Ligand substitution engineering for modulating the pore microenvironment of MOFs to enhance CO2 gas separation performance in mixed matrix membranes

Defect-driven material design for high-performance semiconducting gas sensing applications

Defect engineering in layered double hydroxides via surface reconstruction for enhanced oxygen evolution reaction and electrochemical dye degradation

Hierarchical sulfur-doped Ni-Cu MOFs for high-performance hybrid supercapacitors: synergistic effect of bimetallic redox chemistry and defect engineering

Recent progress of single-atom catalysts (SACs) for the advanced oxidation of organic compounds: A comprehensive review on metal-specific performance and mechanisms

Metal-organic frameworks and their derivatives for CO2 electrocatalysis: From methods and designs to products.

Defect and heterometallic engineering in TiN–ZrN–HfN monolayers: A first-principles study on structural stability, electronic tunability, and optical anisotropy

Yttrium-doped WO₃ integrated with g-C₃N₄ for advanced visible-light photocatalysis through defect and interface engineering

Strain-tolerant design of LiFe Mn1PO4 cathodes: mechanistic insights and practical strategies toward high-performance phosphate batteries

Carbon vacancy engineering enables superior electron donation for O2 activation over platinum/carbon nitride.

Phosphorus-induced defect engineering in hard carbon for high-initial coulombic efficiency and fast-charging sodium-ion storage

Benzoic Acid-Assisted defect engineering of iron-based MOF (MIL-100(Fe)) for enhanced CO2 adsorption: Structural, kinetic, and thermodynamic insights

Transition metal doping-induced defect engineering in Bi4O5Br2 for enhanced photocatalytic nitrogen fixation

Optimisation of LiFe1−Mn PO4 cathode material via a defect engineering strategy controlled by lattice mismatch

Designing ZnS-based photocatalytic systems: From defect engineering to structure–Activity relationships and functional applications

Thermodynamically driven in-situ defect engineering for robust and high-performance n-type Bi2Te3

Interface defect engineering of CeO2/Co3O4 to hinder ineffective consumption of oxidant in Fenton-like reaction for polymerization-deposition removal of phenols

SPR-enhanced photocatalytic CO2 reduction over CuOx/N-vacancy-rich g-C3N4 heterojunction: Unraveling the synergistic roles of defect engineering and charge transfer pathways

Point defect engineering in transition metal oxides: Strategies for enhancing cathode performance of low-temperature solid oxide fuel cells

The selective conversion of methane to methanol under mild conditions remains a major challenge due to the high stability of the C-H bond and the propensity for overoxidation. Herein, NiO/TiO2 photocatalysts were synthesized using both commercial nickel precursors and nickel recovered from spent Ni-Cd batteries, providing a sustainable pathway that integrates methane valorization with battery-metal recycling. The battery-derived catalysts PB1 and TB1 achieved methanol formation rates of 2.66 and 6.36 mmol g-1·h-1, respectively, comparable to those of the commercial counterparts PC1 (2.38 mmol g-1·h-1) and TC1 (7.31 mmol g-1·h-1), demonstrating that recycled nickel can effectively replace commercial nickel without performance loss. Synthesized TiO2-based catalysts consistently outperformed P25-based materials, and increasing Ni loading correlated positively with methanol formation rate, underscoring the importance of Ni-induced defect engineering. Structural and spectroscopic analyses confirmed preservation of the anatase phase alongside the formation of Ti3+ and oxygen vacancies, which suppressed electron-hole recombination. Density functional theory calculations revealed that methane activation proceeds via a low-barrier homolytic C-H cleavage pathway on Ni-O sites in the presence of surface hydroxyl species, stabilizing methyl intermediates and favoring selective methanol formation. Ultimately, the combined experimental and theoretical results establish recycled Ni-modified TiO2 as a sustainable and mechanistically rational photocatalyst for selective methane-to-methanol conversion.