initial CO and N adsorption step and reducing the energy barrier for the C-N coupling reaction.

Characteristics, prediction, and risk assessment of phthalates, organophosphate esters, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in vegetables from plastic greenhouses of Northeast China.

We investigated the contaminations of phthalates (PAEs), organophosphate esters (OPEs), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the vegetables and their corresponding soils from 26 plastic greenhouses of Northeast China. PAEs, OPEs, and PAHs in the edible portion of vegetables were in the range of 2620-21800, 115-852, and 32.4-602 ng/g, while the levels of these chemicals in the greenhouse soils were 5770-18800, 196-935, and 109-1600 ng/g, respectively.