Interconnected Framework Research Articles

When good intentions aren’t enough: Intersectional invisibilities in academia and the decolonial turn

The decolonial turn resonates not only in gender studies but across the humanities and arts. While research and teaching increasingly align with decolonization and intersectional perspectives, we understand this as more than intellectual tasks, rather as a call for transformative action with tangible symbolic and material consequences. Taking into account transnational feminist discourses, this article explores what we can do in practice in an institutional context that fosters structures of coloniality and invisibilization of knowledge otherwise in academic knowledge production. Addressing this issue requires an understanding of marginalizing structures on a meta-level and keeping an eye on a less observed micro-level: our own part in the process of academic knowledge production, understanding these dynamics as part of a broader interconnected framework of decolonial actions that emphasizes communal responsibility and comprehensive partnerships.

Navigating the Evolving Landscape of Higher Education: A Critical Examination of Governance and Policy

The contemporary university has evolved into a multifaceted institution, serving not only as a hub for research, professional training, and knowledge dissemination, but also as a pivotal component of economic machinery and societal advancement, especially within the context of globalization and intense competition. These institutions are now expected to significantly contribute to the socio-economic development of their surroundings, striving for excellence and competing within an increasingly interconnected global framework. To meet these heightened expectations, universities have undergone profound transformations over recent decades. This period of change is particularly notable within the Spanish context, mirroring the broader societal shifts since the onset of the democratic transition in 1975 through to the present day in 2024. This era has necessitated substantial reforms in university governance, equipping these institutions with the requisite tools to navigate and address emerging challenges effectively. A pivotal moment in this transformative journey was the enactment of the University Reform Law of 1983. Grounded in constitutional principles, this law marked a significant milestone in updating and revitalizing university education in Spain. After this, the Organic Law on Universities of 2001 further aligned the Spanish university framework with the broader European educational landscape, reinforcing the integration and competitiveness of Spanish institutions on a continental scale. However, to comprehensively grasp the magnitude and implications of these changes, it is essential to extend our analysis beyond the immediate past and explore the historical trajectory of Spanish universities over previous centuries. By examining this extensive historical context, we can better understand the foundational elements that have shaped the current state of higher education. This article aims to meticulously analyze the evolution of the Spanish university system, delineating the chronological progress, identifying persistent challenges, and engaging in a critical discourse on potential solutions. Through this examination, the article seeks to provide a nuanced understanding of the interplay between historical legacies and contemporary reforms, offering insights that are essential for shaping the future trajectory of higher education in Spain.

Scheduling and assessment of multi-area virtual power plant including flexible resources using swarm intelligence technique

A virtual power plant (VPP) makes the distributed energy resources (DERs) visible to support grid services, promoting clean energy use by offering an alternative to reduce reliance on conventional sources. This paper proposes optimized operation and scheduling of VPP by forming a group of flexible resources that includes renewables i.e., solar, wind power, fuel cell, and co-generation units along with storage facilities to form a holistic network in a multi-area interconnected system framework. Initially, the scheduling is performed for a single area system in which a comparison is made with the available work relevant to the proposed formulation. In addition, the scheduling is further extended to the proposed multi-area based virtual power plant (MAVPP) performed on a day-ahead (DA) basis and the target objective(s) i.e., net profit and emission are optimized. Furthermore, a recently developed marine predator optimization algorithm (MPOA) is employed to solve the proposed problem formulation and the results are compared and discussed extensively with conventional techniques. Also, the analysis pertaining to MAVPP is carried out which is beneficial in terms of economic and environmental perspective. The result reveals that the maximum value of net profit for MAVPP is converging to an optimum value of 59,351.88 $ followed by the attained value of minimum emission of 51,700.73 Kg by consuming an elapsed time of 92.96 and 104.76 s., respectively in 200 iterations. The outcomes are promising and upon comparison with the available literature work, the superiority of the selected technique is evident in terms of computational time, improvement of net profit and reduction in emission followed by the ease of convergence behaviour in fewer iterations.

Revolutionizing Urban Mobility: Smart Transportation & Vehicle-to-Infrastructure Communication – A Review

The burgeoning popularity of IoT technology has significantly altered transportation, with an extensive variety of repercussions. Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) are at the vanguard of this change, which has the potential to fundamentally change urban transportation for both individuals and businesses. ITS has expanded considerably in recent years, owing to global urbanization and industrialization advancements. It is regarded as a game-changing technology that improves road safety, improves traffic flow, and improves the entire driving experience. Despite many research efforts on ITS applications and simulation platforms, formal semantic descriptions for intelligent transportation systems have been noticeably lacking. Rising rates of accidents suggest the necessity for a robust Smart Transport System (STS) that prioritizes improving mobility, and reliability, as well as reducing carbon dioxide and methane emissions from automobiles beyond dispersing gains throughout everywhere. Multiple traffic signal management approaches have been designed to enhance real-time traffic movement at intersections, but none have achieved seamless, congestion-free traffic movements. The creation of an interconnected unified framework that integrates and links vehicles with VANET, IoT, and AI technologies will significantly affect the establishment of an innovative reliable mobility network. Internet of Vehicles (IoV) systems will connect several automobiles to share vital information through an IoT-enabled network. Vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication is essential in developing intelligent transportation and rail traffic management systems, significantly improving road traffic safety and efficiency. A V2I system integrates transmission and analysis capabilities into vehicles and corresponding infrastructure. Wireless sensors are strategically positioned along highways or driving zones in this system. The significance of safe and effective V2X communication between automobiles and facilities expands substantially as intelligent modes of transport progress.

Rational design of continuous and short-range lithium ion pathways based on polydopamine-anchored metal-organic frameworks for all-solid-state electrolytes

The immerging three dimensional (3D) metal-organic framework (MOF)-reinforced composite solid-state electrolytes have attracted great interest because of the enhanced ionic conductivity and mechanical properties. However, the defective spatial arrangement of MOFs restricted by fabrication methodology leads to insufficient lithium ion transport in electrolytes. Herein, a 3D interconnected MOF framework tailored for all-solid-state electrolytes is rationally designed by a universal polydopamine (PDA)-engineered “double-sided tape” strategy. The PDA serves as a double-sided tape, firmly adhering on the special single-layer Nylon grid as well as offering uniform nucleation sites to anchor the metal nodes to ensure continuous growth of well-ordered MOFs. Benefiting from the Lewis acid feature of MOFs and its cage effect toward TFSI−, a fast and homogeneous lithium ion transport can be achieved through the internal channels within neighboring MOFs and the continuous MOFs/polymer interfaces both along the short-range circumferential boundary of Nylon fiber. The resultant composite electrolytes exhibit high lithium ion conductivity and prominent mechanical properties, rendering excellent cyclic stability whether used in coin or pouch cells. This work demonstrates a widely applicable “double-sided tape” strategy for controllable spatial arrangement of MOF nanoparticles on optional substrates, which provides a scalable approach to rationally construct desired lithium ion pathways within composite electrolytes.

Tuning the shell thickness of N-doped interconnected hollow carbon sphere for the electrochemical sensing of antibiotic drug chloramphenicol.

N-doped hollow carbon spheres (NHCSs) with different shell thicknesses are constructed using various amounts of SiO2 precursor. An interconnected framework with diminished wall thickness ensures an efficient and continuous electron transport which helps to enhance theperformance of NHCS. Improvement of the electrocatalytic performance was shown in the determination of antibiotic drug chloramphenicol (CAP) due to theunique hollow thin shell morphology, ample defect sites, accessible surface area, higher surface-to-volume ratio and ansynergistic effect. Boosted electrocatalytic activity of 1.5 N-doped HCS (1.5 NHCS) was applied to detect CAP with a linear range and detection limit of 1-1150µM and 0.098µM (n = 3), respectively, with superior storage stability and considerable sensitivity. These results suggest that the proposed work can besuccessfully applied to the determination of CAP in milk and water samples.

Enhanced Capacitive Deionization of Hollow Mesoporous Carbon Spheres/MOFs Derived Nanocomposites by Interface-Coating and Space-Encapsulating Design.

Exploring new carbon-based electrode materials is quite necessary for enhancing capacitive deionization (CDI). Here, hollow mesoporous carbon spheres (HMCSs)/metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) derived carbon materials (NC(M)/HMCSs and NC(M)@HMCSs) are successfully prepared by interface-coating and space-encapsulating design, respectively. The obtained NC(M)/HMCSs and NC(M)@HMCSs possess a hierarchical hollow nanoarchitecture with abundant nitrogen doping, high specific surface area, and abundant meso-/microporous pores. These merits are conducive to rapid ion diffusion and charge transfer during the adsorption process. Compared to NC(M)/HMCSs, NC(M)@HMCSs exhibit superior electrochemical performance due to their better utilization of the internal space of hollow carbon, forming an interconnected 3D framework. In addition, the introduction of Ni ions is more conducive to the synergistic effect between ZIF(M)-derived carbon and N-doped carbon shell compared with other ions (Mn, Co, Cu ions). The resultant Ni-1-800-based CDI device exhibits excellent salt adsorption capacity (SAC, 37.82mg g-1) and good recyclability. This will provide a new direction for the MOF nanoparticle-driven assembly strategy and the application of hierarchical hollow carbon nanoarchitecture to CDI.

Boosting capacitive performance of electrode material by facile incorporation of phthalic acid ligand-based bimetallic MOF for supercapacitors

The bimetallic approach can offer a synergistic effect and energy-efficient metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) based electrode materials for electrochemical applications. The interconnected frameworks convert themselves into a two-dimensional conducting stacked structure with the favorable entity of metal ions bonded to metal-ligand covalence. This network prioritizes charge transport within the plane, minimizing the importance of out-plane transport. To achieve this, we propose a straightforward and efficient method for integrating Ni2+ and Co2+ metal ions with 1, 2-benzene dicarboxylic acid (phthalic acid) ligands. By employing this strategy, we can fabricate a bimetallic metal-organic framework electrode using a simple aromatic ligand, thus avoiding the complex synthesis typically associated with MOFs. This specially designed MOF electrode material enhances the electrochemical activities of the selected ligands. The presence of redox-active centers and conductive structure provides excellent behavior of the material with a high performance of 1755 Fg−1 (754.82 Cg−1) at 2 Ag−1. Also, the fabricated asymmetric device delivers (58.25 Whkg−1 energy density and 1299.90 Wkg−1 power density) with only a 9 % reduction in capacitance over 22 K cycles. The strategic design of a bimetallic Ni-Co-based metal-organic framework with bidentate ligand offers the potential to increase the electrochemical activities relative to single metallic MOFs.

A transformer-based unified multimodal framework for Alzheimer's disease assessment

In Alzheimer's disease (AD) assessment, traditional deep learning approaches have often employed separate methodologies to handle the diverse modalities of input data. Recognizing the critical need for a cohesive and interconnected analytical framework, we propose the AD-Transformer, a novel transformer-based unified deep learning model. This innovative framework seamlessly integrates structural magnetic resonance imaging (sMRI), clinical, and genetic data from the extensive Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) database, encompassing 1651 subjects. By employing a Patch-CNN block, the AD-Transformer efficiently transforms image data into image tokens, while a linear projection layer adeptly converts non-image data into corresponding tokens. As the core, a transformer block learns comprehensive representations of the input data, capturing the intricate interplay between modalities. The AD-Transformer sets a new benchmark in AD diagnosis and Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) conversion prediction, achieving remarkable average area under curve (AUC) values of 0.993 and 0.845, respectively, surpassing those of traditional image-only models and non-unified multimodal models. Our experimental results confirmed the potential of the AD-Transformer as a potent tool in AD diagnosis and MCI conversion prediction. By providing a unified framework that jointly learns holistic representations of both image and non-image data, the AD-Transformer paves the way for more effective and precise clinical assessments, offering a clinically adaptable strategy for leveraging diverse data modalities in the battle against AD.

Significantly enhancing the through-plane thermal conductivity of epoxy dielectrics by constructing aramid nanofiber/boron nitride three-dimensional interconnected framework

Epoxy dielectrics with high through-plane thermal conductivity (λ) hold great promise for applications in the thermal management of advanced power electronics. Intensive attempts have been made to improve the λ of epoxy by filling with boron nitride nanosheets (BNNSs). However, it remains a great challenge to achieve a satisfactory increased λ by a small amount of BNNS loading. Herein, we reported a new strategy to prepare epoxy dielectrics with internal three-dimensional phonon transport channels by vacuum freeze-drying and vacuum impregnation. Aramid nanofibers (ANFs) and BNNSs were used for the collaborative construction of a vertical interconnected thermal framework. The resultant ANF-BNNS/epoxy achieved a high through-plane λ of 0.87 W m−1 K−1 at only 1.43 vol. % BNNS, which is ∼17.1% higher than that of the BNNS/epoxy counterpart with even 18.34 vol. % randomly distributed BNNS. The increasing efficiency of λ of epoxy by ANF-BNNS is tenfold more than that of the conventional blending methods. In addition, the ANF-BNNS/epoxy composite also exhibits a low dielectric constant and low dielectric loss. The findings of this study offer an inspired venue to develop high-performance thermally conductive epoxy dielectrics with a minimal BNNS loading.

Dual-responsive electrochemical immunosensor for CYFRA21-1 detection based on Au/Co Co-loaded 3D ordered macroporous carbon interconnected framework

Cytokeratin 19 fragment antigen 21–1 (CYFRA21–1) is a protein fragment released into the bloodstream during the death of lung epithelial cells, serving as a predictive biomarker in diagnosing non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and need to be accurately detected. Herein, a dual-responsive label-free electrochemical immunosensor was developed based on a three-dimensional ordered interconnecting macroporous carbon skeleton material modified with gold-cobalt nanoparticles (Au/Co NPs-3D MCF) to detect cytokeratin-19 fragment (CYFRA21–1). The three-dimensional ordered interconnect macroporous structure, by providing a high specific surface area and an electrochemically active area, not only enhances the electron transport channel and reduces mass transfer resistance, but also offers a confined region that elevates the collision frequency with the active site. In addition to exhibiting excellent biocompatibility for antibody binding, gold-cobalt nanoparticles contribute significantly to the overall robustness of the immunosensor. By capitalizing on the 3D network structure and collective effect of Au and Co NPs, the Au/Co NPs-3D MCF immunosensors exhibit exceptional response signals in both chronocurrent testing and square-wave voltammetry, allowing for a wide linear response range of 0.0001–100 ng/mL and a low detection limit. Moreover, the constructed immunosensor is capable of detecting CYFRA21–1 in human serum and has the potential for further extension to detect multiple biomarkers. This work opens up new avenues for the construction of other highly selective 3D network immunosensors.

Resolving the “megacryst paradox”: Feldspar orientation relationships record crystal mobility in granites

K-feldspar megacrysts are common in silicic plutons, but there is a long-running debate around how they form and what their presence tells us about magmatic systems. Field, textural, and geochemical evidence supports growth in a melt-rich environment, but experimental evidence and phase-equilibria modeling indicate that K-feldspar grows late in the crystallization sequence, when the magma is highly crystalline. We provide a new perspective on this problem by examining the arrangement of plagioclase inclusions within megacrysts to test whether they exhibit the systematic low-energy crystallographic relationships expected from attachment by synneusis in melt-rich environments where crystals have space to rotate. We use electron backscatter diffraction to quantify the crystal orientations and find that the megacrysts’ plagioclase inclusions do occupy these preferred orientations and therefore were incorporated in a melt-rich environment. K-feldspar is also present as an interstitial network, but plagioclase crystals hosted within this network have non-systematic orientations. This transition from systematic to non-systematic plagioclase orientations marks the point at which the crystals formed a rigid, interconnected framework that impeded rotation into low-energy orientations. Phase-equilibria modeling indicates that this transition occurred when the magma was ∼55% crystalline. The remaining ∼45% melt crystallized at the eutectic, forming the interstitial phases. Thus, we resolve the “megacryst paradox”; the megacrysts grew freely in melt, and the groundmass K-feldspar formed after crystal lock-up. Megacrysts therefore provide a detailed textural and chemical record of a critical period in the system’s evolution: the transition from a mobile and potentially eruptible magma to an immobile mush.

Modulating multiple interfaces, defects, and dual-scale interlinked frameworks of cotton-derived spiral CF@Ni@CNT fibers for boosted thermal conduction and microwave absorption

Developing dual-functional materials with excellent thermal conduction and microwave absorption has emerged as a critical strategy for addressing increasingly serious electromagnetic pollution and heat dissipation difficulties. While the advancements in these materials are constrained by their high loading and incompatible performance. To develop a thermally conductive and microwave-absorbing material with a low load, this work fabricates a series of cotton-derived spiral fibers, i.e., carbon fibers (CFs), carbon fiber/Ni (CF@Ni) fibers, and carbon fiber/Ni/carbon nanotube (CF@Ni@CNT) fibers, via a freeze-drying calcination method. By controlling the amount of nickel acetate (n) and methylbenzene volume (V), we finely modulated the multiple heterostructure interfaces, dual-scale interconnected network, defects, and magnetic/dielectric-loss of the spiral CF@Ni@CNT fibers. Results show that the comprehensive properties of spiral CF@Ni and CF@Ni@CNT fibers, obtained by combining spiral CFs with magnetic Ni nanoparticles and/or CNTs, are significantly improved. The spiral CF@Ni fibers formed at n = 8.4 mmol exhibit a lower thermal conductivity (TC = 3.64 W/m⋅K) but a wider absorption bandwidth (EAB = 6.4 GHz; 10 wt% load) than CFs. Besides, the spiral CF@Ni@CNT fibers formed at n = 4.2 mmol and V = 2 mL bear a higher TC (4.27 W/m⋅K) and a larger EAB (7.52 GHz/mm) at the same load (10 wt%). The low load could be ascribed to the low percolation threshold of a dual-scale interconnected framework consisting of CFs, CNTs, and Ni0. Additionally, the simultaneous improvement in thermal conduction and microwave absorption of the spiral CF@Ni@CNT fibers is associated with their magnetic-dielectric dual loss, electron-phonon co-transmission, and dual-scale interconnected framework.

Manipulating the overall capacitance of hierarchical porous carbons via structure- and pore-tailoring approach

Herein, we present pore architecture-tailorable porous carbons through a time-adjustable hydrothermal reaction and subsequent KOH chemical activation method. Accordingly, platanus spiky (Ps) fruits, taro (T) roots, and green bell peppers (Pp) biowaste substrates were utilized as sustainable precursors to construct novel hierarchical porous carbons (HPCs) with highly interconnected porous frameworks and smart micro/meso/macroporous architecture for supercapacitors. The heterogeneous feedstocks were pre-carbonized under hydrothermal conditions for different hold durations (12 h, 24 h, 36 h) at 200 °C. The optimized Ps-24h material exhibits a high capacitance of 371.6 F g−1 at 1 A g−1 in an aqueous Na2SO4 electrolyte and an outstanding rate performance (94% capacitance retention after 10,000 charge-discharge cycles). Surprisingly, the specific gravimetric capacitance of HPCs can be significantly manipulated by establishing a high-performance redox electrolytic system. In particular, the tailored Ps-24h-based electrode delivers a superior capacitance of 843 F g−1 at 1 A g−1 with an exceptional rate capability (64.7% capacitance retention from 1 to 20 A g−1 in K3[Fe(CN)6]/Na2SO4 electrolyte). Consequently, the as-integrated Ps-24h//Ps-24h symmetric supercapacitor device with a working voltage of 1.8 V presents enhanced energy/power outcomes (63.8 W h kg−1/900.2 W kg−1) with remarkable long-term cyclic durability (90.4% capacitance retention after 15,000 cycles) in a redox electrolytic system.

Metal-Organic Framework for Aluminum based Energy Storage Devices: Utilizing Redox Additives for Significant Performance Enhancement.

There are various methods being tried to address the sluggish kinetics observed in Al-ion batteries (AIBs). They mostly deal with morphology tuning, but have led to limited improvement. A new approach is proposed to overcome this limitation. It focuses on the use of a redox additive modified electrolyte in combination with framework like materials, which have wider channels. The ordered microporous and interconnected framework of ZIF 67, with large surface area, effectively facilitates the diffusion of aluminum ions. Therefore, AIBs are able to exhibit a superior discharge capacity of 288 mAh g-1 at 0.2 A g-1 current density with robust cycling stability. The addition of potassium ferricyanide as a redox-active species in an aqueous solution of aluminum chloride (supporting electrolyte) leads to significant enhancement in the specific capacity with much higher cycling stability. Al-ion based BatCap devices can be assembled by using ZIF 67 as the cathode, ZIF 67 derived porous carbon as the anode, and a redox additive modified electrolyte. The BatCap device exhibits excellent energy density of 86 Wh kg-1 at a power density of 2 KW kg-1, which is higher than reported aqueous AIBs. The ex situ characterization clearly explains the unexplored mechanism of redox additives in AIBs.

A novel composite solid electrolyte with ultrahigh ion transference number and stability for solid-state sodium metal batteries

The combination of a Na-ion conducting filler and polymer matrix in composite solid electrolyte (CSE) presents a promising and attractive strategy for improving the energy density and safety of the sodium-metal batteries. The agglomeration and precipitation of inorganic ceramic fillers in the polymer matrix present a major challenge leading to the decreased Na ion conductivity property and transference number, increased interfacial resistance, and worsened mechanical properties of CSEs. Herein, we introduce a novel composite solid electrolyte (denoted as 3D-15PNZSPP), comprising a three-dimensional interconnected porous Na3Zr2Si2PO12 framework integrated with an asymmetric polymer electrolyte layer, which not only offers continuous conductive pathways and high mechanical strength for Na ions transfer, but also enhances the interfacial compatibility and expands the electrochemical stability window. The 3D-15PNZSPP CSE shows a high Na+ conductivity of 7.6 × 10−4 S cm−1 and an outstanding transference number of 0.82 at temperature of 30 °C. These characteristics enable the Na/3D-15PNZSPP/Na symmetric cell to cycle for over 700 h with a small overpotential. More importantly, the assembled all solid-state Na0.67Li0.24Mn0.76O2/3D-15PNZSPP/Na batteries demonstrate remarkable cycling stability and high rate capability, indicating a promising and facile strategy for designing ultra-safe and high-performance solid-state sodium metal batteries.

Combined Ce-doping and electrochemical activation strategies for boosting the supercapacitance of NiCoO

Heteroatom doping and electrochemical activation have been reported to improve electrochemical performance of electrode materials. However, there is no report about the combination of these two methods to enhance the electrochemical performance of NiCo-oxides. Herein, Ce-doped NiCoO nanocones are grown on porous nickel foam, and electrochemical activation tactic is utilized to further boost the electrochemical performance. Through adjusting the Ce-doping dosage, the optimized NiCoCe-0.25 sample presents the highest capacitance of 1800 F g−1, greatly higher than that of pristine NiCoO (969.4 F g−1). The optimized NiCoCe-0.25 is selected as initial electrode for seeking the best activation condition. The activation process in KOH electrolyte triggers the formation of nanosheets on the surface of nanocones, followed by the growing of thin nanosheets. Therefore, the activation mechanism of Ce-doped NiCoO involves the generation and growing of nanosheets, accompanied by the composition transition from oxides to hydroxides/oxyhydroxides. When lasted for 430 CV cycles, the activation product delivers the maximum capacitance of 3795.8 F g−1 (1897.9 C g−1) at 1 A g−1. The superior performance is attributed to the interconnected framework structure consisted of nanosheets and nanoparticles, as well as the optimized composition. When utilized as positive electrode in a supercapacitor device, Ce-doped NiCoO electrode exhibits a high specific capacitance, cycling stability, and energy density. Therefore, Ce-doping and electrochemical activation tactic can be integrated for enhancing the supercapacitance performance of metal oxides.

Cobalt vacancy boosting Co3-xO4@C with superior pseudocapacitive lithium storage

The Co3O4 as anode for lithium ion batteries (LIBs) suffers the sluggish electrode kinetics and severe capacity fade during the cycles. The defective engineering of Co3O4 with oxygen/cobalt defects is an effective strategy to optimize Co3O4 with enhanced electrochemical properties. Herein, a series of 3D inter-connected Co3-xO4@C-y nanostructures with abundant Co defects are synthesized through a hydrothermal approach with subsequent heating-controlled process. Benefiting from its rich surface cobalt-defective sites and the 3D interconnected frameworks, as well as its high surface area and residual carbon layer, the Co3-xO4@C-y synthesized at y = 400 °C as anode for LIBs displays superior pseudocapacitive lithium storage properties with an ultra-high reversible specific capacity of 1900.7 mAh g−1 at 0.2 A g−1, excellent rate capability (e.g., 1415.1 mAh g−1 at 10 A g−1) and ultra-long cycling stability (e.g., 1160.5 mAh g−1 at 15 A g−1 after 2000 cycles).

Cyanuric Acid-Assisted Synthesis of Hierarchical Amorphous Carbon Nitride Assembled by Ultrathin Oxygen-Doped Nanosheets for Excellent Photocatalytic Hydrogen Generation.

Amorphous carbon nitride with typical short-range order arrangement as an effective photocatalyst is worth exploring but remains a great challenge because its disordered structure induces severe recombination of photogenerated charge carriers. Herein, for the first time, we demonstrate that a hierarchical amorphous carbon nitride (HACN) with structural oxygen incorporation can be synthesized via a cyanuric acid-assisted melem hydrothermal process, accompanied by freeze-drying and pyrolysis. The complex composed of melem and cyanuric acid exhibiting a unique 3D self-supporting skeleton and significant phase transformation is responsible for the formation of an interconnected hierarchical framework and amorphous structure for HACN. These features are beneficial to enhance its visible light harvesting by the multiple-reflection effect within the architecture consisting of more exposed porous nanosheets and introducing a long band tail absorption. The well-designed morphology, band tail state, and oxygen doping effectively inhibit rapid band-to-band recombination of the photogenerated electrons and holes and facilitate subsequent separation. Accordingly, the HACN catalyst exhibits exceptional visible light (λ > 420 nm)-driven photoreduction for hydrogen production with a rate of 82.4 μmol h-1, which is 21.7 and 9.5 times higher than those of melem-derived carbon nitride and crystalline nanotube carbon nitride counterparts, respectively, and significantly surpasses those of most reported amorphous carbon nitrides. Our controlling of rearrangement of the in situ supramolecular self-assembly of melem oligomer using cyanuric acid directly instructs the development of highly efficient amorphous photocatalysts for converting solar energy into hydrogen fuel.

Hierarchical Porous Fibers for Intrinsically Thermally Insulated and Self-Sensing Integrated Smart Textile.

Here, stretchable hierarchical porous polyurethane fibers were designed, fabricated, and employed as a three-dimensional hierarchical interconnected framework for conductive networks interwoven with silver nanoparticles and carbon nanotubes. The fiber possessed favorable thermal insulation, strain sensing, and electric heating properties. The core-shell layered porous structure of fiber made the fiber have high heat insulation performance (the difference value of temperature |ΔT| = 3.54, 8.9, and 12.7 °C at heating stage temperatures of 35, 50, and 65 °C) and ultrahigh elongation at break (813%). Importantly, after conductive filler decoration, the fiber could exhibit real-time strain-sensing capacities with a high gauge factor. In addition, the fibers could be heated at low voltage, like an electrical heater. The development of flexible, stretchable, and multifunctional porous fibers had great potential applications in intelligent wearable devices for integrated thermal management, strain sensing, and intrinsic self-warming capability.