NaNbO3-based ultra-high energy storage ceramics with linear polarization

A numerical study on an innovative multi-branched inner tube design for double-pipe heat exchangers in high-efficiency renewable energy application

Halogen-induced electronic and structural modulation in Cs₂NaTlBr₃Cl₃ double perovskites for high-efficiency solar energy harvesting

Rapid degradation of sulfamethoxazole with high mineralization rate and energy-efficiency via C@Co/NF anode-activated peroxymonosulfate

The implementation of hydrogen fuel cell technology provides an effective method for creating sustainable transportation because it produces no emissions while delivering high energy efficiency and enabling quick refueling. Fuel cell electric vehicles generate electricity through an electrochemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen, which produces only water and heat as by-products. This makes them environmentally friendly alternatives to fossil-fuel-based vehicles. The recent studies demonstrate that proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) provide excellent performance for automotive applications because they offer high power density and efficiency. The use of hybrid fuel cell–battery systems has become common to achieve better performance and extended range and enhanced energy management capabilities. Research shows that fuel cell hybrid two-wheelers provide substantial improvements in driving range and operational efficiency compared to batteryonly vehicles. The hydrogen storage problem and the infrastructure availability issue and the system cost problem still prevent widespread commercial implementation of hydrogen technology. Hydrogen fuel cell technology demonstrates strong potential to create future clean mobility systems particularly through its connection with renewable hydrogen production and advanced energy management implementation.

Electrochemical desalination is a promising technology for the selective recovery of Lithium-ions or other rare ions from spent electronics, contributing to a circular economy. Due to its high-energy efficiency and selective Lithium-ion recovery, this method offers a low environmental impact, making it a promising tool for recovering Lithium-ions from spent batteries. Few studies have examined electrochemical desalination as a tool to recover Lithium-ions from real spent battery solutions. In this work, solutions obtained from real shredding of Lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) batteries inside a cooling water reservoir were used as a Lithium-rich source to obtain a high-purity Lithium-ion recovery solution. A 96%-pure Lithium-ion recovery solution was obtained while only requiring an energy input of 1.10 kWh/kg.

Abstract Muscle-driven biohybrid robotics has gained substantial attention for its potential to enable advanced mechanical systems with flexibility, high energy efficiency, self-healing capability and adaptability. Autonomous or stimulated muscle contractions have been used as driving forces of mechanical functions and have successfully demonstrated walking, swimming and crawling behaviours of biohybrid robots. Despite these advances, many opportunities exist to achieve greater actuation, precise control, longer-term viability, and programmability. This review provides insights into the next generation of biohybrid systems by examining prior studies on locomotive biohybrid robots specifically designed for walking and crawling locomotion. We introduce diverse biohybrid walker and crawler models and describe their design principles and operating mechanisms, and discuss key factors for optimal engineering strategies. Furthermore, we classify these models according to three primary muscle-stimulation techniques, i.e. electrical field, optical, and neuromuscular junction, and discuss their unique characteristics, including their advantages and limitations. We also highlight approaches for multi-directional locomotion and wireless control, which can contribute to achieving higher dynamic control of biohybrid robots.

Antiferroelectric ceramics are promising for next-generation electrostatic energy storage, yet their performance is fundamentally constrained by the trade-off between high energy storage efficiency (η) and large recoverable energy storage density (Wrec), arising from the antiferroelectric-to-ferroelectric phase transition and associated hysteresis loss. Here, we show that a combination of engineered local polarization disorder and high-field operability enables a highly favorable balance of these metrics. In PbZrO3-based ceramics, we introduced controlled compositional heterogeneity that broadens polarization vector distributions while preserving the antiferroelectric modulation. Phase-field simulations and experiments indicate that this engineered disorder spatially distributes the switching fields associated with the antiferroelectric-ferroelectric transition, thereby reducing polarization hysteresis while maintaining high polarization strength. As a result, the multilayer ceramic capacitors achieve Wrec = 23.2 J cm-3 and η = 98.1% at 167 kV mm-1, corresponding to a figure of merit of 1220, surpassing most reported state-of-the-art multilayer ceramic capacitors under comparable high-field conditions. These findings highlight local polarization disorder as a key mechanism that, in combination with enhanced breakdown strength, enables ultrahigh energy storage performance and offers a promising route toward high-performance capacitive energy storage for advanced pulsed-power applications.

Lignocellulosic biomass (LCB) is a vast, renewable resource critical to a circular bioeconomy, but its inherent recalcitrance remains the principal barrier to efficient enzymatic saccharification and valorization. Given the numerous existing reviews that simply catalogue individual pretreatment methods, the necessity of this review lies in its critical evaluation of how hybridizing standalone technologies is essential to overcome current pilot-scale and commercialization bottlenecks. This review provides a comparative analysis of three emerging pretreatment technologies: hydrothermal (HTP), microwave-assisted (MWP), and ball milling (BM). The author analyzes the distinct mechanisms by which each technology decreases the recalcitrance of LCB. HTP excels at hemicellulose hydrolysis via autohydrolysis but is plagued by the formation of inhibitors and pseudo-lignin. MWP employs rapid dielectric heating to achieve similar objectives within minutes, compared with the hours often required for conventional HTP, demonstrating high energy efficiency (e.g., 40.1 kJ/g compared to conventional HTP at 70.85 kJ/g), but faces fundamental commercial scale-up challenges related to finite penetration depths and hotspots. BM, a mechanochemical approach, is unparalleled in destroying cellulose crystallinity, dramatically enhancing kinetics without producing inhibitors, but it suffers from prohibitively high energy consumption, often requiring up to 2.8 kWh/kg. The author concludes that commercial viability dictates a trend toward hybrid, synergistic processes, such as BM-HTP and MW-HTP, which balance trade-offs and achieve near-theoretical glucose yields of 97.3%. Future research must focus on continuous-flow reactor engineering, integration with lignin-first valorization strategies, and predictive AI/ML modeling to enable economically competitive lignocellulosic biorefineries.

Photonic neural network chips promise compact footprint, low latency, and high energy efficiency. Yet, their scale and computing throughput are fundamentally constrained by one-dimensional input interfaces, unavoidable waveguide crossings, and the resulting crosstalk and excess loss. As a result, two-dimensional (2D) image data must be serialized through limited input ports, sacrificing spatial parallelism and creating input/output (I/O) bottlenecks. Here we demonstrate a programmable three-dimensional (3D) photonic neural network chip, fabricated by femtosecond laser direct writing (FLDW) in glass, that directly processes 2D images. The cascaded architecture alternates photonic-lantern waveguide arrays and phase-shifter arrays to implement matrix operations. An 8-layer 8 × 8 device achieves a computing throughput of 6554 TOPS, surpasses leading planar photonic platforms, and delivers 93% accuracy on MNIST classification and 94% fidelity in optical pattern generation. By combining 3D spatial parallelism with programmability, this work establishes a scalable paradigm for reconfigurable photonic computing in complex inference tasks.

To address the application requirements of energy storage devices for new energy electric vehicles—including high energy density, high-power density, fast charging and discharging, and long-term cycling stability—traditional symmetric supercapacitors are often limited by low energy density and poor compatibility between the anode and cathode, making it difficult to meet the high-efficiency energy storage demands under the dynamic operating conditions of electric vehicles. This study focuses on the regulation of hierarchical thin-film structures and the innovative heterogeneous coating interface engineering with precise slurry coating and film-forming optimization and designs and fabricates NiCo2O4/NiFeO composite thin-film electrodes and Mn-doped porous carbon (Mn-PC) thin-film electrodes. The uniform, compact and stable coating formation on nickel foam substrates via controllable slurry coating facilitates the efficient integration of active materials and conductive supports. The electrode slurries were coated onto conductive nickel foam substrates, and high-performance aqueous supercapacitors were assembled using an asymmetric configuration. A systematic study was conducted covering material preparation, structural characterization, electrochemical testing, and full-device performance evaluation. Using techniques such as XRD, XPS, SEM, TEM, BET, and an electrochemical workstation, the study revealed the structure–activity relationships among material morphology, crystalline phases, pore structure, and electrochemical performance, elucidating the charge storage mechanisms of the composite electrode films and the principles of synergistic adaptation between the anode and cathode. The results indicate that NiCo2O4 nanowires decorated with in situ-grown NiFeO nanosheets to form a composite structure; when coated onto nickel foam, this forms a uniform, porous electrode film with a specific surface area of 171.3 m2/g, a specific capacitance as high as 1746 F/g at 1 A/g, and a capacity retention rate of 94.0% after 10,000 cycles. After coating and film formation, the Mn-PC anode introduced pseudocapacitive active sites through uniform Mn doping, resulting in a film electrode specific capacitance of 348 F/g and significantly improved rate and cycling performance. The assembled NiCo2O4/NiFeO//Mn-PC asymmetric supercapacitor exhibits a thin-film electrode specific capacitance of 153 F/g at 1 A/g, with a maximum energy density of 52 Wh/kg. Even at a power density of 9000 W/kg, it maintains 45 Wh/kg, and retains 89.5% of its capacity after 10,000 cycles, with overall performance outperforming most previously reported transition metal-based devices. This coating-engineered electrode fabrication strategy breaks through the interface mismatch and structural instability bottlenecks of traditional thin-film electrodes, providing a novel material system and an efficient coating assembly strategy for high-performance supercapacitor thin-film electrodes in new energy electric vehicles, and offers experimental evidence and technical references for the development and application of high-power energy storage coating devices for automotive use, as well as the innovative design of electrode coating engineering in energy storage fields.

Nanoporous carbon materials with tunable physicochemical characteristics, such as high surface area, promising conductivity, and structural tunability, are attractive candidates for the design of high-efficiency energy storage devices. In this work, B, N, and O co-doped nanoporous carbon with high surface area and hierarchical pore structure has been synthesized through solid-state activation of a mixture of boric acid, sucrose, and aminoguanidine using potassium citrate as the mild activating agent. The incorporation of B, N, and O not only introduces surface functionalities but also tailors the pore structure and surface area. The symmetric supercapacitor displayed an energy/power density of 34.32Wh kg-1/599.99W kg-1, respectively, with 100% cyclability up to 10,000 cycles. Further, when employed as anodes for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), the material exhibits an exceptional specific capacity of 1606.3/1415.2mA h g-1 at 0.05/0.1 A g-1, which is an eight-fold increase in the capacity compared to bare nanoporous carbon. Further, the ex situ SEM, TEM, EIS, and XRD measurements were carried out to analyze the material's structural changes post LIB cycling.

Rendering large-scale, unbounded scenes on AR/VR-class devices is constrained by the computation, bandwidth, and storage cost of 3D Gaussian Splatting (3DGS). We propose a low-power, low-cost 3DGS hardware accelerator that renders full-HD images in real time, together with a hardware-friendly compression pipeline that combines iterative Gaussian pruning and fine-tuning, progressive spherical harmonics (SH) degree reduction, and vector quantization of all SH coefficients and colors. The scheme achieves a $51.6\times$ model-size reduction with a 0.743 dB PSNR loss. The accelerator uses a frame-level pipeline that integrates point-based culling and projection with tile-based sorting and rasterization, skips zero-Jacobian matrix multiplications (reducing processing elements by 63% and computation by 53%), and adopts comparison-free tile-based sorting with deterministic latency. Implemented in a TSMC 28-nm process at 800 MHz, the design occupies $0.66~\rm {mm}^{2}$ with 1.1438 M gates and 120 kB SRAM, consumes 0.219 W, and delivers 1219 Mpixels/J at 267.5 Mpixels/s, enabling 1080p at 129 FPS. Overall, it is $5.98\times$ smaller in area, $5.94\times$ higher throughput, and delivers $7.5\times$ higher energy efficiency than prior 3DGS accelerators.

Photonics signal processing has emerged as a promising technique for ultrafast optical and microwave signal processing. Among these, the linear optical wave energy redistribution (OWER) methodology offers unprecedented performance, such as low latency, ultrabroad operation bandwidth, and high energy efficiency. The OWER is based on linear phase manipulation techniques, e.g., the time lens and dispersive line, and can redistribute the energy of the optical waveform along the time domain to achieve user-defined signal processing functionalities. Here, we review recent OWER methods to provide an insight into this processing strategy, including photonic spectrograms for ultrafast optical and microwave signals and time-frequency manipulation for time-varying microwave waveforms. As current demonstrations of OWER systems are based on bulky, fiber-optics devices, the chip-scale implementation is desired to reduce the footprint, cost, and power consumption. Toward this end, we provide here an overview of the state of the art in integrated key photonic or optoelectronic components used in the OWER system, ranging from the most essential passive component, i.e., on-chip dispersive lines, to active devices, such as the modulators, integrated lasers components, and photodetectors.

ABSTRACT The energy, exergy and emission performance of a four‐stroke diesel engine fueled with diesel (D100), Waste cooking oil (WCO30), waste plastic oil (WPO30), and their blend (WCO15WPO15) is compared. Energy and exergy analyses showed that the WCO15WPO15 mixture has the highest energy efficiency, approximately 20% (full load), compared to D100, which is 18% (full load). In addition, WCO15WPO15 exhibited higher exergy efficiency and more favorable combustion characteristics, attributed to the interaction between WCO's oxygenation and WPO's increased calorific value. This alternative shows a considerable trade‐off between particulate matter (PM) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions. D100 had PM emissions of more than 2.5 g/kWh at full load, whereas the WCO15WPO15 blend demonstrated less than 2 g/kWh, corresponding to a 20% improvement. At full load, NOx generation of the WCO15WPO15 blend was above 800 ppm, 15% more than D100, due to higher combustion temperature. It was concluded that the WCO and WPO blends, particularly WCO15WPO15, are promising alternative fuels for diesel engines, increasing energy efficiency and reducing PM emissions. Future studies will focus on parameter optimization and exhaust aftertreatment to reduce NOx emissions, enabling cleaner, more sustainable combustion solutions.

Alkaline zinc-iron redox flow batteries (Zn─Fe FBs) are promising candidates for developing high-voltage and cost-effective grid-scale energy storage systems. However, the low ionic conductivity and poor alkaline stability of membranes lead to battery performance degradation and shortened lifespan. Here, we develop fixed ethylene linkage-based polybenzimidazole (FE-PBI) membranes to break this dilemma. Introducing fixed ethylene linkages enlarges the ion transport channel and provides inter-support for polymer chains, thereby preserving highly ordered and flux ion transport channels in the alkaline environment. By this unique channel design, this FE-PBI membrane enables alkaline Zn-based asymmetric FBs to deliver excellent rate performance (up to 240 mA cm-2) with high reversibility of Zn deposition. Furthermore, the Zn─Fe FBs using FE-PBI membranes deliver a highly stable rate performance across the range of 60-180 mA cm-2 and 120 mAh cm-2. At a challenging condition of high current density (100 mA cm-2) and areal capacity (80 mAh cm-2), the developed Zn─Fe FBs achieve an impressive energy efficiency of >85.56% and remarkable stability over 800 h (500 cycles), surpassing the lifespan performance of current alkaline Zn─Fe FBs. This work offers a new membrane design approach to combine high energy efficiency with an extended lifespan, realizing long-lifetime alkaline FBs.

Additive manufacturing technologies enable the fabrication of crash boxes that are difficult to produce using conventional manufacturing methods. In this study, the crashworthiness performance of multi-cell crash boxes reinforced with face-centered cubic lattice structures, manufactured from PLA+ and ABS+ thermoplastic materials using the fused deposition modeling method, was investigated experimentally and numerically. Quasi-static axial compression tests were conducted to determine the crushing behavior of the structures, and the experimental results were validated using the finite element method. Experimental findings revealed that polymer-based lattice structures significantly enhanced the energy absorption performance of multi-cell crash boxes. Compared to unreinforced configurations, the total energy absorption increased by approximately 79% for PLA+ crash boxes reinforced with lattice structures, while an increase of approximately 100% was observed for ABS+ crash boxes. In PLA+ crash boxes, a limited increase of approximately 1.5% in peak crushing force was achieved due to lattice reinforcement. In contrast, lattice-reinforced ABS+ crash boxes exhibited an increase of approximately 30% in peak crushing force, indicating that ductile polymers are more effectively supported by internal lattice structures. Furthermore, the mean crushing force increased by approximately 80% for PLA+ crash boxes and 99% for ABS+ crash boxes because of lattice reinforcement. Despite the increase in structural mass caused by the lattice structures, the specific energy absorption improved by approximately 4% for PLA+ crash boxes and 9% for ABS+ crash boxes. A good agreement was observed between experimental and numerical results in terms of force- displacement responses and deformation modes. The obtained findings demonstrate that multi-cell polymer crash boxes reinforced with face-centered cubic lattice structures possess significant potential as lightweight and high efficiency energy absorbing components for automotive applications.

Amid growing global energy and environmental challenges, the efficient harvesting of high-entropy energy at the micro/nano scale represents a critical pathway toward sustainable development. This study designs an atomized droplet-based triboelectric nanogenerator (ADB-TENG), offering an approach for capturing dispersed mechanical energy from ambient sources such as rainfall, fog, and airflow. Through an integrated experimental and simulation methodology, we systematically investigate the influence of key parameters, including surface wettability, wind speed, blade inclination angle, and multiblade arrangement, on the electrical output performance of the ADB-TENG. The combination of a custom-built experimental setup and COMSOL Multiphysics simulations reveals the dynamic coupling relationship between droplet motion and interfacial charge transfer. The results demonstrate that surface modification of PTFE films, achieving a contact angle of approximately 130°, significantly enhances the charge separation efficiency. Furthermore, both wind speed and blade inclination are found to critically govern the droplet kinetic energy and solid-liquid contact time, which collectively determine the triboelectric output performance. Additionally, the use of multiple blades connected in parallel and the increase in the effective contact area substantially improve the overall electrical energy output. These findings not only provide a multiscale understanding of the operational mechanism of ADB-TENGs but also establish a foundational framework for the innovative design of high-efficiency energy conversion systems in high-humidity environments.

Rechargeable hydrogen gas batteries show a great promise for large-scale energy storage due to their high safety, environmental friendliness, high efficiency and long-cycle life. However, the costly catalysts at the anode for hydrogen oxidation/evolution reactions (HOR/HER) hinder the practicability. Here, we report a pseudo-single-crystal mesoporous (PSCM) PtPd catalyst with high HOR/HER bifunctional activities for high-performance hydrogen gas batteries. It exhibits an outstanding HOR activity with a kinetic current density of 3.10 A mg-1 and an HER overpotential of 34.8 mV at 10 mA cm-2, outperforming commercial Pt/C (0.42 A mg-1, 79.3 mV). When assembling Ni-H2 battery with a low PSCM-PtPd catalyst loading of ∼45 µg cm-2, it displays a high energy efficiency of ∼85% and cycling stability of >1000 cycles. Even at an ultra-low catalyst loading of ∼10 µg cm-2, the Ni-H2 (PSCM-PtPd) battery still exhibits an energy density of ~135 Wh kg-1 and durability of >1000 cycles with a cell cost of ~105 $ kWh-1, much better than that of Pt/C-based battery (>700 $ kWh-1). We demonstrate that the superior activity of the PSCM-PtPd catalyst originates from the charge transfer from Pd to Ptand lattice distortion caused by Pd incorporation, and the enhanced stability is attributed to its fewer grain boundaries and stable attachment to the electrode. This work offers a promising pathway toward designing cost-effective and scalable energy storage systems.

Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) have become the prominent energy storage technology because of their high specific energy, longer lifespan, and excellent efficiency. Traditional lithium extraction processes are energy intensive and time-consuming. Direct lithium extraction (DLE) methods provide a more sustainable and efficient alternative. This review offers a comprehensive overview of lithium-ion battery resources and direct lithium extraction methods. The detailed discussion of the DLE methods, which include adsorption, ion exchange, solvent extraction, membranes separation, and electro-chemical systems is presented. A comprehensive analysis of the recent technological advances of the direct lithium extraction processes in terms of technology readiness levels, and commercial potential is reported. The advantages and the technical challenges of the DLE methods are also reported. Finally, the review outlines the artificial intelligence outlook of the DLE processes. The review aims to provide deeper insights into the limitations and the opportunities of DLE methods towards crucial future research efforts for lithium-ion batteries advancements.