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Negative performance feedback is vital for stimulating employees to enhance their performance despite resulting in stress and adverse work outcomes. Fortunately, artificial intelligence (AI)‐enabled automated agents have gradually assumed certain functions led by human leaders, such as providing feedback. Drawing from regulatory focus theory, we propose that AI‐based feedback systems can serve as a "remediation" tool, effectively mitigating employees' apprehensions about receiving negative feedback. In two studies, we found that for employees who fear losing face, AI‐based negative feedback motivates promotion‐focused cognition—motivation to learn—representing a learning mechanism to promote job performance and impedes their prevention‐focused cognition—interpersonal rumination—reducing the depletion needed for job performance. These findings present novel perspectives on using AI in performance feedback. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research findings concerning the effects of perceived overqualification on task performance are mixed. To reconcile the disparate findings, drawing on person‐environment theory, we propose cynicism toward the job and constructive deviance as contrasting dual pathways that explain the negative and positive effects of perceived overqualification on task performance and employee creativity. We also examine the moderating effects of dual‐focused transformational leadership (TFL) on the relationships between perceived overqualification and the two mediating mechanisms. We test this model using data collected from 469 employees and their 135 supervisors via two‐wave surveys. The results support the negative and positive mediating mechanisms. In addition, based on one field study and two online experiments, we find that individual‐focused TFL mitigates the relationship between perceived overqualification and cynicism toward the job, but that team‐focused TFL enhances the relationship between perceived overqualification and constructive deviance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because high‐status employees make disproportional contributions to firms, prior literature suggests that their departure would undermine various organizational outcomes. Building on recent literature, however, we suspect that a high‐status employee may have seized disproportional resources and credits from coworkers, thereby restricting them from performing, particularly when the work context is more independent and contested. As a result, the departure of a high‐status employee may bring staying coworkers more resources and incentives to perform, causing their performance to improve. To test this possibility, we examine the effect of high‐status analysts' departure on the individual performance of analysts who remain, using a sample of sell‐side analysts in Chinese financial brokerage firms. Employing a before‐and‐after treatment research design, we find evidence that after the departure of a high‐status analyst, the staying coworkers' individual performance is significantly improved. It is particularly so when they share greater industry overlap with the departing analyst. Our extensional analyses also investigate additional contingencies, which helps provide valuable hints about possible mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The generation of cosmic ray particles with ultra‐relativistic energies is a crucial issue in astrophysical and space physics. Shocks have been acknowledged as efficient accelerators in the universe which can produce energetic particles through a variety of mechanisms, such as diffusive shock acceleration (DSA), shock surfing acceleration (SSA) and shock drift acceleration (SDA). Using the data set obtained by the Magnetospheric Multiscale mission, we report an unusually sharp enhancement of energetic electron flux in the upstream region of Earth's bow shock, associated with a bipolar variation of the interplanetary magnetic field. To explain these observations, we propose a two‐step acceleration scenario where electrons trapped in a flux rope (FR) first undergo head‐on collisions and are further accelerated by FR contraction as the FR crosses the shock. Such a scenario can well explain the spacecraft observations. This work can improve our understanding of particle acceleration processes at shocks. Plain Language Summary: The cosmic ray comprises ions and electrons with energies up to 1,020 eV and thus its generation mechanism is an important issue. A conventional theory known as diffusive shock acceleration is a promising candidate but it needs seed electrons with sufficient initial energies. How these electrons are generated is still unclear. In this study, we report an unusually sharp enhancement of energetic electron flux with a large variation of magnetic field direction in the upstream region of Earth's bow shock, and propose a two‐step acceleration scenario to explain the spacecraft measurements. Electrons first gain energies from the head‐on collisions with the bow shock, and then bounce between the two ends of a circular magnetic field of shrinkage, analogous to a ball reflecting between two converging walls. This scenario has been mathematically confirmed and shows good agreement with the spacecraft measurements. Key Points: Efficient electron acceleration is observed when a flux rope collides with the Earth's bow shockElectrons trapped in the flux rope are successively accelerated by the head‐on reflection at shock front and the flux rope contractionThis two‐step acceleration scenario is mathematically reproduced and fit the spacecraft observations well [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The occurrence of pavement cracks poses a significant potential threat to road safety, thus the rapid and accurate acquisition of pavement crack information is of paramount importance. Deep learning methods have the capability to offer precise and automated crack detection solutions based on crack images. However, the slow detection speed and huge model size in high‐accuracy models are still the main challenges required to be addressed. Therefore, this research presents a lightweight feature attention fusion network for pavement crack segmentation. This structure employs FasterNet as the backbone network, ensuring performance while reducing model inference time and memory overhead. Additionally, the receptive field block is incorporated to simulate human visual perception, enhancing the network's feature extraction capability. Ultimately, our approach employs the feature fusion module (FFM) to effectively combine decoder outputs with encoder's low‐level features using weight vectors. Experimental results on public crack datasets, namely, CFD, CRACK500, and DeepCrack, demonstrate that compared to other semantic segmentation algorithms, the proposed method achieves both accurate and comprehensive pavement crack extraction while ensuring speed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comprehensive Summary: DNA 5‐formylcytosine (5fC) is a prominent epigenetic modification within biological systems. Recent investigations have shed light on its pivotal role in governing cell fate, gene expression, and disease pathways. However, our comprehension of the precise control of the 5fC site structure to influence its functionality remains limited. In this study, we have successfully achieved precise control over 5fC activity by harnessing the interaction between streptavidin and biotin. This research underscores the potential application of interactions between biomacromolecules and small molecules in advancing the field of DNA epigenetic functional regulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ultraviolet/flame retardant protection cotton fabric is successfully prepared using a spray baking process with tannic acid (TA) and phytic acid (PA) as key ingredients to address the issues of cotton fabric such as high flammability and lack of ultraviolet (UV) resistance. With respect to the treated fabric by 4 wt% PA solution and 3 wt% TA solution, it presented 29.5% limited oxygen index (LOI) value, 8.0 cm damaged length and 26.4 ultraviolet protection factor (UPF), while they were 28.3%, 7.5 cm and 30.6 for treated fabric by 3 wt% PA solution and 4 wt% TA solution, which indicated that in the mixed system, although TA primarily acted as an anti‐UV agent, it also exhibited flame retardant properties, and PA primarily functioned as a flame retardant and could provide a certain degree of UV protection. The prepared cotton fabric through this facile method presented excellent UV/flame retardant protection capabilities, and improved the functional efficiency of TA and PA materials. Moreover, as‐prepared fabric showed great application potential, especially in outdoor‐applied fields such as sportswear, sunshade tents, sunshade hats, and so on. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, deep learning methods were good solutions for object detection in synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images. However, the problems of complex scenarios, large object scale differences and imperfect fine‐grained classification in ship detection were intractable. In response, an improved model GDB‐YOLOv5s (Improved YOLOv5s model incorporating global attention mechanism (GAM), DCN‐v2 and BiFusion) is designed. This model introduces deformable convolution networks (DCN‐v2) into the Backbone to enhance the adaptability of the receptive field. It replaces the original Neck's PANet structure with a BiFusion structure to better fuse the extracted multiscale features. Additionally, it integrates GAM into the network to reduce information loss and improve global feature interaction. Experiments were conducted on single‐class dataset SSDD and multi‐class dataset SRSSD‐V1.0. The results show that the GDB‐YOLOv5s model improves mean average precision scores (mAP) significantly, outperforming the original YOLOv5s model and other traditional methods. GDB‐YOLOv5s also improves Precision‐score (P) and Recall‐score (R) for fine‐grained classification to some extent, thereby reducing false alarms and missed detections. It has been proved that the improved model is relatively effective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The emissions from South Asia and Southeast Asia significantly impact air quality and meteorological conditions in China. However, the individual or joint contributions of anthropogenic emissions and/or biomass burning from outside China to surface particulate matter with aerodynamic diameters less than 2.5 μm (PM2.5) and aerosol optical depth (AOD) over southern China have not been fully investigated. Here, five experiments were designed to investigate the impacts of these emissions in January (winter), March (pre‐monsoon), and October (post‐monsoon) for 2017. Aerosols from South Asia and Southeast Asia contributed less to southern China during winter and post‐monsoon seasons, whereas the wind patterns and emission intensity during the pre‐monsoon season were conducive to the transport of aerosols. During pre‐monsoon season, the total emissions contributed approximately 5.0 μg m−3 to surface PM2.5 in Xizang Province. Biomass burning in Southeast Asia increased PM2.5 in Yunnan Province by 37.9 μg m−3, while anthropogenic emissions increased it by 8.9 μg m−3. Transboundary aerosols can be transported to Xizang Province and Yunnan Province, primarily influencing PM2.5 below 2 km height. It mainly affected PM2.5 levels above the planetary boundary layer over southeast China. Aerosols from outside China can account for 79.5% and 54.8% AOD in Yunnan Province and southeast China, respectively. These aerosols reduced surface incident solar radiation by approximately 6%, leading to decreases in air temperature, wind speed, and boundary layer height. The findings are only applicable to the pre‐monsoon season. Plain Language Summary: Air pollution in South Asia and Southeast Asia is closely related to anthropogenic emissions and biomass burning. Under the influence of prevailing winds, these emissions can affect air quality over southern China during different seasons. This study combines ground observations, satellite data, and chemical transport models to investigate the impacts of anthropogenic emissions and/or biomass burning from South Asia and Southeast Asia on air quality and meteorological conditions over southern China in January, March, and October for 2017. Key Points: Transportation from South Asia and Southeast Asia account for up to 50% PM2.5 concentrations over Xizang Province in ChinaAerosols transported from South Asia and Southeast Asia can impact PM2.5 at heights up to 6 km over southern China in pre‐monsoon seasonImpacts on the surface solar radiation, air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed and planetary boundary layer height are quantified [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Mycorrhizal associations are key mutualisms that shape the structure of forest communities and multiple ecosystem functions. However, we lack a framework for predicting the varying dominance of distinct mycorrhizal associations in an integrated proxy of multifunctionality across ecosystems.Here, we used the datasets containing diversity of mycorrhizal associations and 18 ecosystem processes related to supporting, provisioning, and regulating services to examine how the dominance of ectomycorrhiza (EcM) associations affects ecosystem multifunctionality in subtropical mountain forests in Southwest China. Meanwhile, we synthesized the prevalence of EcM‐dominant effects on ecosystem functioning in forest biomes.Our results demonstrated that elevation significantly modified the distributions of EcM trees and fungal dominance, which in turn influenced multiple functions simultaneously. Multifunctionality increased with increasing proportion of EcM associations, supporting the ectomycorrhizal‐dominance hypothesis. Meanwhile, we observed that the impacts of EcM dominance on individual ecosystem functions exhibited different relationships among forest biomes.Our findings highlight the importance of ectomycorrhizal dominance in regulating multifunctionality in subtropical forests. However, this ectomycorrhizal feedback in shaping ecosystem functions cannot necessarily be generalized across forests. Therefore, we argue that the predictions for ecosystem multifunctionality in response to the shifts of mycorrhizal composition could vary across space and time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Kiwifruit ripening is a complex and highly coordinated process that occurs in conjunction with the formation of fruit edible quality. The significance of epigenetic changes, particularly the impact of N6‐methyladenosine (m6A) RNA modification on fruit ripening and quality formation, has been largely overlooked.We monitored m6A levels and gene expression changes in kiwifruit at four different stages using LC‐MS/MS, MeRIP, RNA‐seq, and validated the function of AcALKBH10 through heterologous transgenic expression in tomato.Notable m6A modifications occurred predominantly at the stop codons and the 3′ UTRs and exhibited a gradual reduction in m6A levels during the fruit ripening process. Moreover, these m6A modifications in the aforementioned sites demonstrated a discernible inverse relationship with the levels of mRNA abundance throughout the ripening process, suggesting a repression effect of m6A modification in the modulation of kiwifruit ripening.We further demonstrated that AcALKBH10 rather than AcECT9 predominantly regulates m6A levels in ripening‐related genes, thereby exerting the regulatory control over the ripening process and the accumulation of soluble sugars and organic acids, ultimately influencing fruit ripening and quality formation. In conclusion, our findings illuminate the epi‐regulatory mechanism involving m6A in kiwifruit ripening, offering a fresh perspective for cultivating high‐quality kiwifruit with enhanced nutritional attributes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Chloroplasts play a crucial role in plant defense against pathogens, making them primary targets for pathogen effectors that suppress host immunity. This study characterizes the Plasmopara viticola CRN‐like effector, PvCRN20, which interacts with DEG5 in the cytoplasm but not with its interacting protein, DEG8, which is located in the chloroplast.By transiently overexpressing in tobacco leaves, we show that PvCRN20 could inhibit INF1‐ and Bax‐triggered cell death. Constitutive expression of PvCRN20 suppresses the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and promotes pathogen colonization. PvCRN20 reduces DEG5 entry into chloroplasts, thereby disrupting DEG5 and DEG8 interactions in chloroplasts.Overexpression of VvDEG5 and VvDEG8 induces ROS accumulation and enhances grapevine resistance to P. viticola, whereas knockout of VvDEG8 represses ROS production and promotes P. viticola colonization. Consistently, ectopic expression of VvDEG5 and VvDEG8 in tobacco promotes chloroplast‐derived ROS accumulation, whereas co‐expression of PvCRN20 counteracted this promotion by VvDEG5. Therefore, DEG5 is essential for the virulence function of PvCRN20. Although PvCRN20 is located in both the nucleus and cytoplasm, only cytoplasmic PvCRN20 suppresses plant immunity and promotes pathogen infection.Our results reveal that PvCRN20 dampens plant defenses by repressing the chloroplast import of DEG5, thus reducing host ROS accumulation and facilitating pathogen colonization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comprehensive Summary: DNA 5‐formylcytosine (5fC) is a prominent epigenetic modification within biological systems. Recent investigations have shed light on its pivotal role in governing cell fate, gene expression, and disease pathways. However, our comprehension of the precise control of the 5fC site structure to influence its functionality remains limited. In this study, we have successfully achieved precise control over 5fC activity by harnessing the interaction between streptavidin and biotin. This research underscores the potential application of interactions between biomacromolecules and small molecules in advancing the field of DNA epigenetic functional regulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Purpose: Sevoflurane, a commonly used inhaled anaesthetic known for its favourable safety profile and rapid onset and offset, has not been thoroughly investigated as a potential treatment for depression. In this study, we reveal the mechanism through which sevoflurane delivers enduring antidepressant effects. Experimental Approach: To assess the antidepressant effects of sevoflurane, behavioural tests were conducted, along with in vitro and ex vivo whole‐cell patch‐clamp recordings, to examine the effects on GluN1–GluN2 incorporated N‐methyl‐d‐aspartate (NMDA) receptors (NMDARs) and neuronal circuitry in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). Multiple‐channel electrophysiology in freely moving mice was performed to evaluate sevoflurane's effects on neuronal activity, and GluN2D knockout (grin2d−/−) mice were used to confirm the requirement of GluN2D for the antidepressant effects. Key Results: Repeated exposure to subanaesthetic doses of sevoflurane produced sustained antidepressant effects lasting up to 2 weeks. Sevoflurane preferentially inhibited GluN2C‐ and GluN2D‐containing NMDARs, causing a reduction in interneuron activity. In contrast, sevoflurane increased action potentials (AP) firing and decreased spontaneous inhibitory postsynaptic current (sIPSC) in mPFC pyramidal neurons, demonstrating a disinhibitory effect. These effects were absent in grin2d−/− mice, and both pharmacological blockade and genetic knockout of GluN2D abolished sevoflurane's antidepressant actions, suggesting that GluN2D is essential for its antidepressant effect. Conclusion and Implications: Sevoflurane directly targets GluN2D, leading to a specific decrease in interneuron activity and subsequent disinhibition of pyramidal neurons, which may underpin its antidepressant effects. Targeting the GluN2D subunit could hold promise as a potential therapeutic strategy for treating depression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Purpose: The AMP‐activated protein kinase (AMPK) signalling pathway is a desirable target for various cardiovascular diseases (CVD), while the involvement of AMPK‐mediated specific downstream pathways and effective interventions in hyperlipidaemia‐induced endothelial dysfunction remain largely unknown. Herein, we aim to identify an effective AMPK activator and to explore its efficacy and mechanism against endothelial dysfunction. Experimental Approach: Molecular docking technique was adopted to screen for the potent AMPK activator among 11 most common rare ginsenosides. In vivo, poloxamer 407 (P407) was used to induce acute hyperlipidaemia in C57BL/6J mice. In vitro, palmitic acid (PA) was used to induce lipid toxicity in HAEC cells. Key Results: We discovered the strongest binding of ginsenoside Rh4 to AMPKα1 and confirmed the action of Rh4 on AMPK activation. Rh4 effectively attenuated hyperlipidaemia‐related endothelial injury and oxidative stress both in vivo and in vitro and restored cell viability, mitochondrial membrane potential and mitochondrial oxygen consumption rate in HAEC cells. Mechanistically, Rh4 bound to AMPKα1 and simultaneously up‐regulated AKT/eNOS‐mediated NO release, promoted PGC‐1α‐mediated mitochondrial biogenesis and inhibited P38 MAPK/NFκB‐mediated inflammatory responses in both P407‐treated mice and PA‐treated HAEC cells. The AMPK inhibitor Compound C treatment completely abrogated the regulation of Rh4 on the above pathways and weakened the lowering effect of Rh4 on endothelial impairment markers, suggesting that the beneficial effects of Rh4 are AMPK dependent. Conclusion and Implications: Rh4 may serve as a novel AMPK activator to protect against hyperlipidaemia‐induced endothelial dysfunction, providing new insights into the prevention and treatment of endothelial injury‐associated CVD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Stomata are channels through which plants exchange H2O and CO2 with the external environment. The regulation of stomatal movement has significant impacts on plant growth, development and stress adaptation. Here, we present a maize R2R3−MYB transcription factor, ZmMYB56, which regulates high CO2‐induced stomatal closure in maize seedlings. ZmMYB56 is highly expressed in stomatal guard cells and is negatively regulated by CO2 and HCO3−. Loss of ZmMYB56 function leads to insensitivity to high CO2. As a transcription factor, ZmMYB56 binds to a cis‐acting element in the ZmHLT1 promoter and regulates its expression. ZmHLT1 plays a key role in CO2‐ induced maize stomatal movement, and its absence causes a severe weakening of maize's response to ambient CO2. ZmHLT1 expression is negatively regulated by bicarbonate, which does not occur in Zmmyb56 mutants, highlighting the significance of this regulatory relationship in plant responses to CO2 and HCO3−. Taken together, these results show that ZmMYB56‐regulated ZmHLT1 expression is important for high CO2‐induced stomatal closure in maize. Our findings provide insight into genetic pathways that could be manipulated to improve maize growth and stress tolerance, especially under increasing atmospheric CO2 concentrations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Monitoring the dynamic behavior of active species and modulating their electronic architecture are crucial for the development of efficient catalysts. Here, a 3D ordered multi‐level porous Ni2P/CeO2 heterojunction catalyst with a “self‐optimization effect” is strategically synthesized for efficient oxygen evolution reaction (OER). This catalyst exhibits a low overpotential of 235 mV at 20 mA cm−2 in 1.0 m KOH. During the OER process, the heterojunction catalyst specifically undergoes a unique phase transition involving the leaching of the P element, which triggers the formation of the PO43−‐NiOOH/CeO2 catalyst with PO43− adsorbed on the surface of the reconstructed product NiOOH/CeO2. Density functional theory calculations reveal that the CeO2 and adsorbed‐PO43− in the self‐optimized structure are essential and minor factors for enhancing catalytic activity, respectively. They collaborate to promote the redistribution of electron density in surface Ni and O, increasing the d/p‐band center difference. This phenomenon results in optimized adsorption/desorption of the key intermediates such as *OOH and improved catalytic performance. Overall, this research highlights the potential of d/p‐band modulation for the rational design of cost‐effective and high‐efficiency electrocatalysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solar rechargeable batteries (SRBs), as an emerging technology for harnessing solar energy, integrate the advantages of photochemical devices and redox batteries to synergistically couple dual‐functional materials capable of both light harvesting and redox activity. This enables direct solar‐to‐electrochemical energy storage within a single system. However, the mismatch in energy levels between coupled photochemical storage materials (PSMs) and the occurrence of side reactions with liquid electrolytes during charge‐discharge cycles lead to a decrease in solar energy conversion efficiency. This impedes the advancement of SRBs. This review comprehensively discusses of the latest advancements in PSMs, which are crucial for designing advanced SRBs. It delves into an extensive discussion of the design criteria for dual‐functional photochemical storage cathodes (PSCs) and elucidates the operational mechanism of SRBs. Additionally, it further discusses the performance, efficiency, and long‐term cycle stability of SRBs in relation to photoelectronic and photothermal mechanisms. Finally, an outlook on primary challenges and prospects that SRBs will encounter is provided to offer novel insights for their technological advancement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The activation of lattice oxygen oxidation mechanism (LOM) will endow iridium‐based electrocatalysts with desired acid‐available water oxidation activity, compared to the conventional adsorbate evolution mechanism (AEM). However, the inherent symmetric [IrO6] octahedra of commercial Ir‐based catalysts generally thermodynamically favor the AEM pathway contributing to the moderate water oxidation performance. Here, based on typical layered Ca2IrO4 (CIO) modeled materials, the d‐orbitals electron repulsion strategy is demonstrated, via constructing asymmetrically polarized Ir‒O‒Ru configuration in Ru‐CIO, to effectively activate the lattice oxygen participating in water oxidation process for decent oxygen‐related electrocatalytic activity. Specifically, a great increase of ≈700‐fold and ≈170‐fold in mass activity and turnover frequency, respectively, has been realized for the optimal Ru‐CIO electrocatalyst in an acid medium relative to the commercial IrO2 electrocatalysts, where a small overpotential of only 175 mV is required for achieving 10 mA cmgeo‒2. In situ X‐ray fine structure spectroscopies combined with in situ 18O‐ isotope‐labeled differential electrochemical mass spectrometry analyses reveal that desirable LOM has been boosted by the activated lattice oxygen and the flexible Ir(3+δ)+ active sites of asymmetric [IrO6] octahedra, which results in superior OER kinetics for Ir‐based oxide catalysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary Nannochloropsis oceanica is an industrially relevant marine microalga rich in eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, a valuable ω‐3 polyunsaturated fatty acid), yet the algal production potential remains to be unlocked. Here we engineered N. oceanica to synthesize the high‐value carotenoid astaxanthin independent of high‐light (HL) induction for achieving multifaceted benefits. By screening β‐carotenoid ketolases and hydroxylases of various origins, and strategically manipulating compartmentalization, fusion patterns, and linkers of the enzyme pair, a remarkable 133‐fold increase in astaxanthin content was achieved in N. oceanica. Iterative metabolic engineering efforts led to further increases in astaxanthin synthesis up to 7.3 mg g−1, the highest reported for microalgae under nonstress conditions. Astaxanthin was found in the photosystem components and allowed the alga HL resistance and augmented EPA production. Besides, we achieved co‐production of astaxanthin and EPA by the engineered alga through a fed‐batch cultivation approach. Our findings unveil the untapped potential of N. oceanica as a robust, light‐driven chassis for constitutive astaxanthin synthesis and provide feasible strategies for the concurrent production of multiple high‐value biochemicals from CO2, thereby paving the way for sustainable biotechnological applications of this alga. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comprehensive Summary A visible‐light‐induced decarboxylative radical cascade cyclization reaction between N‐(2‐cyanoaryl)‐acrylamides and alkyl N‐(acyloxy)phthalimide (NHPI esters) for the construction of phenanthridine derivatives has been developed. This approach utilizes lithium iodide (LiI) and triphenylphosphine (PPh3) as the redox catalysts and the alkyl radical is produced through the photoactivation of the electron donor‐acceptor (EDA) complex. A series of primary, secondary, and tertiary alkyl‐substituted phenanthridines are prepared in up to 82% yield without transition‐metal catalysts, chemical oxidants, or metal‐/organic dye‐based photocatalysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comprehensive Summary The simultaneous construction of two vicinal C—C bonds in a molecule remains a significant challenge. In this work, we disclose an electroreductive carboarylation of activated alkenes under mild, transition metal‐free conditions. Utilizing readily available starting materials (electron‐deficient aryl bromides, activated alkenes, and CO2), this method demonstrates broad substrate scope and good functional group tolerance. Notably, this strategy enables the addition of two distinct electrophiles across an alkene in a highly chemo‐ and regioselective manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND RESULTS CONCLUSION Bacillus inaquosorum strains is widely recognized for their plant‐growth‐promoting and biocontrol capabilities, yet their roles in protease production remain unclear. The present study aimed to comprehensively assess the protease‐producing performance of B. inaquosorum strain E1‐8, at the same time as exploring the novel application of agricultural Bacillus proteases in the preparation of protein hydrolysates for fresh‐cut fruits preservation.First, genomic sequencing revealed the diversity of E1‐8 proteases, indicating 15 putative extracellular proteases. Subsequently, the fermentation conditions for E1‐8 protease production were optimized, with sweet potato powder and soybean meal identified as the most suitable carbon and nitrogen sources, respectively, resulting in a maximum protease activity of 321.48 U mL−1. Upon culturing the strain under these optimized conditions, only an S8 family serine protease and an M48 family metalloprotease were revealed by secretomic analysis and protease inhibitor assays. Additionally, the optimal protease conditions for generating protein hydrolysates from soy, pea, fish and porcine proteins were determined. The molecular weight of the hydrolysates primarily ranged from 2000 to 180 Da, with a total of 17 amino acids identified. The application of these hydrolysates demonstrated a 2,2‐diphenyl‐1‐picrylhydrazyl (i.e. DPPH) scavenging activity ranging from 58.64% to 84.12%, significantly reducing of the melting peaks and the freezing points. Furthermore, the browning index of apple slices stored at 4 °C decreased by 14.81% to 22.15% on the second day, and similar effects were observed in fresh‐cut banana stored at 4 °C for 7 days.The protein hydrolysates obtained exhibit remarkable antioxidant, antifreeze and anti‐browning properties for fresh‐cut fruits. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The repair and regeneration of cartilage is a challenge for scientists and clinical surgery. Achieving cell adhesion and regeneration, anti‐inflammatory, lubrication, targeted drug delivery and controlled release simultaneously in cartilage treatment are the goals of researchers. Polymer composites and hybrids have the potential to realize above functions in cartilage tissue engineering. This review refers to cartilage injuries, current clinical techniques, and their benefits and limitations, focusing on the most relevant and state of art of advanced polymers for cartilage tissue engineering. The frontier applications of multifunctional polymer composites and hybrids in cartilage tissue engineering are discussed in depth, including polymer scaffold, polymer bio‐lubricant, and zwitterionic polymer for drug delivery and sustained drug release. A summary of comprehensive properties of polymers such as processability, mechanical properties, biocompatibility, biodegradability, hydrophilicity, cytotoxicity, etc., and their mechanisms are analyzed. Furthermore, some key challenges and outstanding concerns on polymer‐based materials for cartilage tissue engineering are presented followed by future perspectives. Highlights: The state of art of advanced polymers for cartilage tissue engineering.The advanced bionic property and mechanism of polymer composites and hybrids.Polymers for scaffold, biolubricant, drug delivery, sustained drug release.Future perspectives on polymer composites, hybrids‐based cartilage materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Delamination is one form of damage in composite laminates. The effects of delamination damage locations (thickness direction of laminates) on the residual compressive strength and failure mechanism of carbon fiber/polyphenylene sulfide (CF/PPS) composites are studied by damage morphology, full‐field strain and finite element simulation. The closer the delamination is to the center of the composite, the lower the residual compressive strength. The failure mode of composites is dominated by 0° fiber fracture, which is divided into bulging, delamination propagation, and fracture. The delamination locations significantly affect the first two stages. Highlights: Constructing delamination damage in composites by interlayer preset defects.Simulation and damage analysis to reveal the mechanism of compression failure.The relationship between delamination depth and damage stage is revealed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Indoor location based on Wi‐Fi fingerprint has attracted extensive attention recently, since it only requires a mobile device and existing network; it does not require additional infrastructure and hardware. However, localization using only received signal strength fingerprint is susceptible to dynamic environments and device heterogeneity. Localization using signal strength differences fingerprint and hyperbolic location fingerprint which extracted from received signal strength fingerprint is a powerful measure to overcome the device heterogeneity. Existing fusion‐based methods do not fully use of the mutual fusion function of multiple fingerprints, which leads to low positioning accuracy. In order to further improve the positioning accuracy, we propose a multifingerprint multiclassifier and two‐layer fusion weight positioning model. The proposed approach first creates a multiple fingerprints group by gleaning signal strength differences fingerprint and hyperbolic location fingerprint from received signal strength fingerprint. In order to deal with the accuracy decline caused by a single classifier in complex scenes, three typical classifiers, random forest (RF), K‐nearest neighbor (KNN), and support vector machine (SVM), are adopted, and a fusion weight selection algorithm is proposed to improve the localization accuracy by choosing fusion weights intelligently from the two‐layer fusion weights. Experiment results show that the proposed scheme is effective to resolve device heterogeneity, and the position accuracy is improved about 16.9% and 5.8%, respectively, compared with single fingerprint and classifier schemes. The results show that, compared with the single fingerprint scheme, the position accuracy is improved at least 16.9% and 28.4% for the homogeneous and heterogeneous equipments, respectively; as for the proposed multiclassifier fusion method, it achieves at least 5.8% and 8.7% accuracy improvement for the cases with homogeneous and heterogeneous equipments, respectively, compared with other traditional classifiers such as RF, KNN, and SVM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents an innovative approach to simultaneously estimate states and unknown inputs (UIs) in nonlinear systems using a particle filter (PF) based recursive expectation‐maximization (EM) algorithm. This method is distinct from traditional iterative EM algorithms. During the E‐step, it calculates the Q‐function recursively within the maximum likelihood framework, while the PF estimates the system states. The M‐step involves local maximization of the recursive Q‐function to online estimate the UIs. The effectiveness of the PF‐based recursive EM algorithm is demonstrated with a numerical example, and comparisons with the augmented state PF are made to highlight its advantages. Finally, the proposed algorithm is implemented in a real application for the estimation of the continuous fermentation process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article deals with the security control stabilization problem of uncertain Markov jump power systems with input dead zone under stochastic denial‐of‐service (DoS) attack. DoS attack is modeled as a discrete‐time Markov process. Dual hidden Markov models are respectively used to detect the modes of the original power systems and the one under DoS attack. Based on the detected modes and neural networks (NNs), adaptive NN‐based security asynchronous control strategies are proposed, where both state feedback and output feedback are studied simultaneously. With the developed control laws, all trajectories of the closed‐loop systems are bounded stable in the stochastic setting. Simulation results demonstrate the correctness and usefulness of the proposed techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rational construction of a hierarchical noble metal–metal‐organic frameworks (MOFs) structure is anticipated to yield enduring and highly efficient performance in alkaline electrocatalytic water splitting. Herein, a sandwich construction strategy is employed to enhance the stability, wherein active RutheniRu (Ru) nanosheets are incorporated onto nickel foam (NF) and subsequently covered with porphyrinic MOFs (PMOFs). In addition, activated PMOF‐NiOOH‐Ru20/NF‐C/A electrodes are obtained by electrochemical self‐reconstruction as cathode and anode, respectively. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations demonstrated that the resulting PMOF‐NiOOH‐Ru heterointerface effectively facilitated electron transfer, enhanced H2O adsorption capacity, and optimized ΔG values for *H and *O to *OOH. Consequently, PMOF‐NiOOH‐Ru20/NF‐C/A exhibited low overpotentials for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER), accompanied by minimal Ru leakage. Furthermore, stable overall water splitting can be achieved with a low voltage of 1.456 V@10 mA cm−2 for over 120 h. Even when operated in simulated seawater, the prepared electrodes demonstrated similar activity and stability. This study contributes to a deeper understanding of the regulation mechanism for the performance and stability of active sites in the electrocatalytic self‐reconstruction process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The liner is affixed to the inner side of the ball mill cylinder to protect the cylinder. Through isothermal compression experiments, Arrhenius constitutive models, peak strain models, critical strain models, dynamic recrystallization dynamic models, and grain size models suitable for the forging process of Mn–Cr–Ni–Mo steel used in ball mill liners were established. By utilizing Deform software, a 3D thermo‐force‐structure coupling model for the hot forging process of ball mill liners was constructed, and the volume fraction of dynamic recrystallization and average grain size during forging was predicted. The response surface model was employed to investigate how process parameters interacted with each other and affected microstructure uniformity in ball mill liners. After optimization, the optimal parameters were determined: initial forging temperature at 1200 °C, forging speed at 30 mm s−1, and friction coefficient at 0.3. Subsequently, a hot forging experiment on ball mill liners was conducted using these optimized parameters; samples were analyzed through backscattered electron diffraction device experiments and microscopic tissue observations. Results demonstrated that microstructural changes observed during actual forging processes aligned with numerical simulation results—thus verifying both the accuracy of the Mn–Cr–Ni–Mo steel material model and numerical simulation method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives Subjects and Methods Results Conclusions The renin‐angiotensin system (RAS) plays essential roles in cardiovascular and renal function regulation. Recent studies have shown that the RAS components are widely expressed in oral tissues, but their roles in oral diseases remain underexplored. This review aims to summarize the effects of the RAS in select oral diseases including oral squamous cells carcinoma (OSCC), periodontitis, oral submucous fibrosis (OSF), and ageusia/dysgeusia.Data searches were performed using PubMed, Web of Science and Scopus through July 2024. A narrative overview of current literature was undertaken to synthesize the contexts with elaboration and summary.In OSCC, ACE/Ang II/AT1R promotes OSCC by inducing angiogenesis, cell proliferation and invasiveness. Conversely, ACE/Ang II/AT2R and ACE2/Ang (1–7)/MasR inhibit OSCC progressions. In periodontitis, ACE/Ang II/AT1R upregulates inflammatory cytokines and promotes osteoclast differentiation factor RANKL, whereas ACE2/Ang (1–7)/MasR exerts opposite effects by preventing inflammation and alveolar bone loss. In OSF, Ang (1–7) counters the profibrotic and proinflammatory action of Ang II. In dysgeusia, Ang II suppresses salt taste responses and enhances sweet taste sensitivities, while Ang (1–7) exhibits opposite effects.The RAS cascade plays crucial roles in OSCC, periodontitis, OSF and ageusia/dysgeusia. The imbalanced RAS may aggravate the progression of these diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Here, we report CdS quantum dot (QD) gels, a three‐dimensional network of interconnected CdS QDs, as a new type of direct hydrogen atom transfer (d‐HAT) photocatalyst for C−H activation. We discovered that the photoexcited CdS QD gel could generate various neutral radicals, including α‐amido, heterocyclic, acyl, and benzylic radicals, from their corresponding stable molecular substrates, including amides, thio/ethers, aldehydes, and benzylic compounds. Its C−H activation ability imparts a broad substrate and reaction scope. The mechanistic study reveals that this reactivity is intrinsic to CdS materials, and the neutral radical generation did not proceed via the conventional sequential electron transfer and proton transfer pathway. Instead, the C−H bonds are activated by the photoexcited CdS QD gel via a d‐HAT mechanism. This d‐HAT mechanism is supported by the linear correlation between the logarithm of the C−H bond activation rate constant and the C−H bond dissociation energy (BDE) with a Brønsted slope α=0.5. Our findings expand the currently limited direct hydrogen atom transfer photocatalysis toolbox and provide new possibilities for photocatalytic C−H activation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of triphenol‐diamine‐type hyperbranched benzoxazines are synthesized by using polyformaldehyde, 1,1,1‐tri(4‐hydroxyphenyl) ethane, and primary amines such as p‐phenylenediamine, 4,4′‐diaminodiphenylmethane, polyetheramine, and bifuranocyclic diamine via Mannich condensation. Then, copolymers with bifunctional benzoxazine (BA‐a) are prepared to obtain superior properties. The polymerization behavior of the copolymers examined using a differential scanning calorimeter and a Fourier transform infrared indicates that the introduction of hyperbranched benzoxazines facilitates the benzoxazine curing reaction, decreasing the onset and peak temperatures of the curing process. Thermogravimetric analysis results suggest the cured hyperbranched benzoxazine demonstrates good thermal stability and can improve the heat resistance of benzoxazine. In addition, dynamic mechanical analysis suggests the glass transition temperature of the copolymers with BA‐a was increased after copolymerization, thus making all the copolymers obtain higher service temperatures. The test results from the universal testing machine and the fracture morphologies of copolymers indicate the hyperbranched benzoxazines with branched structures cause dendritic folds to appear on the surface of copolymers upon polymerization, preventing rapid cracking and spreading of the thermoset resin by dissipating more impact energy through this irregular dendritic appearance, thus obtaining strength and toughness superior to that of BA‐a resins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In circumstances of severe traumatic bleeding, urgent bleeding control is vital to the wellness and life of the wounded person. Among many hemostatic measures, gauze is widely used because of cost‐effectiveness, safety and efficiency. However, it may suck a large amount of blood before bleeding stops. Thus, advanced hemostatic gauzes less blood loss and quick hemostatic rate and is greatly demanded. Herein, a novel tissue adhesive gauze (TA‐gauze) is developed by coating a thin layer of polyethyleneimine/poly(acrylic acid) (PEI/PAA) on the plain cotton gauze. This TA‐gauze has a reduced hydrophilicity and gets a new trait of wet tissue adhesiveness from the PEI/PAA coating layer. The TA‐gauze shows much improved hemostatic performance in the rat injury models, that is, its blood loss in the rat femoral artery model is just 13% that of the cotton gauze, due to it can retard the blood movement in the gauze and at the seam of gauze/tissue through a synergistic effect of tissue adhesion and hygroscopicity. It is biocompatible and on‐demand detachable. The simple preparation procedure and high hemostatic efficiency of the TA‐gauze may promise a bright future for an ideal hemostatic dressing for bleeding control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary It is well‐known that the mycorrhizal type of plants correlates with different modes of nutrient cycling and availability. However, the differences in drought tolerance between arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) and ectomycorrhizal (EcM) plants remains poorly characterized. We synthesized a global dataset of four hydraulic traits associated with drought tolerance of 1457 woody species (1139 AM and 318 EcM species) at 308 field sites. We compared these traits between AM and EcM species, with evolutionary history (i.e. angiosperms vs gymnosperms), water availability (i.e. aridity index) and biomes considered as additional factors. Overall, we found that evolutionary history and biogeography influenced differences in hydraulic traits between mycorrhizal types. Specifically, we found that (1) AM angiosperms are less drought‐tolerant than EcM angiosperms in wet regions or biomes, but AM gymnosperms are more drought‐tolerant than EcM gymnosperms in dry regions or biomes, and (2) in both angiosperms and gymnosperms, variation in hydraulic traits as well as their sensitivity to water availability were higher in AM species than in EcM species. Our results suggest that global shifts in water availability (especially drought) may alter the biogeographic distribution and abundance of AM and EcM plants, with consequences for ecosystem element cycling and ultimately, the land carbon sink. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anthelmintics are drugs used for controlling pathogenic helminths in animals and plants. The natural compound betaine and the recently developed synthetic compound monepantel are both anthelmintics that target the acetylcholine receptor ACR-23 and its homologs in nematodes. Here, we present cryo-electron microscopy structures of ACR-23 in apo, betaine-bound, and betaine- and monepantel-bound states. We show that ACR-23 forms a homo-pentameric channel, similar to some other pentameric ligand-gated ion channels (pLGICs). While betaine molecules are bound to the classical neurotransmitter sites in the inter-subunit interfaces in the extracellular domain, monepantel molecules are bound to allosteric sites formed in the inter-subunit interfaces in the transmembrane domain of the receptor. Although the pore remains closed in betaine-bound state, monepantel binding results in an open channel by wedging into the cleft between the transmembrane domains of two neighboring subunits, which causes dilation of the ion conduction pore. By combining structural analyses with site-directed mutagenesis, electrophysiology and in vivo locomotion assays, we provide insights into the mechanism of action of the anthelmintics monepantel and betaine. Synopsis: The anthelmintics monepantel and betaine target acetylcholine receptor like-23 (ACR-23) of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. This study provides cryo-electron microscopy structures of ACR-23 in various states to characterize how these compounds exert their anthelmintic functions. ACR-23 forms a homopentameric channel. One betaine molecule is bound to each of the five inter-subunit interfaces in the extracellular domain of ACR-23. One monepantel molecule is bound to each of the five inter-subunit interfaces in the transmembrane domain of ACR-23. The pore remains closed in the betaine-bound state, whereas monepantel binding induces pore dilation. Binding of both compounds together leads to outward movement and rotation of the pore-lining M2 helix, and eventually to channel opening. Structural and functional analyses elucidate the distinct binding modes of the anthelmintics monepantel and betaine on their receptor ACR-23. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aluminum alloys are primary structural materials in aircraft fuel systems, where jet fuel can influence the fatigue crack growth (FCG) behavior of materials. This paper presents a model for calculating the FCG rate of aluminum alloys in jet fuel environment. The model is based on elastoplastic fracture mechanics and revises the interaction terms in the linear superposition model by accounting for the corrosive environment and the crack closure effect. The derivation process of the model is discussed in detail. To validate the efficacy of the model, FCG tests were conducted on three types of aviation aluminum alloys, namely, 2524‐T3, 7050‐T7451, and 7075‐T62 in the jet fuel. The experimental results were compared with FCG rates in the laboratory air environment. Findings indicate that the proposed model effectively captures the primary trends observed in the experimental data. In addition, the failure surfaces of the specimens were observed using a super‐depth‐of‐field optical microscopy system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Conductivity chromium‐free conversion coatings on aluminum substrates were achieved by utilizing Na2SnO3 and Mo/Ti solutions. The composition and morphology of the coatings were characterized using XPS, SEM, EDS, AFM, and Raman spectroscopies. The corrosion behavior of the coatings in 3.5‐wt% NaCl solution was investigated through a dynamic potential polarization method and EIS analysis. Mott–Schottky and UV–Vis analyses were used to determine the semiconductor properties of the coatings, including carrier concentration and band gap. The results revealed that the main components of the coating were Al2O3, SnO2, MoO3, and MoO2 and the coating presented a double‐layer structure, including a transition layer close to the substrate and a compact layer on the surface. The coating also exhibited the properties of a p‐type semiconductor. The electrical contact resistance value of adding Na2SnO3 decreased from 0.4331 to 0.1343 Ω/in2 (in 200 psi), while the band gap decreased from 2.281 to 2.232 eV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights The frangible cover made of continuous fiber reinforced composites has become widely used structure for the new generation launch canisters. However, destroying the continuity of fibers is needed during the hand lay‐up process to make the frangible cover fail in predetermined patterns. In this article, composite frangible covers were fabricated with short‐cut basalt fiber reinforced epoxy(BF/Epoxy) composites instead of continuous fiber‐reinforced composite materials, reducing the strength redundancy in the local structure of the frangible covers. Tensile tests were firstly conducted on material samples to obtain the stress–strain characteristics of the short‐cut BF/Epoxy composites. The constitutive model and failure criterion of the short‐cut BF/Epoxy composites material were established. Then failure pressure and failure mode of the frangible covers were predicted by finite element method. Two frangible covers with different geometric parameter were fabricated and subjected to static bursting strength tests. The influence of structure parameter on the bursting pressure of the frangible cover was investigated in detail. it was found that the bursting pressure of the BF/Epoxy composite fragile cover can be tailored by adjusting the geometry size of the weak zones on surface of the cover. Meanwhile, Failure modes and the bursting pressure of the BF/Epoxy composite fragile covers are highly consistent with the predictions. A frangible cover made of the short‐cut basalt fiber reinforced epoxy(BF/Epoxy) composites was fabricated. The constitutive model and failure criterion were established based on the mechanical properties of the short‐cut BF/Epoxy composites. The static burst strength of the short‐cut BF/Epoxy composite frangible cover subjected to uniform pressure was investigated via both theoretical and experimental approaches. The short‐cut BF/Epoxy composite frangible cover eventually failed in accordance with the predetermined pattern. The simulation error of the failure pressure of the short‐cut BF/Epoxy composite frangible cover was less than 20%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary Cold plasma (CP) is a promising technology for fresh‐cut fruits and vegetables. In this study, the effects of CP on postharvest senescence, especially from the perspective of oxidative response of fresh‐cut bamboo shoots were examined, including the colour, firmness, lignin content, reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation and antioxidant enzymatic activities. CP treatments delayed the browning of bamboo shoots indicating by the increase of L* and b* values and decrease of a* value. The browning inhibition coincided with the reduction of PPO activities up to 62% by CP at 20 kV. Cellulose and lignin accumulated during storage. CP at 30 kV accelerated lignification, whereas CP at 10 and 20 kV inhibited the increase. These results were also reflected by PAL, CAD and POD activities that were enhanced by CP at 30 kV and inhibited by CP at 10 and 20 kV. The content of O2− and H2O2 was significantly increased at the first 3 days and decreased afterwards, with a similar trend of antioxidant enzymes SOD and CAT. As smaller increases in H2O2 and O2− production in CP treated samples than in control were probably attributed to elevated CP‐induced SOD activity. In addition, there was a delay effect observed in the internal parts of bamboo shoots compared with the surface (<5 mm thick). CP extended the shelf‐life of bamboo shoots by triggering the antioxidant defence. CP at 20 kV exhibited the best preservative effect on fresh‐cut bamboo shoots. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The intrinsic low conductivity, low tap density, and huge volume expansion during lithium storage severely restrict the practicality of micron‐silicon suboxide (m‐SiOx). Here, a carbon and MXene dual confinement and dense structural engineering strategy is proposed to construct m‐SiOx composites (m‐SiOx@C/MXene) through in situ carbon coating and electrostatic self‐assembly process. This integrated structural achieves a conductivity of 157 S cm−1 for m‐SiOx@C/MXene, which is 7 and 2 orders of magnitude higher than m‐SiOx (5.3 × 10−5 S cm−1) and m‐SiOx@C (2.9 S cm−1), respectively. The tap density of m‐SiOx@C/MXene reaches 1.35 g cm−3, significantly greater than that of m‐SiOx (0.82 g cm−3) and m‐SiOx@C (0.75 g cm−3). The 29% volume expansion of m‐SiOx@C/MXene during lithium storage is much lower than the 228% and 162% of m‐SiOx and m‐SiOx@C. The synergistic effect of the above advantages enables m‐SiOx@C/MXene to exhibit excellent rate performance and cycle stability. When assembled into a full cell with the LiFePO4 (LFP) cathode, it features high capacity retention and energy density of 99.1% and 380 Wh kg−1 after 100 cycles at 0.2 C. This work provides new reference for the stable structural design of m‐SiOx or other materials with huge volume expansion during energy storage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The emerging sub−1 nm nanowires (SNWs) have received tremendous attention given their intriguing properties and broad applications attributable to their ultrasmall feature size. However, applying SNWs in microstructure‐preserving macroscopic functional materials (e.g., aerogels) remains challenging because the solvents used for preparing SNWs are not compatible with conventional supercritical drying or freeze‐drying techniques. In this study, the fabrication of SNW aerogels (SNWAs) is pioneered by developing a nonpolar solvent‐based freeze‐casting strategy. Cyclohexane, a nonpolar solvent with a freezing point (6.5 °C) comparable to that of water, is selected as a reaction and drying medium to assemble various SNWs. The resulting self‐standing SNWAs display low density, excellent hydrophobicity and lipophilicity, and tunable luminescent color. This strategy not only introduces a new aggregation form of SNWs but also provides a creative perspective on synthesizing aerogel structures from sub−1 nm building blocks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Na0.44MnO2 with tunnel structure is considered a promising low‐cost cathode material for sodium‐ion batteries. However, the sluggish Na+ transport kinetics and low initial Coulombic efficiency restrict its practical applications in rechargeable sodium‐ion batteries. Herein, a manganese‐based tunnel‐structured cathode with high rate capability and high initial Coulombic efficiency is prepared by niobium doping and sodium compensation. Via materials characterizations and theoretical calculations, it is demonstrated that a proper amount of niobium doping in tunnel structure can effectively improve its structural stability and charge transport kinetics, resulting in outstanding rate capability (76.6% capacity retained from 0.5 to 30 C) and superior cycling performance (82.3% capacity retention after 800 cycles at 5 C) for the optimized Nb‐doped Na0.44MnO2 cathode (Na0.44Mn0.98Nb0.02O2). Furthermore, NaCrO2 is added into the Na0.44Mn0.98Nb0.02O2 cathode as a self‐sacrificing sodium compensation additive, and a high initial Coulombic efficiency close to 100% is achieved for the composite cathode. This work establishes a facile strategy to design advanced manganese‐based cathode materials for large‐scale energy storage applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inorganic semiconductor gas sensors, being widely utilized in gas‐sensing applications, face significant challenges in attaining mechanical flexibility and humidity resistance in wearable sensing fields. Herein, a highly flexible, breathable, and hydrophobic all‐inorganic self‐supporting nanofiber (NF) gas sensor is developed using electrospinning combined with thermal sulfidation approach. This innovative sensor features a bilayer configuration, with an amorphous SiO2 nanofiber substrate layer and an interwoven SiO2 and SnO2–SnS2 nanofiber active layer. The relatively low elastic modulus of the amorphous SiO2 nanofibers, combined with the three‐dimensional network interwoven structure, endow the SnO2–SnS2–SiO2/SiO2 sensor with superior mechanical flexibility. The sensor exhibits excellent sensitivity, selectivity, moisture resistance, and cycling stability (>10 000 cycles at 140° bending) to both high and low concentration NO2. Notably, an excellent flexible detecting capability of the sensor to NO2, an asthma‐related biomarker, is demonstrated at ultralow concentrations (≈25 ppb) in simulated exhaled breath environments. The enhanced moisture resistance is attributed to the effective inhibition of hydrogen bond formation from H2O molecules by the Sn─S bonds formed through sulfidation of SnO2 nanofibers. This work represents a substantial advancement in the universal fabrication of flexible, breathable and moisture‐resistant inorganic semiconductor sensors for wearable breath sensing applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solidifying the soft lattice of all‐inorganic mixed‐halide perovskites is of great importance to restrain the notorious halide segregation under persistent light illumination. Herein, a multifunctional columnar macrocyclic molecule additive, namely cucurbituril into perovskite precursor to enhance the crystallization and reduce the defect density in the final perovskite film is introduced. Based on the theoretical calculation and simulation, the cucurbituril molecule with a strong double‐ended negatively‐charged cavity surrounded by terminated oxygen atoms not only coordinates with dangling Pb2+ ions to form host‐guest complexation but also induces an electric dipole field at perovskite grain boundary to effectively repel the iodide ion migration from the inside grain to the defective boundary, significantly suppressing the halide segregation and improving the device performance. As a result, the carbon‐based, all‐inorganic CsPbI2Br solar cell achieves an enhanced efficiency of 15.59% with great tolerance to environmental stresses. These findings provide new insights into the development of a novel passivation strategy with macrocyclic molecules for making high‐efficiency and stable perovskite solar cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of high‐performance catalysts for formic acid (FA) dehydrogenation is of extreme significance to the successful production of hydrogen under ambient conditions. Despite some encouraging progress, their activity is still unsatisfied than needed. In this work, it is presented that Lewis acidic VOx sites engineered ultrafine PdAu nanoclusters (PdAu‐VOx) perform perfectly for hydrogen production from FA dehydrogenation. Strikingly, the best catalyst — PdAu‐VOx embed in amino‐functionalized hollow mesoporous support (PdAu‐VOx/NHMS) discloses an impressive initial turnover frequency of 14155 h−1 and a low activation energy of 31.2 kJ mol−1 without additives at room temperature, and maintains 100% selectivity and conversion in the tenth cycle reaction. Mechanistic investigations illustrate that VOx species can serve as the Lewis acid sites, which not only regulate the adsorption strength of reactant and intermediate on PdAu, but also reinforce the C─H bond activation within FA molecule, thereby promoting the reaction kinetics for efficient hydrogen production. This work thus provides a strategy for the development of new‐style heterogeneous catalysts with Lewis acid‐base sites applied to a variety of energy‐related catalytic reactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The enhancement of flame resistance and mechanical strength is critical for the utilization of rigid polyurethane foam (RPUF) composites. In this study, the efficient synergistic flame‐retardant system, incorporating dimethyl methylphosphonate (DMMP) and expandable graphite (EG), with the addition of refined alkali lignin (A‐lignin) were aimed to superior fire resistance and mechanical integrity for RPUF. Furthermore, the flame retardancy and charring ability of obtained RPUF were obviously enhanced. Notably, an RPUF mixture containing A‐lignin, DMMP, and EG demonstrated substantial charring at elevated temperatures, improved limiting oxygen index, and met the UL‐94 V‐0 rating. Cone calorimeter test indicated that this formulation produces less heat and smoke than pure RPUF. The flame‐retardant efficacy of obtained RPUF was attributed to the formation of a protective char layer coupled with the free radical neutralization properties of DMMP, collectively enhancing the flame retardancy obtained RPUF. Additionally, this RPUF variant showed significant advancements in both mechanical and thermal performance. This study outlines a successful strategy for developing RPUF composites endowed with enhanced flame retardancy and mechanical strengths. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Steel slag (SS) as solid waste, has low resource utilization efficiency and seriously endangers environmental safety and human health. To explore the potential utilization value of SS and address the flammability challenge of rigid polyurethane foam (RPUF), with a novel flame‐retardant system composed by SS and dimethyl methyl phosphonate (DMMP) was explored. The DMMP/SS system effectively improved the high temperature stability of the RPUF composites. When the mass ratio of SS and DMMP was 1:1, the limiting oxygen index of RPUF/DMMP/SS reached 23.1 vol% and UL‐94 vertical combustion tests passed V‐2 level. Upon incorporation of 15 wt% DMMP, the initial decomposition temperature (T−5 wt%) reduced to 165.3°C, a decrease of 32.2%, while the Tmax2 and residue yield at 700°C exhibited negligible alteration. The peak heat release rate of RPUF/DMMP/SS composite (118.20 W g−1) was 11.02% lower than that of pure RPUF, indicating the significant enhancement of fire safety of the composites. Results confirmed that a synergistic flame‐retardant mechanism was existed between DMMP and SS in enhancing the fire safety of RPUF composite. Introducing a 20 wt% SS content reduces the ID/IG ratio to 1.85, thereby markedly enhancing its heat resistance. This work provides a new application field of SS and paves a novel approach to enhance fire safety of polymers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]