A photoinduced flexible Li‐CO2 battery with well‐designed, hierarchical porous, and free‐standing In2S3@CNT/SS (ICS) as a bifunctional photoelectrode to accelerate both the CO2 reduction and ...evolution reactions (CDRR and CDER) is presented. The photoinduced Li‐CO2 battery achieved a record‐high discharge voltage of 3.14 V, surpassing the thermodynamic limit of 2.80 V, and an ultra‐low charge voltage of 3.20 V, achieving a round trip efficiency of 98.1 %, which is the highest value ever reported (<80 %) so far. These excellent properties can be ascribed to the hierarchical porous and free‐standing structure of ICS, as well as the key role of photogenerated electrons and holes during discharging and charging processes. A mechanism is proposed for pre‐activating CO2 by reducing In3+ to In+ under light illumination. The mechanism of the bifunctional light‐assisted process provides insight into photoinduced Li‐CO2 batteries and contributes to resolving the major setbacks of the system.
Battery life on Mars: A photoinduced flexible Li‐CO2 battery with hierarchical, porous, and free‐standing In2S3@CNT/SS as a bifunctional photoelectrode to accelerate both CO2 reduction and evolution is presented. The Li‐CO2 battery achieved a record‐high discharge voltage of 3.14 V (thermodynamic limit: 2.80 V), and an ultra‐low charge voltage of 3.20 V, and a roundtrip efficiency of 98.1 %.
Targeting mitochondrial quality control with melatonin has been found promising for attenuating diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM), although the underlying mechanisms remain largely undefined. Activation ...of SIRT6 and melatonin membrane receptors exerts cardioprotective effects while little is known about their roles during DCM. Using high‐fat diet‐streptozotocin‐induced diabetic rat model, we found that prolonged diabetes significantly decreased nocturnal circulatory melatonin and heart melatonin levels, reduced the expressions of cardiac melatonin membrane receptors, and decreased myocardial SIRT6 and AMPK‐PGC‐1α‐AKT signaling. 16 weeks of melatonin treatment inhibited the progression of DCM and the following myocardial ischemia‐reperfusion (MI/R) injury by reducing mitochondrial fission, enhancing mitochondrial biogenesis and mitophagy via re‐activating SIRT6 and AMPK‐PGC‐1α‐AKT signaling. After the induction of diabetes, adeno‐associated virus carrying SIRT6‐specific small hairpin RNA or luzindole was delivered to the animals. We showed that SIRT6 knockdown or antagonizing melatonin receptors abolished the protective effects of melatonin against mitochondrial dysfunction as evidenced by aggravated mitochondrial fission and reduced mitochondrial biogenesis and mitophagy. Additionally, SIRT6 shRNA or luzindole inhibited melatonin‐induced AMPK‐PGC‐1α‐AKT activation as well as its cardioprotective actions. Collectively, we demonstrated that long‐term melatonin treatment attenuated the progression of DCM and reduced myocardial vulnerability to MI/R injury through preserving mitochondrial quality control. Melatonin membrane receptor‐mediated SIRT6‐AMPK‐PGC‐1α‐AKT axis played a key role in this process. Targeting SIRT6 with melatonin treatment may be a promising strategy for attenuating DCM and reducing myocardial vulnerability to ischemia‐reperfusion injury in diabetic patients.
Lithium-oxygen batteries with ultrahigh energy density have received considerable attention as of the future energy storage technologies. The development of effective electrocatalysts and a ...corresponding working mechanism during cycling are critically important for lithium-oxygen batteries. Here, a single cobalt atom electrocatalyst is synthesized for lithium-oxygen batteries by a polymer encapsulation strategy. The isolated moieties of single atom catalysts can effectively regulate the distribution of active sites to form micrometre-sized flower-like lithium peroxide and promote the decomposition of lithium peroxide by a one-electron pathway. The battery with single cobalt atoms can operate with high round-trip efficiency (86.2%) and long-term stability (218 days), which is superior to a commercial 5 wt% platinum/carbon catalyst. We reveal that the synergy between a single atom and the support endows the catalyst with excellent stability and durability. The promising results provide insights into the design of highly efficient catalysts for lithium-oxygen batteries and greatly expand the scope of future investigation.
Photoassisted electrochemical reaction is regarded as an effective approach to reduce the overpotential of lithium–oxygen (Li–O2) batteries. However, the achievement of both broadband absorption and ...long term battery cycling stability are still a formidable challenge. Herein, an oxygen vacancy‐mediated fast kinetics for a photoassisted Li–O2 system is developed with a silver/bismuth molybdate (Ag/Bi2MoO6) hybrid cathode. The cathode can offer both double advantages for light absorption covering UV to visible region and excellent electrochemical activity for O2. Upon discharging, the photoexcited electrons from Ag nanoplate based on the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) are injected into the oxygen vacancy in Bi2MoO6. The fast oxygen reaction kinetics generate the amorphous Li2O2, and the discharge plateau is improved to 3.05 V. Upon charging, the photoexcited holes are capable to decompose amorphous Li2O2 promptly, yielding a very low charge plateau of 3.25 V. A first cycle round‐trip efficiency is 93.8% and retention of 70% over 500 h, which is the longest cycle life ever reported in photoassisted Li–O2 batteries. This work offers a general and reliable strategy for boosting the electrochemical kinetics by tailoring the crystalline of Li2O2 with wide‐band light.
A facile oxygen vacancy‐mediated fast kinetics for an ultrawide band photoassisted Li–O2 system is developed. The bifunctional Ag/Bi2MoO6 cathode is favorable to promoting the oxygen reduction reaction and oxygen evolution reaction kinetics due to the discharge products is amorphous Li2O2. The reaction mechanism is revealed by in situ X‐ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy.
Single atoms catalysts’ (SACs) applications in the energy storage field are hindered by their insufficient stability and poor recyclability due to their oxidation and agglomeration. To address this ...challenge, herein, a Co‐CMS composite material is synthesized by confining Co SACs into the highly ordered pores of the carbon molecular sieve (CMS). Related theoretical and experimental methods prove that the microporous trapping and hydroxyl doping of CMS are favorable for synergistically stabilizing the precursor and contributing to the subsequent conversion of single atoms with strong interactions between Co, O, and N. The unique 3D spiral pore structure of CMS facilitates the mass transfer of reactants and the highly dispersed Co single atoms confined in CMS increase the active sites. These properties are ideal for oxygen reduction reaction catalysts. Benefiting from the above‐mentioned superiority, the Co‐CMS cathode exhibits superior performance in a rechargeable Zn–air battery with a lower charge–discharge voltage gap of 0.77 V and a power density of 219 mW cm−2. The applications of Co‐CMS catalysts are also extended to other metal–air batteries in this work, which further highlights the advantages of carbon molecular sieves in stabilizing SACs materials.
A new strategy for using the confinement effect of hierarchical carbon molecular sieves (CMS) to stabilize single atoms is deeply studied. This strategy enables the fabrication of a satisfactory oxygen reduction reaction catalyst. The synergistic effect of the micropore capture effect and the hydroxyl group of CMS produce excellent results. The Co‐CMS catalyst displays promising applications in the field of metal–air batteries.
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are persistent, bioaccumulative pollutants found in water resources at concentrations harmful to human health. Whereas current PFAS destruction strategies ...use nonselective destruction mechanisms, we found that perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids (PFCAs) could be mineralized through a sodium hydroxide–mediated defluorination pathway. PFCA decarboxylation in polar aprotic solvents produced reactive perfluoroalkyl ion intermediates that degraded to fluoride ions (78 to ~100%) within 24 hours. The carbon-containing intermediates and products were inconsistent with oft-proposed one-carbon-chain shortening mechanisms, and we instead computationally identified pathways consistent with many experiments. Degradation was also observed for branched perfluoroalkyl ether carboxylic acids and might be extended to degrade other PFAS classes as methods to activate their polar headgroups are identified.
Forever chemicals’ Achilles’ heel
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have been referred to as “forever chemicals” because of their resistance to most biological and chemical degradation mechanisms. Most current methods use very harsh conditions to decompose these compounds. Trang
et al
. found that there is a potential weak spot in carboxylic acid–containing PFAS: Decarboxylation in polar, non-protic solvents yields a carbanion that rapidly decomposes (see the Perspective by Joudan and Lundgren). The authors used computational work and experiments to show that this process involves fluoride elimination, hydroxide addition, and carbon–carbon bond scission. The initial decarboxylation step is rate limiting, and subsequent defluorination and chain shortening steps occur through a series of low barrier steps. The procedure can accommodate perfluoroether carboxylic acids, although sulfonic acids are not currently compatible. —MAF
Mechanistic insights into a decarboxylation–defluorination pathway inform methods for perfluorocarboxylic acid mineralization.
The photoassisted lithium–oxygen (Li–O2) system has emerged as an important direction for future development by effectively reducing the large overpotential in Li–O2 batteries. However, the ...advancement is greatly hindered by the rapidly recombined photoexcited electrons and holes upon the discharging and charging processes. Herein, a breakthrough is made in overcoming these challenges by developing a new magnetic and optical field multi‐assisted Li–O2 battery with 3D porous NiO nanosheets on the Ni foam (NiO/FNi) as a photoelectrode. Under illumination, the photogenerated electrons and holes of the NiO/FNi photoelectrode play a key role in reducing the overpotential during discharging and charging, respectively. By introducing the external magnetic field, the Lorentz force acts oppositely on the photogenerated electrons and holes, thereby suppressing the recombination of charge carriers. The magnetic and optical field multi‐assisted Li–O2 battery achieves an ultralow charge potential of 2.73 V, a high energy efficiency of 96.7%, and good cycling stability. This external magnetic and optical field multi‐assisted technology paves a new way of developing high‐performance Li–O2 batteries and other energy storage systems.
A renewable magnetic and optical field multi‐assisted Li–O2 battery is developed with porous NiO on the Ni foam as a photoelectrode. The battery achieves an ultralow charge potential of 2.73 V, a high energy efficiency of 96.7%, and good cycling stability. The effect mechanism of the improved battery performance with magnetic field and optical field is revealed.
Aim
The global patterns of phytophagous eriophyoid mite species diversity have been poorly studied for several decades. In a previous paper, we compiled a dataset covering 97% (4278/4400) of named ...eriophyoid mite species and 22,973 occurrence sites from 102 countries (Li et al., 2023). Using this dataset, we aimed to predict the global distribution patterns and species diversity of eriophyoid mites. Our findings revealed that the species richness of eriophyoid mites is particularly high in temperate regions, which is in contrast to the patterns of plants (Li et al., 2023). However, our results were criticized by Ozman‐Sullivan and Sullivan (2024), who argue that our analysis is based on a biased dataset of eriophyoid mites, because it is likely that there are many undescribed eriophyoid species in the tropics.
Location
Global.
Taxon
Eriophyoid mites (Acari: Eriophyoidea).
Main Conclusions
However, using plant species to predict eriophyoid mite diversity, as Ozman‐Sullivan and Sullivan propose, may result in an overestimation of species richness. We leave ‘whether the species richness of eriophyid mites is high in tropical regions’ as an open question and a potential area for future research.
Directly converting and storing abundant solar energy in next‐generation energy storage devices is of central importance to build a sustainable society. Herein, a new prototype of a light‐promoted ...rechargeable and flexible Li‐CO2 battery with a TiO2/carbon cloth (CC) cathode is reported for the direct utilization of solar energy to promote the kinetics of the carbon dioxide reduction reaction and carbon dioxide evolution reaction (CO2ER). Under illumination, photoelectrons are generated in the conduction band of TiO2/CC, followed by the enhancing diffusion of electrons and lithium ions during the discharge process. The photoelectrons on the cathode surface can regulate the morphology of the discharge product Li2CO3, contributing to boosting the kinetics of the subsequent CO2ER process. In the reverse charge process, photogenerated holes can favor the decomposition of Li2CO3, leading to a negative charge potential of 2.88 V without increased polarization over ≈60 h of cycling. Owing to an ultralow overpotential of 0.06 V between the discharge and charge process, an ultrahigh energy efficiency of 97.9% is attained under illumination. The introduction of a light‐promoted flexible Li‐CO2 battery can pave the way toward developing the use of solar energy to address the charging overpotential of conventional Li‐CO2 batteries.
A renewable light‐promoted flexible Li‐CO2 battery is developed inspired by the photoenergy conversion and utilization concept. The utilization of solar light can effectively alleviate the charge polarization and promote the Li+ diffusion and mass transfer, resulting in considerable improvement of the kinetics of the carbon dioxide reduction reaction and carbon dioxide evolution reaction processes in the Li‐CO2 battery.
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