This article collection features papers published in Environmental Surfaces and Interfaces since 2023 on the theme of materials‑driven environmental pollutant removal. It focuses on the development of novel materials and their practical applications in environmental pollutant remediation. All articles are freely available for reading.

A new formulation of CO₂ foams could help address one of the energy industry’s main challenges, specifically regarding the injection of CO₂ underground: controlling CO₂ mobility in reservoir porous media. This advancement has the potential to improve reservoir sweep, enhance oil recovery, and increase geological CO₂ retention. A recent study demonstrates that a polymer-reinforced CO₂ foam can multiply the flow resistance of CO₂, preventing it from moving inefficiently through the reservoir.

The Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science (KRISS, President Dr. Lee Ho Seong) has established purity analysis techniques and testing procedures for 15 high-purity gases used in semiconductor processes, and has developed six certified reference materials (CRMs) that verify measurement accuracy. This provides a foundation for objectively evaluating the quality of semiconductor gases domestically, moving beyond a reliance on the certificates of analysis provided by suppliers themselves.

A University of Staffordshire PhD student has received national recognition for research that could transform how bloodstain evidence at crime scenes is analysed.

 

Emma Hook has been awarded the Science & Justice Review Award by the Chartered Society of Forensic Sciences for the best review paper published in the peer-reviewed journal Science & Justice during 2024–2025.

 

The award, chosen by the journal's Editor-in-Chief and the Society's Council, recognises Emma's paper, Bloodstain Classification Methods: A Critical Review and a Look to the Future, co-authored with University of Staffordshire academics Dr Sarah Fieldhouse and David Flatman-Fairs, alongside Professor Graham Williams from the University of Hull.