Protonic solid oxide electrolysis cells (P-SOECs) represent a promising technology for efficient and economical green hydrogen production. However, the development of high-performance anodes that simultaneously achieve excellent catalytic activity and mixed ionic–electronic conductivity remains a significant challenge. In this work, high-performance La0.9Ba0.1Co0.7Ni0.2Ag0.1O3−δ (LBCNA) anodes featuring the coexistence of three-phases—rhombohedral ABO3-type LBCNA, Ruddlesden–Popper type LBCNA, and Ag metal nanoparticles—were successfully constructed. The optimized LBCNA-900 anode exhibits exceptional catalytic activity, with an ultralow area-specific resistance (ASR) of 0.10 Ω·cm2 at 600 °C. When applied in P-SOECs, the LBCNA-900 anode demonstrates remarkable performance, achieving a high current density of 1.8 A·cm−2 at 1.3 V at 600 °C. Beyond its promising application potential, this synergistic strategy provides a novel design principle for developing advanced electrocatalysts, with potential implications for a broad range of energy conversion and storage technologies.

Direct CO₂ hydrogenation to high-value light aromatics (BTX) has garnered significant research interest, but the current state-of-the-art BTX selectivity remains unsatisfactory. Herein, an oxide/dual-zeolite tandem catalyst was developed through physical mixing of SAPO-34 (hereafter abbreviated as SP34) and ZnZrO_x/ZSM-5 (hereafter referred to as ZZO/Z5). The optimized ZZO/2SP34/Z5 catalyst achieves a promising BTX selectivity (42.3% of aromatics), while maintaining a high CO₂ conversion (12.4%) and overall aromatic selectivity (75.3%, CO-free) at a relatively low temperature of 320 °C. By introducing the SP34 zeolite, the adsorption capacity of the ZZO/Z5 catalytic system for H and CO₂ is enhanced. Probe experiments and in situ DRIFTS spectra indicate that the SP34 component converts part of the methanol into light olefins, thereby reducing the concentration of oxygenated intermediates directly transferred to Z5 and inhibiting the surface methylation of BTX into C₉₊ aromatics. Compared with particle mixing and multi-bed mixing, proximate grinding mixing proves to be the optimal mixing method, facilitating the selective formation of BTX at 3 MPa and 1200 mL/(g_cat·h). Comparative experiments demonstrate that this dual-zeolite strategy is more facile and effective than the traditional passivation of external acid sites. Notably, such high BTX selectivity achieved by the ZZO/2SP34/Z5 catalyst at 320 °C has rarely been reported in the literature. This work provides an efficient non-petroleum pathway for the highly selective production of BTX and offers valuable insights into the reaction mechanisms associated with the two pathways of direct CO₂ hydrogenation to aromatics.

The development of efficient, durable, and cost-effective oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrocatalysts is essential for advancing renewable energy technologies. Herein, a novel strategy is reported that spatially confines a nanoscale localized high-entropy oxide (LHEO) consisting of Fe, Co, Ni, Zn, and Mn within α-Fe2O3, forming a unique α-Fe2O3@LHEO nanoarchitecture. The catalyst exhibits outstanding OER performance for alkaline water splitting, achieving a current density of 10 mA/cm2 at a low overpotential of 229 mV with a small Tafel slope of 34.4 mV/dec, significantly outperforming commercial RuO2 (326 mV, 118.8 mV/dec). It also shows excellent long-term stability over 1000 h at 100 mA/cm2 without notable activity degradation. Applied in rechargeable zinc–air batteries with natural seawater, the α-Fe2O3@LHEO cathode delivers a high power density of 88.3 mW/cm2 and stable operation over 600 cycles, substantially surpassing the benchmark Ru-Pt electrocatalyst (74.7 mW/cm2, 170 cycles). Combined experimental and theoretical studies reveal that LHEO induces lattice strain in α-Fe2O3, modulates its electronic structure, and lowers the crystal field splitting energy to stabilize high-spin Fe3+. These effects enhance metallic character for efficient charge transfer and optimize the adsorption/desorption of key oxygen reaction intermediates, thus shifting the OER pathway from the conventional adsorbate evolution mechanism (AEM) to the more energetically favorable lattice oxygen mechanism (LOM) with the energy barrier reduced from 1.85 to 1.71 eV. Overall, this work proposes a novel localized high-entropy engineering approach that overcomes key bottlenecks in designing efficient and durable OER electrocatalysts based on earth-abundant materials.

The development of cost-effective carrier-selective passivating contacts is critical for enhancing the commercial feasibility of silicon compound solar cells. Molybdenum oxide (MoO_X) has garnered considerable interest as a promising hole transport layer (HTLs). A key advantage of MoO_X is high work function, in addition to the low-cost processability. However, in silicon photovoltaics, MoO_X-based p-type contacts face fundamental limitations at hydrogenated amorphous silicon (i-a-Si:H)/MoO_X interface, where oxygen vacancy defects lower work function, as well as, weak van der Waals-dominated interactions impair charge carry transport. To address these challenges, we introduced an ultrathin phosphomolybdic acid (PMA) interlayer at the i-a-Si:H/MoO_X interface. PMA passivated oxygen vacancy defects, resulting in a notable improvement in open-circuit voltage from 713 to 730 mV, and 0.11 eV work function elevation via dipole formation; meanwhile, PMA strengthened the interfacial bonding energy, reducing saturation current density and contact resistance by 63% and 24%, respectively, contributing to a fill factor enhancement from 83.7% to 84.9%. In the end, we demonstrated a record efficiency of 24.9% for MoO_X-based silicon solar cells, which provides valuable insights for developing high-performance MoO_X HTL devices for dopant-free p-type contact technologies.

A new review traces more than 70 years of microecology research in China, from early ideas about microbial balance to today’s work in precision medicine, sustainable agriculture and environmental restoration. The authors argue that combining artificial intelligence, synthetic biology and international collaboration could help turn microbiome science into practical solutions for human, animal and environmental health.