Manipulating Particle Chemistry for Hollow Carbon-based Nanospheres: Synthesis Strategies, Mechanistic Insights, and Electrochemical Applications

Stable Na/K-S Batteries with Conductive Organosulfur Polymer Microcages as Cathodes

Na-S and K-S batteries, with high-energy density, using naturally more abundant and affordable metals compared with rare resources like Li, Co, and Ni elements, have inspired intense research interest. However, the sulfur cathodes for Na/K storage are plagued by soluble polysulfide shuttling, larger volumetric deformation, and sluggish redox kinetics. Here, we report that a conductive organosulfur polymer microcage, fabricated facilely with the microbe and elemental sulfur as precursors, can effectively address these issues for stable high-capacity Na-S and K-S batteries. The covalently bonded short-chain sulfur species enable superior reaction kinetics and avoid soluble polysulfide formation. The microcage architecture with built-in cavities buffers the volume deformation to ensure a resilient electrode. The resultant conductive organosulfur polymer can promise a combination of high capacity and extraordinary cyclability with a promising rate and Coulombic efficiency. Especially, as a K-S battery cathode, it could deliver a high capacity of 1206.5 mAh g-1 together with an extraordinary cyclability (>99% capacity retention over 1100 cycles), which is much better than that of state-of-the-art sulfur cathodes. This work envisions new perspectives on building conductive organosulfur cathode materials with high performance via a simple and feasible protocol.

Surface Engineering of Biochar Toward Simultaneously Generating Superamphiphilicity and Catalytic Activity for Strengthening Pickering Interfacial Catalysis

Multifunctional carbon materials have revealed distinctive features and excellent performance in the field of catalysis. However, the facile fabrication of bifunctional carbon materials with special wettability and catalytic activity remains a grand challenge in Pickering emulsion catalysis. Herein, we reported one-step construction of bifunctional biochar with superamphiphilicity and catalytic activity directly from the thermolysis of sawdust and 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate for enhancing the oxidation of benzyl alcohol in Pickering emulsion. Co-doping of B and F enhanced the hydrophilicity of biochar, and the oleophilicity of biochar was kept simultaneously. Conversion became 4 times using bifunctional biochar compared with blank results during the oxidation of benzyl alcohol. More interestingly, the turnover frequency (TOF) value using bifunctional biochar enhanced 61 % than that employing N-doped superamphiphilic carbon without catalytic activity. Catalytic activities of bifunctional biochar could be ascribed to the existence of different chemical bonds containing the element B. This work paves a path toward rational design of bifunctional biochar materials with special wettability and catalytic activity for greatly enhancing the liquid-liquid biphasic reaction efficiencies.

Asymmetric Nanobowl Confinement-Engineered "Plasmonic Storms" for Machine Learning-Assisted Ultrasensitive Immunochromatographic Assay of Pathogens

Efficient field enhancement effects through plasmonic chemistry for ultrasensitive biosensing still face a great challenge. Herein, nanoconfinement engineering accumulation and synergistic effects are used to develop a "plasmonic storms" strategy with a high field enhancement effect, and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) are used as active sites for a proof of concept because of their distinctive localized surface plasmon resonance and neighborly coupled electromagnetic field. Briefly, a large number of AuNPs are selectively and accurately stacked in the confined nanocavity of the bowl-like nanostructure through an in situ-synthesized strategy, which provides a space for strong coupling of electromagnetic fields between these adjacent AuNPs, forming "plasmonic storms" with an enhanced field that is 3 orders of magnitude higher than that of free AuNPs. The proposed nanoconfinement-engineered "plasmonic storms" are demonstrated by surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) and photothermal experiments and theoretically visualized by finite element simulation. Finally, the proposed "plasmonic storms" are used for enhanced colorimetric/SERS/photothermal immunochromatographic assay to detect Salmonella typhimurium with the help of a machine learning algorithm, achieving a low limit of detection of 142 CFU mL-1, highlighting the potential of nanoconfinement in biosensing.

Design of hollow structured nanoreactors for liquid-phase hydrogenations

Inspired by the attractive structures and functions of natural matter (such as cells, organelles and enzymes), chemists are constantly exploring innovative material platforms to mimic natural catalytic systems, particularly liquid-phase hydrogenations, which are of great significance for chemical upgrading and synthesis. Hollow structured nanoreactors (HSNRs), featuring unique nanoarchitectures and advantageous properties, offer new opportunities for achieving excellent catalytic activity, selectivity, stability and sustainability. Notwithstanding the great progress made in HSNRs, there still remain the challenges of precise synthetic chemistry, and mesoscale catalytic kinetic investigation, and smart catalysis. To this extent, we provide an overview of recent developments in the synthetic chemistry of HSNRs, the unique characteristics of these materials and catalytic mechanisms in HSNRs. Finally, a brief outlook, challenges and further opportunities for their synthetic methodologies and catalytic application are discussed. This review might promote the creation of further HSNRs, realize the sustainable production of fine chemicals and pharmaceuticals, and contribute to the development of materials science.

Shell Modulation of Hollow Metal Sulfide Nanocomposite for Stable Potassium Storage at Room and High Temperature

The large size of K-ion makes the pursuit of stable high-capacity anodes for K-ion batteries (KIBs) a formidable challenge, particularly for high temperature KIBs as the electrode instability becomes more aggravated with temperature climbing. Herein, we demonstrate that a hollow ZnS@C nanocomposite (h-ZnS@C) with a precise shell modulation can resist electrode disintegration to enable stable high-capacity potassium storage at room and high temperature. Based on a model electrode, we identify an interesting structure-function correlation of the h-ZnS@C: with an increase in the shell thickness, the cyclability increases while the rate and capacity decrease, shedding light on the design of high-performance h-ZnS@C anodes via engineering the shell thickness. Typically, the h-ZnS@C anode with a shell thickness of 60 nm can deliver an impressive comprehensive performance at room temperature; the h-ZnS@C with shell thickness increasing to 75 nm can achieve an extraordinary stability (88.6 % capacity retention over 450 cycles) with a high capacity (450 mAh g-1) and a superb rate even at an extreme temperature of 60 °C, which is much superior than those reported anodes. This contribution envisions new perspectives on rational design of functional metal sulfides composite toward high-performance KIBs with insights into the significant structure-function correlation.

Facile Fabrication of Hollow Nanoporous Carbon Architectures by Controlling MOF Crystalline Inhomogeneity for Ultra-Stable Na-Ion Storage

Hollow nanoporous carbon architectures (HNCs) present significant utilitarian value for a wide variety of applications. Facile and efficient preparation of HNCs has long been pursued but still remains challenging. Herein, we for the first time demonstrate that single-component metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) crystals, rather than the widely reported hybrid ones which necessitate tedious operations for preparation, could enable the facile and versatile syntheses of functional HNCs. By controlling the growth kinetics, the MOFs crystals (STU-1) are readily engineered into different shapes with designated styles of crystalline inhomogeneity. A subsequent one-step pyrolysis of these MOFs with intraparticle difference can induce a simultaneous self-hollowing and carbonization process, thereby producing various functional HNCs including yolk-shell polyhedrons, hollow microspheres, mesoporous architectures, and superstructures. Superior to the existing methods, this synthetic strategy relies only on the complex nature of single-component MOFs crystals without involving tedious operations like coating, etching, or ligand exchange, making it convenient, efficient, and easy to scale up. An ultra-stable Na-ion battery anode is demonstrated by the HNCs with extraordinary cyclability (93 % capacity retention over 8000 cycles), highlighting a high level of functionality of the HNCs.

Biomedical Approach of Nanotechnology and Biological Risks: A Mini-Review

Nanotechnology has played a prominent role in biomedical engineering, offering innovative approaches to numerous treatments. Notable advances have been observed in the development of medical devices, contributing to the advancement of modern medicine. This article briefly discusses key applications of nanotechnology in tissue engineering, controlled drug release systems, biosensors and monitoring, and imaging and diagnosis. The particular emphasis on this theme will result in a better understanding, selection, and technical approach to nanomaterials for biomedical purposes, including biological risks, security, and biocompatibility criteria.

Design of Hollow Nanoreactors for Size- and Shape-Selective Catalytic Semihydrogenation Driven by Molecular Recognition

Mimicking the structures and functions of cells to create artificial organelles has spurred the development of efficient strategies for production of hollow nanoreactors with biomimetic catalytic functions. However, such structure are challenging to fabricate and are thus rarely reported. We report the design of hollow nanoreactors with hollow multishelled structure (HoMS) and spatially loaded metal nanoparticles. Starting from a molecular-level design strategy, well-defined hollow multishelled structure phenolic resins (HoMS-PR) and carbon (HoMS-C) submicron particles were accurately constructed. HoMS-C serves as an excellent, versatile platform, owing to its tunable properties with tailored functional sites for achieving precise spatial location of metal nanoparticles, internally encapsulated (Pd@HoMS-C) or externally supported (Pd/HoMS-C). Impressively, the combination of the delicate nanoarchitecture and spatially loaded metal nanoparticles endow the pair of nanoreactors with size-shape-selective molecular recognition properties in catalytic semihydrogenation, including high activity and selectivity of Pd@HoMS-C for small aliphatic substrates and Pd/HoMS-C for large aromatic substrates. Theoretical calculations provide insight into the pair of nanoreactors with distinct behaviors due to the differences in energy barrier of substrate adsorption. This work provides guidance on the rational design and accurate construction of hollow nanoreactors with precisely located active sites and a finely modulated microenvironment by mimicking the functions of cells.

Toward High Performance Anodes for Sodium-Ion Batteries: From Hard Carbons to Anode-Free Systems

Sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) have been deemed to be a promising energy storage technology in terms of cost-effectiveness and sustainability. However, the electrodes often operate at potentials beyond their thermodynamic equilibrium, thus requiring the formation of interphases for kinetic stabilization. The interfaces of the anode such as typical hard carbons and sodium metals are particularly unstable because of its much lower chemical potential than the electrolyte. This creates more severe challenges for both anode and cathode interfaces when building anode-free cells to achieve higher energy densities. Manipulating the desolvation process through the nanoconfining strategy has been emphasized as an effective strategy to stabilize the interface and has attracted widespread attention. This Outlook provides a comprehensive understanding about the nanopore-based solvation structure regulation strategy and its role in building practical SIBs and anode-free batteries. Finally, guidelines for the design of better electrolytes and suggestions for constructing stable interphases are proposed from the perspective of desolvation or predesolvation.

Recent Progress of Hollow Carbon Nanocages: General Design Fundamentals and Diversified Electrochemical Applications

Hollow carbon nanocages (HCNCs) consisting of sp2  carbon shells featured by a hollow interior cavity with defective microchannels (or customized mesopores) across the carbon shells, high specific surface area, and tunable electronic structure, are quilt different from the other nanocarbons such as carbon nanotubes and graphene. These structural and morphological characteristics make HCNCs a new platform for advanced electrochemical energy storage and conversion. This review focuses on the controllable preparation, structural regulation, and modification of HCNCs, as well as their electrochemical functions and applications as energy storage materials and electrocatalytic conversion materials. The metal single atoms-functionalized structures and electrochemical properties of HCNCs are summarized systematically and deeply. The research challenges and trends are also envisaged for deepening and extending the study and application of this hollow carbon material. The development of multifunctional carbon-based composite nanocages provides a new idea and method for improving the energy density, power density, and volume performance of electrochemical energy storage and conversion devices.

Conductive Metal-Organic Framework Microelectrodes Regulated by Conjugated Molecular Wires for Monitoring of Dopamine in the Mouse Brain

Herein, we demonstrated a strategy to regulate the conductive metal-organic framework (MOF) surface, by the conjugated molecule wires for selective and sensitive determination of dopamine (DA) in the live brain. The MOFs were decorated at the carbon fiber electrode deposited by Au nanoleaves as the upper electric transducer to provide rich electrocatalytic sites for electron transfer of neurochemicals at the electrode surface, leading to greatly enhanced sensitivity for detection of neurochemicals. On the other hand, the conjugated molecular wire, 4-(thiophen-3-ylethynyl)-benzaldehyde (RP1), was synthesized and assembled as an underlying bridge to regulate the electrochemical processes at the MOF-based electrode, specifically decreasing the reaction Gibbs free energy of DA oxidation, thus selectively promoting the heterogeneous electron transfer of DA from the MOF layer to the electrode surface. Owing to the electrocatalytic activity for DA oxidation, the present microsensor exhibited high selectivity for real-time tracking of DA in a good linear relationship in the range of 0.004-0.4 μM with a detection limit of 1 nM. Eventually, this functionalized electrode was successfully applied for in vivo monitoring of DA in mouse brains with Parkinson's disease (PD) model. The results indicated that the levels of DA were obviously decreased in both acute and subacute PD models. Moreover, the level of DA strongly depended on the amount of uric acid (UA), a physiological antioxidant, which rose as the UA amount was lower than 200 mg kg^-1 but was downregulated again after treatment by a higher amount of UA.

Multilevel Hollow Phenolic Resin Nanoreactors with Precise Metal Nanoparticles Spatial Location toward Promising Heterogeneous Hydrogenations

Hollow nanostructures with fascinating properties have inspired numerous interests in broad research fields. Cell-mimicking complex hollow architectures with precise active components distributions are particularly important, while their synthesis remains highly challenging. Herein, a "top-down" chemical surgery strategy is introduced to engrave the 3-aminophenol formaldehyde resin (APF) spheres at nanoscale. Undergoing the cleavage of (Ar)CN bonds with ethanol as chemical scissors and subsequent repolymerization process, the Solid APF transform to multilevel hollow architecture with precise nanospatial distribution of organic functional groups (e.g., hydroxymethyl and amine). The transformation is tracked by electron microscopy and solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance techniques, the category and dosage of alcohol are pivotal for constructing multilevel hollow structures. Moreover, it is demonstrated the evolution of nanostructures accompanied with unique organic microenvironments is able to accurately confine multiple gold (Au) nanoparticles, leading to the formation of pomegranate-like particles. Through selectively depositing palladium (Pd) nanoparticles onto the outer shell, bimetallic Au@APF@Pd catalysts are formed, which exhibit excellent hydrogenation performance with turnover frequency (TOF) value up to 11257 h^-1 . This work provides an effective method for precisely manipulating the nanostructure and composition of polymers at nanoscale and sheds light on the design of catalysts with precise spatial active components.

Core-Shell Carbon-Based Bifunctional Electrocatalysts Derived from COF@MOF Hybrid for Advanced Rechargeable Zn-Air Batteries

The development of highly active carbon-based bifunctional electrocatalysts for both the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is highly desired, but still full of challenges in rechargeable Zn-air batteries. Metal organic frameworks (MOFs) and covalent organic frameworks (COFs) have gained great attention for various applications due to their attractive features of structural tunability, high surface area and high porosity. Herein, a core-shell structured carbon-based hybrid electrocatalyst (H-NSC@Co/NSC), which contains high density active sites of MOF-derived shell (Co/NSC) and COF-derived hollow core (H-NSC), is successfully fabricated by direct pyrolysis of covalently-connected COF@ZIF-67 hybrid. The core-shell H-NSC@Co/NSC hybrid manifests excellent catalytic properties toward both OER and ORR with a small potential gap (∆E = 0.75 V). The H-NSC@Co/NSC assembled Zn-air battery exhibits a high power-density of 204.3 mW cm^-2 and stable rechargeability, outperforming that of Pt/C+RuO₂ assembled Zn-air battery. Density functional theory calculations reveal that the electronic structure of the carbon frameworks on the Co/NSC shell can be effectively modulated by the embedded Co nanoparticles (NPs), facilitating the adsorption of oxygen intermediates and leading to enhanced catalytic activity. This work will provide a strategy to design highly-efficient electrocatalysts for application in energy conversion and storage.

Temperature-Controlled Selectivity of Hydrogenation and Hydrodeoxygenation of Biomass by Superhydrophilic Nitrogen/Oxygen Co-Doped Porous Carbon Nanosphere Supported Pd Nanoparticles

Selective hydrogenation and hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) of biomass to value-added products play a crucial role in the development of renewable energy resources. However, achieving a temperature-controlled selectivity within one catalytic system while retaining excellent hydrogenation and HDO performance remains a great challenge. Here, nitrogen/oxygen (N/O) co-doped porous carbon nanosphere derived from resin polymer spheres is synthesized as the host matrix to in situ encapsulate highly dispersed Pd nanoparticles (NPs). Through N/O co-doping, the defects on the surface of carbon structure can serve as active sites to promote substrate adsorption. After a facile H₂ O₂ post-treatment process, the presence of abundant carboxyl groups on the porous carbon nanospheres can act as acidic sites to replace the use of acidic additives in the HDO process. Additionally, the increased surface oxygen-containing groups improve hydrophilicity to disperse catalysts in aqueous solutions. Owing to the unique highly dispersed Pd NPs and abundant surface defects, the Pd@APF-H₂ O₂ (2.3 nm) catalysts exhibit excellent catalytic activity and temperature-controlled selectivity for hydrogenation and HDO products of biomass-derived vanillin.

A General Synthesis Strategy for Hollow Metal Oxide Microspheres Enabled by Gel-Assisted Precipitation

Hollow metal oxide microspheres (HMMs) have drawn enormous attention in different research fields. Reliable and scalable synthetic protocols applicable for a large variety of metal oxides are in emergent demand. Here we demonstrated that polymer hydrogel, such as the resorcinol formaldehyde (RF) one, existed as an efficient synthetic platform to build HMMs. Specifically, the RF gel forms stacked RF microspheres enlaced with its aqueous phase, where the following evaporation of the highly dispersed water leads to a gel-assisted precipitation (GAP) of the dissolved metal precursor onto the embedded polymeric solids suited for the creation of HMMs. By taking advantage of the structural features of hydrogel, this synthesis design avoids the delicate control on the usually necessitated coating process and provides a simple and effective synthetic process versatile for functional HMMs, particularly Nb₂ O₅ as a high-performance electrode material in Li-ion intercalation pseudocapacitor.

Microstructure-Dependent Charge/Discharge Behaviors of Hollow Carbon Spheres and its Implication for Sodium Storage Mechanism on Hard Carbon Anodes

Hard carbons are actively developed as a promising anode material for sodium ion batteries (SIBs). However, their sodium storage mechanism is poorly understood, leading to difficulties in design and development of high-performance hard carbon anode materials. In this work, hollow carbon spheres (HCSs) with different shell thickness as a model material to investigate the correlation between the microstructural change and resulting Na⁺ storage behavior during charge/discharge cycles are designed and synthesized. Ex situ X-ray diffraction and Raman evidences reveal that an interlayer spacing change of the graphitic nanodomains occurs in HCS electrode, leading to a shift of the reversible capacity from the high-potential sloping (HPS) region to the low-potential plateau (LPP) region. This unusual capacity shift suggests a microstructure-dependent Na⁺ storage reaction on the HCS electrode and can be well explained by "adsorption-intercalation" mechanism for these HCS materials. This work strengthens the understanding of the sodium storage behavior and provides a new perspective for the morphological and structural design of hard carbon anode materials for high-performance SIBs.

Fabrication of Superamphiphilic Carbon Using Lignosulfonate for Enhancing Selective Hydrogenation Reactions in Pickering Emulsions

Superamphiphilic materials have great potential to enhance the mass transfer between phases in liquid-liquid catalysis due to their special affinities. Constructing superamphiphilic surfaces that possess superhydrophilic and superhydrophobic properties simultaneously has been a tough assignment. So, exploration of simple methods to prepare such materials using renewable and abundant feedstocks is highly desired. Here, we reported an effective strategy to construct superamphiphilic carbon directly from sodium lignosulfonate, which is a renewable resource from paper industry wastes. From the characterization of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for superamphiphilic carbon, we found that element C was responsible for the hydrophobic nature and the existence of O and S endowed the carbon with hydrophilic characteristics. Further, micro/nanohierarchical pores were found beneficial for the superamphiphilicity of carbon. Meantime, in the selective hydrogenation of styrene, phenylacetylene, and cis-stilbene in liquid-liquid systems, conversion became double using superamphiphilic carbon compared with blank results, and the yields were three times more than those in blank experiments. The reasons were that superamphiphilic carbon induced the formation of Pickering emulsions and enriched the reactants around catalysts, as concluded by the characterization of confocal laser scanning microscopy and relating contrastive experiments. This work revealed a different route to obtain superamphiphilic carbon and provided a diverse perspective to promote Pickering emulsion catalysis by the superamphiphilicity of carbon.