As a new form of regional multilateralism, the Belt and Road Initiative is China's most significant strategic move for external engagement in international economic law, following its World Trade ...Organization accession. This paper analyses China's approach towards the Belt and Road Initiative from a legal perspective, focusing on three questions: first, what is the proper scope of the Belt and Road Initiative? Second, is there an identifiable approach that China adopts in the Belt and Road Initiative context, and, if so, what is its key legal characteristic? Third, is China's Belt and Road Initiative approach sustainable? Employing a functional approach in defining the Belt and Road Initiative, the article identifies three qualities to China's approach to the Belt and Road Initiative: (i) that it is a hub-and-spoke network, (ii) it adopts a three-track institutional and mechanism approach, and (iii) a dual-track normative approach. Compared with the US trade approach (particularly the US- Mexico-Canada Agreement), these qualities reveal the key characteristic underpinning China's Belt and Road Initiative approach: maximised flexibility regarding institutions and norms to address uncertainties and challenges in the Belt and Road Initiative. Such flexibility will likely assist in ensuring that China's Belt and Road Initiative approach is sustainable by enabling trial-and-error, if properly managed. However, it also gives rise to concerns around China's Belt and Road Initiative approach, especially as to its predictability, coherence, and transparency.
The fabrication of ultrasmall and high‐content SnO2 nanocrystals anchored on doped graphene can endow SnO2 with superior electrochemical properties. Herein, an effective strategy, involving molecular ...engineering of a layer‐by‐layer assembly technique, is proposed to homogeneously anchor SnO2 nanocrystals on nitrogen/sulfur codoped graphene (NSGS), which serves as an advanced anode material in lithium/sodium‐ion batteries (LIBs/SIBs). Benefiting from novel design and specific structure, the optimized NSGS for LIBs displays high initial capacity (2123.9 mAh g−1 at 0.1 A g−1), long‐term cycling performance (only 0.8% loss after 500 cycles), and good rate capability (477.4 mAh g−1 at 5 A g−1). In addition, the optimized NSGS for SIBs also delivers high initial capacity (791.7 mAh g−1 at 0.1 A g−1) and high reversible capacity (180.2 mAh g−1 after 500 cycles at 0.5 A g−1). Meanwhile, based on the detailed analysis of phase transition and electrochemical reaction kinetics, the reaction mechanisms of NSGS in LIBs and SIBs as well as the distinction in LIBs/SIBs are clearly articulated. Notably, to further explore the practical application, Li/Na+ full cells are also assembled by coupling the optimized NSGS anode with LiCoO2 and Na3V2(PO4)3/C cathodes, respectively.
A novel strategy to construct SnO2 nanocrystals anchored on nitrogen/sulfur codoped graphene via a facile layer‐by‐layer assembly technique using porphyrin derivative as an interfacial linker is presented. It can serve as an anode material for lithium/sodium‐ion batteries in half/full cells, and the phase transition and electrochemical reaction kinetics are also systemically investigated by ex situ characterization.
Nowadays, the issue of information overload is gradually gaining exposure in the Internet of Things (IoT), calling for more research on recommender system in advance for industrial IoT scenarios. ...With the ever-increasing prevalence of various social networks, social recommendations (SoR) will certainly become an integral application that provides more feasibly personalized information service for future IoT users. However, almost all of the existing research managed to explore and quantify correlations between user preferences and social relationships, while neglecting the correlations among item features which could further influence the topologies of some social groups. To tackle with this challenge, in this article, a deep graph neural network-based social recommendation framework (GNN-SoR) is proposed for future IoTs. First, user and item feature spaces are abstracted as two graph networks and respectively encoded via the graph neural network method. Next, two encoded spaces are embedded into two latent factors of matrix factorization to complete missing rating values in a user-item rating matrix. Finally, a large amount of experiments are conducted on three real-world data sets to verify the efficiency and stability of the proposed GNN-SoR.
Abstract
In contrast with the selective adaptation approach toward external norms seen in its accession to the World Trade Organization, China increasingly plays a proactive role on the international ...stage, with the Belt and Road Initiative at the center of these activities. How can we understand this new approach by China toward international economic governance? What is responsible for China’s shifting approach, and what are the implications of this shift? The paper presents selective reshaping as a new theoretical framework, and argues that China is shifting toward the selective reshaping of institutions and rules within the global economic order. Within this theoretical framework, perception and conception, complementarity and legitimacy are influencing components that affect selective reshaping, and which manifest substantially differently in this context, when compared with selective adaptation. Selective reshaping is likely to transform the institutions and rules within the international economic order, and carry long-term implications.
Polydopamine (PDA), which is biodegradable and is derived from naturally occurring products, can be employed as an electrode material, wherein controllable partial oxidization plays a key role in ...balancing the proportion of redox‐active carbonyl groups and the structural stability and conductivity. Unexpectedly, the optimized PDA derivative endows lithium‐ion batteries (LIBs) or sodium‐ion batteries (SIBs) with superior electrochemical performances, including high capacities (1818 mAh g−1 for LIBs and 500 mAh g−1 for SIBs) and good stable cyclabilities (93 % capacity retention after 580 cycles for LIBs; 100 % capacity retention after 1024 cycles for SIBs), which are much better than those of their counterparts with conventional binders.
Mussel power: A polydopamine‐derived material can act as both electrode and binder material for lithium‐ion and sodium‐ion batteries, and exhibits superior electrochemical performances including high capacity and stable cyclability. The material is synthesized by the oxidative polymerization of dopamine, which is both naturally occurring and biodegradable.
Sodium‐ion batteries (SIBs) are considered as promising alternatives to lithium‐ion batteries (LIBs) for large‐scale electrical‐energy‐storage applications due to the wide availability and the low ...cost of Na resources. Along with the avenues of research on flexible LIBs, flexible SIBs are now being actively developed as one of the most promising power sources for the emerging field of flexible and wearable electronic devices. Here, the recent progress on flexible electrodes based on metal substrates, carbonaceous substrates (i.e., graphene, carbon cloth, and carbon nanofibers), and other materials, as well as their applications in flexible SIBs, are summarized. Also, some future research directions for constructing flexible SIBs are proposed, with the aim of providing inspiration to the further development of advanced flexible SIBs.
Flexible sodium‐ion batteries (SIBs) are being actively developed as one of the most promising power sources for the emerging field of flexible and wearable electronic devices. The recent progress on flexible electrodes based on metal substrates, carbonaceous substrates, and other materials, is summarized, along with their applications in flexible SIBs.
Quasi‐solid‐state lithium‐organic batteries have attracted widespread attention in view of their high safety, good mechanical strength, compromise ionic conductivity, and environmental friendliness. ...However, most organic electrode materials suffer from the undesirable interfacial compatibility, thus causing poor cycling stability. Herein, a quinone‐fused aza‐phenazine (THQAP) is reported with multi‐active site and compatible groups as the cathode material for constructing poly(vinylidene fluoride hexafluoro propylene) (PVDF‐HFP)‐based quasi‐solid‐state lithium‐organic batteries. Benefitting from the high compatibility between cathode material (THQAP) and gel polymer electrolytes (PVDF‐HFP), the dissolution and shuttle reaction of THQAP with hydroxyl groups are suppressed compared with its counterparts (QAP) without hydroxyl groups. As a result, THQAP in quasi‐solid‐state lithium‐organic batteries not only delivers excellent reversible capacity of 240 mAh g−1 at 50 mA g−1, but also exhibits stable cyclability with capacity retention of 78% (160 mAh g−1) after 200 cycles at 200 mA g−1. This study offers a promising strategy to develop quasi‐solid‐state lithium‐organic batteries with higher capacity and cycling stability.
The quinone‐fused aza‐phenazines with multi‐active site and compatible groups are synthesized and used as the cathode materials to construct poly(vinylidene fluoride hexafluoro propylene) (PVDF‐HFP)‐based quasi‐solid‐state lithiumorganic batteries. Experimental analyses and theory calculations demonstrate the existence of the compatibility and strong interaction between the electrode/electrolyte interfaces, which leads to the improved cycling stability and rate performance.
Potassium‐ion batteries (PIBs) are gradually gaining attention owing to their natural abundance, excellent security, and high energy density. However, developing excellent organic cathode materials ...for PIBs to overcome the poor cycling stability and slow kinetics caused by the large radii of K+ ions is challenging. This study demonstrates for the first time the application of a hexaazanonaphthalene (HATN)‐based 2D π‐d conjugated metal–organic framework (2D c‐MOF) with dual‐active centers (Cu‐HATNH) and integrates Cu‐HATNH with carbon nanotubes (Cu‐HATNH@CNT) as the cathode material for PIBs. Owing to this systematic module integration and more exposed active sites with high utilization, Cu‐HATNH@CNT exhibits a high initial capacity (317.5 mA h g−1 at 0.1 A g−1), excellent long‐term cycling stability (capacity retention of 96.8% at 5 A g−1 after 2200 cycles), and outstanding rate capacity (147.1 mA h g−1 at 10 A g−1). The reaction mechanism and performance are determined by combining experimental characterization and density functional theory calculations. This contribution provides new opportunities for designing high‐performance 2D c‐MOF cathodes with multiple active sites for PIBs.
This study demonstrates the first case of applying hexaazanonaphthalene (HATNH)‐based 2D conjugated metal–organic framework (Cu‐HATNH) integrated with carbon nanotubes via an in situ polymerization strategy to achieve stable long cycle stability and excellent rate performance with conjugated HATNH and unsaturated CuO4 units as multiple redox active sites.
Sodium–organic batteries, which use organic materials as the electrodes in sodium‐ion batteries, are an attractive alternative to conventional lithium‐ion batteries for next‐generation sustainable ...and versatile energy storage devices owing to the abundant sodium resources and environmental friendly features. However, organics used in sodium‐ion batteries also encounter some issues such as low redox potential, high solubility in the electrolyte, and low conductivity. In response, altering the aromatic system/attaching electron‐withdrawing groups, constructing polymers, and incorporating a conductive matrix are effective strategies. This review summarizes and briefly discusses recent organic carbonyl compounds for sodium‐organic batteries from the viewpoint of function‐oriented design, including function evolution from small‐molecule compounds to polymers, then composites, and finally flexible electrodes. In particular, as a timely overview, carbonyl‐based organic flexible electrodes for sodium‐organic batteries are also highlighted for the first time.
Organic batteries: This Minireview summarizes and briefly discusses recent organic carbonyl compounds for sodium‐organic batteries from the viewpoint of function‐oriented design, including function evolution from small‐molecule compounds to polymers, then composites, and finally flexible electrodes. As a timely overview, carbonyl‐based organic flexible electrodes for sodium–organic batteries are also highlighted for the first time.
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