Reactive Passivation of Wide-Bandgap Organic-Inorganic Perovskites with Benzylamine.

While amines are widely used as additives in metal-halide perovskites, our understanding of the way amines in perovskite precursor solutions impact the resultant perovskite film is still limited. In this paper, we explore the multiple effects of benzylamine (BnAm), also referred to as phenylmethylamine, used to passivate both FACsPb(IBr) and FACsPbI perovskite compositions. We show that, unlike benzylammonium (BnA) halide salts, BnAm reacts rapidly with the formamidinium (FA) cation, forming new chemical products in solution and these products passivate the perovskite crystal domains when processed into a thin film.

Water sorption studies with mesoporous multivariate monoliths based on UiO-66.

Hierarchical linker thermolysis has been used to enhance the porosity of monolithic UiO-66-based metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) containing 30 wt% 2-aminoterephthalic acid (BDC-NH) linker. In this multivariate ( mixed-linker) MOF, the thermolabile BDC-NH linker decomposed at ∼350 °C, inducing mesopore formation. The nitrogen sorption of these monolithic MOFs was probed, and an increase in gas uptake of more than 200 cm g was observed after activation by heating, together with an increase in pore volume and mean pore width, indicating the creation of mesopores.

Active and highly durable supported catalysts for proton exchange membrane electrolysers.

The design and development of supported catalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is a promising pathway to reducing iridium loading in proton exchange membrane water electrolysers. However, supported catalysts often suffer from poor activity and durability, particularly when deployed in membrane electrode assemblies. In this work, we deploy iridium coated hollow titanium dioxide particles as OER catalysts to achieve higher Ir mass activities than the leading commercial catalysts.

Triboelectric behaviour of selected zeolitic-imidazolate frameworks: exploring chemical, morphological and topological influences.

Tribo- and contact electrification remain poorly understood, baffling and discombobulating scientists for millennia. Despite the technology needed to harvest mechanical energy with triboelectric generators being incredibly rudimentary and the fact that a triboelectric output can be obtained from almost any two material combinations, research into triboelectric generator materials typically focuses on achieving the highest possible output; meanwhile, understanding trends and triboelectric behaviours of related but lower performing materials is often overlooked or not studied. Metal-organic frameworks, a class of typically highly porous and crystalline coordination polymers are excellent media to study to fill this knowledge gap.

Transforming the Water-Energy Nexus in Gaza: A Systems Approach.

The acute water and electricity shortages in Gaza necessitate comprehensive solutions that recognize the interconnected nature of these vital resources. This article presents pragmatic solutions to align supply with fundamental needs in both domains, offering viable pathways for achieving strategic water-energy security in Gaza. Baseline data reveals a deficit in the current water supply, falling below the international minimum of 100 L per capita per day, while the reported 137-189 MW per day electricity supply significantly lags behind the estimated 390 MW per day peak demand.

Porous nanorods by stacked NiO nanoparticulate exhibiting corn-like structure for sustainable environmental and energy applications.

A porous 1D nanostructure provides much shorter electron transport pathways, thereby helping to improve the life cycle of the device and overcome poor ionic and electronic conductivity, interfacial impedance between electrode-electrolyte interface, and low volumetric energy density. In view of this, we report on the feasibility of 1D porous NiO nanorods comprising interlocked NiO nanoparticles as an active electrode for capturing greenhouse CO, effective supercapacitors, and efficient electrocatalytic water-splitting applications. The nanorods with a size less than 100 nm were formed by stacking cubic crystalline NiO nanoparticles with dimensions less than 10 nm, providing the necessary porosity.

Manganese catalysed dehydrogenative synthesis of polyureas from diformamide and diamines.

We report here the synthesis of polyureas from the dehydrogenative coupling of diamines and diformamides. The reaction is catalysed by a manganese pincer complex and releases H gas as the only by-product making the process atom-economic and sustainable. The reported method is greener in comparison to the current state-of-the-art production routes that involve diisocyanate and phosgene feedstock.

A modular RNA delivery system comprising spherical nucleic acids built on endosome-escaping polymeric nanoparticles.

Nucleic acid therapeutics require delivery systems to reach their targets. Key challenges to be overcome include avoidance of accumulation in cells of the mononuclear phagocyte system and escape from the endosomal pathway. Spherical nucleic acids (SNAs), in which a gold nanoparticle supports a corona of oligonucleotides, are promising carriers for nucleic acids with valuable properties including nuclease resistance, sequence-specific loading and control of receptor-mediated endocytosis.

On the diatomite-based nanostructure-preserving material synthesis for energy applications.

The present article overviews the current state-of-the-art and future prospects for the use of diatomaceous earth (DE) in the continuously expanding sector of energy science and technology. An eco-friendly direct source of silica and the production of silicon, diatomaceous earth possesses a desirable nano- to micro-structure that offers inherent advantages for optimum performance in existing and new applications in electrochemistry, catalysis, optoelectronics, and biomedical engineering. Silica, silicon and silicon-based materials have proven useful for energy harvesting and storage applications.

NiMn-layered double oxide electrodes in organic electrolyte based supercapacitors.

The development of future mobility ( electric vehicles) requires supercapacitors with high voltage and high energy density. Conventional active carbon-based supercapacitors have almost reached their limit of energy density which is still far below the desired performance. Advanced materials, particularly metal hydroxides/oxides with tailored structure are promising supercapacitor electrodes to push the limit of energy density.

PEDOT percolation networks for reversible chemiresistive sensing of NO.

Detection of NO plays an important role in various safety applications. However, sensitive and reversible sensing of NO remains a challenge. Here we demonstrate the use of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) conducting polymer percolation networks for chemiresistive sensing of NO.

Emerging cold plasma treatment and machine learning prospects for seed priming: a step towards sustainable food production.

Seeds are vulnerable to physical and biological stresses during the germination process. Seed priming strategies can alleviate such stresses. Seed priming is a technique of treating and drying seeds prior to germination in order to accelerate the metabolic process of germination.

The crystalline state as a dynamic system: IR microspectroscopy under electrochemical control for a [NiFe] hydrogenase.

Controlled formation of catalytically-relevant states within crystals of complex metalloenzymes represents a significant challenge to structure-function studies. Here we show how electrochemical control over single crystals of [NiFe] hydrogenase 1 (Hyd1) from makes it possible to navigate through the full array of active site states previously observed in solution. Electrochemical control is combined with synchrotron infrared microspectroscopy, which enables us to measure high signal-to-noise IR spectra from a small area of crystal.

Charge transport through extended molecular wires with strongly correlated electrons.

Electron-electron interactions are at the heart of chemistry and understanding how to control them is crucial for the development of molecular-scale electronic devices. Here, we investigate single-electron tunneling through a redox-active edge-fused porphyrin trimer and demonstrate that its transport behavior is well described by the Hubbard dimer model, providing insights into the role of electron-electron interactions in charge transport. In particular, we empirically determine the molecule's on-site and inter-site electron-electron repulsion energies, which are in good agreement with density functional calculations, and establish the molecular electronic structure within various oxidation states.

An experimental approach probing the conformational transitions and energy landscape of antibodies: a glimmer of hope for reviving lost therapeutic candidates using ionic liquid.

Understanding protein folding in different environmental conditions is fundamentally important for predicting protein structures and developing innovative antibody formulations. While the thermodynamics and kinetics of folding and unfolding have been extensively studied by computational methods, experimental methods for determining antibody conformational transition pathways are lacking. Motivated to fill this gap, we prepared a series of unique formulations containing a high concentration of a chimeric immunoglobin G4 (IgG4) antibody with different excipients in the presence and absence of the ionic liquid (IL) choline dihydrogen phosphate.

Chemo-bio catalysis using carbon supports: application in H-driven cofactor recycling.

Heterogeneous biocatalytic hydrogenation is an attractive strategy for clean, enantioselective C[double bond, length as m-dash]X reduction. This approach relies on enzymes powered by H-driven NADH recycling. Commercially available carbon-supported metal (metal/C) catalysts are investigated here for direct H-driven NAD reduction.

Imaging Sodium Dendrite Growth in All-Solid-State Sodium Batteries Using Na -Weighted Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

Two-dimensional, Knight-shifted, -contrasted Na magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of an all-solid-state cell with a Na electrode and a ceramic electrolyte is employed to directly observe Na microstructural growth. A spalling dendritic morphology is observed and confirmed by more conventional post-mortem analysis; X-ray tomography and scanning electron microscopy. A significantly larger Na for the dendritic growth, compared with the bulk metal electrode, is attributed to increased sodium ion mobility in the dendrite.

Jet-Printing Microfluidic Devices on Demand.

There is an unmet demand for microfluidics in biomedicine. This paper describes contactless fabrication of microfluidic circuits on standard Petri dishes using just a dispensing needle, syringe pump, three-way traverse, cell-culture media, and an immiscible fluorocarbon (FC40). A submerged microjet of FC40 is projected through FC40 and media onto the bottom of a dish, where it washes media away to leave liquid fluorocarbon walls pinned to the substrate by interfacial forces.

Carbon nanotube columns for flow systems: influence of synthesis parameters.

Flow reactors are expected to play an increasingly important role in the production of chemicals. A simple carbon-based scaffold to easily develop flow systems is here detailed. Using a chemical vapour deposition technique, the controlled growth of vertically aligned (VA) multi-wall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) into quartz columns with 2 mm inner diameter is achieved.

Nanomechanical behavior and interfacial deformation beyond the elastic limit in 2D metal-organic framework nanosheets.

Nanoscale mechanical property measurements of nanoporous nanosheets face many challenges. Herein we show atomic force microscope (AFM)-based nanoindentation to probe the nanoscale mechanical properties of a 2-D metal-organic framework (MOF) nanosheet material containing atomic-sized pores, termed CuBDC [copper 1,4-benzenedicarboxylate]. The sample thickness ranged from ∼10 nm (tens of monolayers) up to ∼400 nm (a stack of multilayers).

Understanding the conversion mechanism and performance of monodisperse FeF nanocrystal cathodes.

The application of transition metal fluorides as energy-dense cathode materials for lithium ion batteries has been hindered by inadequate understanding of their electrochemical capabilities and limitations. Here, we present an ideal system for mechanistic study through the colloidal synthesis of single-crystalline, monodisperse iron(II) fluoride nanorods. Near theoretical capacity (570 mA h g) and extraordinary cycling stability (>90% capacity retention after 50 cycles at C/20) is achieved solely through the use of an ionic liquid electrolyte (1 m LiFSI/PyrFSI), which forms a stable solid electrolyte interphase and prevents the fusing of particles.

Probing enzymatic activity - a radical approach.

Deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs) are known to have numerous important interactions with the ubiquitin cascade and their dysregulation is associated with several diseases, including cancer and neurodegeneration. They are an important class of enzyme, and activity-based probes have been developed as an effective strategy to study them. Existing activity-based probes that target the active site of these enzymes work nucleophilic mechanisms.

Nonspiro, Fluorene-Based, Amorphous Hole Transporting Materials for Efficient and Stable Perovskite Solar Cells.

Novel nonspiro, fluorene-based, small-molecule hole transporting materials (HTMs) and are designed and synthesized using a facile three-step synthetic route. The synthesized compounds exhibit amorphous nature with a high glass transition temperature, a good solubility, and decent thermal stability. The planar perovskite solar cells (PSCs) employing generated an excellent power conversion efficiency of 18.