Rational design of a series of non-centrosymmetric antiperovskite and double antiperovskite borate fluorides.

Non-centrosymmetric (NCS) compounds can exhibit many symmetry-dependent functional properties, yet their rational structure design remains a great challenge. Herein, a strategy to introduce F-centered octahedra to construct a perovskite-type framework filled by π-conjugated [BO] dimers is proposed to obtain NCS compounds. The first examples of antiperovskite or double antiperovskite borate fluorides, [(M/Ba)Ca]F[BO] (M = K, Rb) and [CsBaCa]F[BO], have been successfully designed and synthesized.

A-site cation manipulation of exemplary second harmonic generation response and optical anisotropy in rare-earth borates.

Ultraviolet nonlinear optical (UV NLO) materials have garnered significant interest for their prospective applications in advanced laser technologies. However, tailoring the desired structure in these materials remains a formidable challenge. Here, we propose a simple yet effective strategy for synthesizing rare-earth borates, K Na LaBO ( = 2-3), by manipulating the A-site cations to induce structural evolution.

Impact of SiO doping on the structure and oil-water separation properties of a PVDF membrane: insights from molecular dynamics simulation.

Hybrid inorganic particles combined with polymers are widely used to modify the properties of polymer membranes. However, the mechanism by which particles affect membranes remains unclear. This study investigates SiO-hybridized PVDF membranes through molecular dynamic simulation, focusing on the interaction between SiO clusters and PVDF chains.

A bifunctional primitive strategy induces enhancements of large second harmonic generation and wide UV transmittance in rare-earth borates containing [BO] groups.

Strong second-harmonic generation (SHG) and a short ultraviolet (UV) cutoff edge are two crucial yet often conflicting parameters that must be finely tuned in the exploration of nonlinear optical (NLO) materials. In this study, two new rare earth borate NLO crystals, KBaScBO (KBSBO) and RbSrScBO (RSSBO), were rationally designed through a bifunctional primitive strategy to achieve an optimized balance between favorable SHG efficiency and UV transparency. As anticipated, both KBSBO and RSSBO exhibit a wide UV transparency window below 190 nm.

Customizing catalyst surface/interface structures for electrochemical CO reduction.

Electrochemical CO reduction reaction (CORR) provides a promising route to converting CO into value-added chemicals and to neutralizing the greenhouse gas emission. For the industrial application of CORR, high-performance electrocatalysts featuring high activities and selectivities are essential. It has been demonstrated that customizing the catalyst surface/interface structures allows for high-precision control over the microenvironment for catalysis as well as the adsorption/desorption behaviors of key reaction intermediates in CORR, thereby elevating the activity, selectivity and stability of the electrocatalysts.

Construction of a BiVO/V-MoS S-scheme heterojunction for efficient photocatalytic nitrogen fixation.

Photocatalytic nitrogen (N) reduction to ammonia (NH), adopting HO as the electron source, suffers from low efficiency owing to the sluggish kinetics of N reduction and the requirement of a substantial thermodynamic driving force. Herein, we present a straightforward approach for the construction of an S-scheme heterojunction of BiVO/V-MoS to successfully achieve photocatalytic N fixation, which is manufactured by coupling an N-activation component (V-MoS nanosheet) and water-oxidation module (BiVO nanocrystal) through electrostatic self-assembly. The V-MoS nanosheet, enriched with sulfur vacancies, plays a pivotal role in facilitating N adsorption and activation.

Machine learning-assisted flexible wearable device for tyrosine detection.

Early diagnosis of pathological markers can significantly shorten the rate of viral transmission, reduce the probability of infection, and improve the cure rate of diseases. Therefore, analytical techniques for identifying pathological markers and environmental toxicants have received considerable attention from researchers worldwide. However, the most popular techniques used in clinical settings involve expensive precision instruments and complex detection processes.

Surface-strain-enhanced oxygen dissociation on gold catalysts.

The excellent low-temperature oxidation performance and stability of nanogold catalysts have attracted significant interest. However, the main active source of the low-temperature oxidation of gold remains to be determined. electron microscopy and mass spectrometry results show that nitrogen is oxidized, and the catalyst surface undergoes reconstruction during the process.

Iodine doping induced activation of covalent organic framework cathodes for Li-ion batteries.

Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) are considered as promising candidate organic electrode materials for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) because of their relatively high capacity, ordered nanopores, and limited solubility in electrolyte. However, the practical capacity of COF materials is mainly affected by their low electronic/ionic conductivity and the deep-buried active sites inside the COFs. Here, we synthesize an iodine doped β-ketoenamine-linked COF (2,6-diaminoanthraquinone and 1,3,5-triformylphloroglucinol, denoted as COF-I) by a facile one-pot solvothermal reaction.

Influence of sliding orientation on tribological properties of hybrid PTFE/Kevlar fabric composites.

A fabric liner is an ideal self-lubricating material that has been widely used in self-lubricating spherical plain bearings. To investigate the influence of sliding orientation on the tribological properties of fabric liners, samples were prepared for different fiber orientations relative to the sliding direction and wear tests were conducted under normal loads of 25 N to 200 N. Composite-90° (sliding along Kevlar fibers) shows the best friction and wear properties under loads of 50 N and 100 N, while composite-0° (sliding along PTFE fibers) exhibits the best tribological properties when the load increases to 200 N.

Effects of different tempering temperatures on the properties of industrial sheet margarine.

Tempering is the final step in Industrial Sheet Margarine (ISM) production, which has a substantial influence on the structure and application characteristics. There are limited reports on how the tempering process affects the ductility and application characteristics of ISM at an industrial production scale. Herein, we investigated the physicochemical properties and ductility of the ISM made from interesterification and non-interesterification fat at various tempering temperatures (10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 °C) for 5 days.

A flexible functional module to regulate ultraviolet optical nonlinearity for achieving a balance between a second-harmonic generation response and birefringence.

Rigid planar π-conjugated groups are adopted for designing ultraviolet (UV) nonlinear optical (NLO) materials extensively. However, for these UV NLO crystals, the realization of a strong second harmonic generation (SHG) response is commonly accompanied by undesired overlarge birefringence. Herein, we propose a new functional gene, the flexible π-conjugated (CHO) group, for designing a UV NLO crystal with a balance between the SHG response and birefringence.

Rational design of a promising oxychalcogenide infrared nonlinear optical crystal.

Oxychalcogenides with the performance-advantages of both chalcogenides and oxides are emerging materials class for infrared (IR) nonlinear optical (NLO) crystals that can expand the wavelength of solid-state lasers to IR regions and are of importance in industrial and civil applications. But rationally designing a high-performance oxychalcogenide NLO crystal remains a great challenge. Herein, we chose the melilite-type SrZnSiO as the structure template.

Conduction band-edge valley splitting in two-dimensional ferroelectric AgBiPS by magnetic doping: towards electron valley-polarized transport.

Two-dimensional valleytronic systems, using the valley index of carriers to perform logic operations, serves as the basis of the next-generation information technologies. For efficient use of the valley degree of freedom, the major challenge currently is to lift the valley degeneracy to achieve valley splitting. In this work, using first-principles calculations, we propose that valley splitting can be readily achieved in a ferroelectric AgBiPS monolayer by TM doping (TM = V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, and Ni), which is highly feasible in experiments.

Blue nanocomposites coated with an ionic liquid polymer for electrophoretic displays.

Electrophoretic display (EPD) is a type of flexible display which has attracted wide attention. In this work, blue nanosized crystals of cobalt aluminum oxide (CoAlO) were precipitated on silica nanoparticles, and then the nanocomposites were coated with an ionic liquid polymer (PIL) to give blue electrophoretic particles. The blue nanocomposites (SCAs) formed possess an excellent spherical structure, and the average diameter is about 188 nm.

Single-atom niobium doped BCN nanotubes for highly sensitive electrochemical detection of nitrobenzene.

Herein, single-atom niobium-doped boron-carbon-nitrogen nanotubes (SANb-BCN) were synthesized and utilized to fabricate an electrochemical sensor for the detection of nitrobenzene (NB), an environmental pollutant. SANb-BCN were characterized through scanning transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction analysis, and Raman spectroscopy. The Nb-BNC material modified on a glassy carbon electrode (GCE) showed an excellent electrochemical response behavior toward NB.

Identification of two-dimensional copper signatures in human blood for bladder cancer with machine learning.

Currently, almost all available cancer biomarkers are based on concentrations of compounds, often suffering from low sensitivity, poor specificity, and false positive or negative results. The stable isotopic composition of elements provides a different dimension from the concentration and has been widely used as a tracer in geochemistry. In health research, stable isotopic analysis has also shown potential as a new diagnostic/prognostic tool, which is still in the nascent stage.

BaCa(BO)F: π-conjugation of BO in the planar pentagonal layer achieving large second harmonic generation of -borate.

The nonlinear optical (NLO) crystals that can expand the wavelength of the laser to the deep-ultraviolet (DUV) region by the cascaded second harmonic generation (SHG) are of current research interest. It is well known that borates are the most ideal material class for the design of new DUV NLO crystals owing to the presence of good NLO genes, , BO or BO groups. However, the NLO -borates with the BO dimers as the sole basic building units are still rarely reported owing to their small SHG responses.

Hydrophobic nano SiO as flow-enhancing additives and flame retardant synergizes with CaCO to suppress gas explosion.

The suppression effect of hydrophobic nano SiO of different concentrations as flow-enhancing additives synergizing with CaCO to inhibit gas explosions was systematically studied in a self-built LabVIEW-based explosion test platform. The results showed that the addition of hydrophobic powder can reduce the angle of rest and enhance the flowability of mixed powders, and improve the powder diffusion effect and storability. Meanwhile, changing the proportion and concentration of the mixed powders had a significant impact on the combustion reaction, so that the flame propagation velocity and explosion overpressure decreased significantly.

Ratiometric electrochemical sensor for accurate detection of salicylic acid in leaves of living plants.

Detection of signal molecules in living plants is of great relevance for precision farming. In this work, to establish a more effective method for monitoring salicylic acid (SA) in the leaves of living plants, a ratiometric electrochemical sensor was fabricated based on a Cu metal-organic framework (Cu-MOF) and carbon black (CB) composite. The Cu-MOF and CB composite was used to catalyze SA oxidation.

Novel rhodamine dye with large Stokes shifts by fusing the 1,4-diethylpiperazine moiety and its applications in fast detection of Cu.

Rhodamine dyes were widely developed for designing probes due to their excellent photophysical properties and biocompatibility. However, traditional rhodamine dyes still bear major drawbacks of short emission wavelengths (<600 nm) and narrow Stokes shifts (<30 nm), which limit their biological imaging applications. Herein, we reported a novel mitochondria-targeted fluorescent dye JRQ with near-infrared (NIR) emission wavelength and improved Stokes shift (63 nm) by tuning the donor-acceptor-donor (D-A-D) character of the rhodamine skeleton.

A deep-red fluorescent molecular rotor based on donor-two-acceptor modular system for imaging mitochondrial viscosity.

A new donor-two-acceptor modular fluorescence rotor DpCy7 involving a phenolate donor unit and two benzothiazolium acceptor moieties was designed and synthesized. The DpCy7 underwent an internal charge transfer to form a Cy7-like longer conjugated system fluorochrome at a physiological pH. The probe exhibited a strong turn-on (8.

A near-infrared fluorescent probe with an improved Stokes shift achieved by tuning the donor-acceptor-donor character of the rhodamine skeleton and its applications.

In this paper, we report a novel near-infrared (NIR) mitochondrion-targeted fluorescent probe, RQS, with an improved Stokes shift (96 nm) for the specific detection of mitochondrial mercury ion (Hg) because mitochondrion is one of the main targeted organelles of Hg. For the preparation of the probe, a novel asymmetrical fluorescent xanthene dye RQ was first synthesized by tuning the donor-acceptor-donor (D-A-D) character of the rhodamine skeleton, and then the probe RQS was constructed by the mechanism of mercury-promoted ring-opening reaction. As expected, RQS could be used for the specific detection of Hg with high selectivity, high sensitivity, and a detection limit down to the nanomolar range (2 nM).

Anodic SnO porous nanostructures with rich grain boundaries for efficient CO electroreduction to formate.

Formic acid (HCOOH), the acidic form of formate, is an important hydrogen carrier which can be directly used in fuel cells. Development of earth-abundant element-based catalysts to convert carbon dioxide (CO) into HCOOH or formate with high selectivity and high efficiency has been a vigorous research activity in recent years but remains an unsolved challenge. In this contribution, using one-step anodization, we prepare nanotubular SnO porous nanostructures with high surface area (90.