Silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs), relative to existing antibacterial agents, are more effective, less toxic and more economical, and have shown enormous potential for the nanomedicine application. In this work, we report a ‘green’ method for the rapid and efficient synthesis of Ag NPs using Ginkgo biloba extracts as reducing agent and capping agent. The properties of Ag NPs against fungi and bacteria were investigated. The results showed that the Ginkgo biloba extracts are crucial for the preparation of uniform and monodispersed Ag NPs. The prepared Ag NPs exhibited remarkable antibacterial activities. The minimum inhibitory concentrations of Ag NPs for Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were 0.044 and 0.088 μg·mL⁻¹, respectively. Moreover, Ag NPs exhibited excellent bactericidal performance against MDR-Pseudomonas aeruginosa. It was found that the effect of the antibacterial activity of Ag NPs on Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus was tightly related to the reactive oxygen species accumulation. This research provides guidelines for the efficient green synthesis of Ag NPs and its antibacterial applications.

Research on glass nanocomposites (GNCs) has been very active in the past decades. GNCs have attracted — and still do — great interest in the fields of optoelectronics, photonics, sensing, electrochemistry, catalysis, biomedicine, and art. In this review, the potential applications of GNCs in these fields are briefly described to show the reader the possibilities of these materials. The most important synthesis methods of GNCs (melt-quenching, sol-gel, ion implantation, ion-exchange, staining process, spark plasma sintering, radio frequency sputtering, spray pyrolysis, and chemical vapor deposition techniques) are extensively explained. The major aim of this review is to systematize our knowledge about the synthesis of GNCs and to explore the mechanisms of formation and growth of NPs within glass matrices. The size-controlled preparation of NPs within glass matrices, which remains a challenge, is essential for advanced applications. Therefore, a thorough understanding of GNC synthesis techniques is expected to facilitate the preparation of innovative GNCs.

The consumer demand for emerging technologies such as augmented reality (AR), autopilot, and three-dimensional (3D) internet has rapidly promoted the application of novel optical display devices in innovative industries. However, the micro/nanomanufacturing of high-resolution optical display devices is the primary issue restricting their development. The manufacturing technology of micro/nanostructures, methods of display mechanisms, display materials, and mass production of display devices are major technical obstacles. To comprehensively understand the latest state-of-the-art and trigger new technological breakthroughs, this study reviews the recent research progress of master molds produced using nanoimprint technology for new optical devices, particularly AR glasses, new-generation light-emitting diode car lighting, and naked-eye 3D display mechanisms, and their manufacturing techniques of master molds. The focus is on the relationships among the manufacturing process, microstructure, and display of a new optical device. Nanoimprint master molds are reviewed for the manufacturing and application of new optical devices, and the challenges and prospects of the new optical device diffraction grating nanoimprint technology are discussed.

Fabrication of elastic pressure sensors with low cost, high sensitivity, and mechanical durability is important for wearables, electronic skins and soft robotics. Here, we develop high-sensitivity porous elastomeric sensors for piezoresistive and capacitive pressure detection. Specifically, a porous polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) sponge embedded with conductive fillers of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) or reduced graphene oxide (rGO) was fabricated by an in-situ sugar template strategy. The sensor demonstrates sensitive deformation to applied pressure, exhibiting large and fast response in resistance or capacitance for detection of a wide range of pressure (0‒5 kPa). PDMS, as a high-elasticity framework, enables creation of sensors with high sensitivity, excellent stability, and durability for long-term usage. The highest sensitivities of 22.1 and 68.3 kPa⁻¹ can be attained by devices with 5% CNTs and 4% rGO, respectively. The geometrics of the sponge sensor is tailorable using tableting technology for different applications. The sensors demonstrate finger motion detection and heart-rate monitoring in real-time, as well as a capacitive sensor array for identification of pressure and shape of placed objects, exhibiting good potential for wearables and human-machine interactions.

Organometallic perovskite is a new generation photovoltaic material with exemplary properties such as high absorption co-efficient, optimal bandgap, high defect tolerance factor and long carrier diffusion length. However, suitable electrodes and charge transport materials are required to fulfill photovoltaic processes where interfaces between hole transport material/perovskite and perovskite/electron transport material are affected by phenomena of charge carrier separation, transportation, collection by the interfaces and band alignment. Based on recent available literature and several strategies for minimizing the recombination of charge carriers at the interfaces, this review addresses the properties of hole transport materials, relevant working mechanisms, and the interface engineering of perovskite solar cell (PSC) device architecture, which also provides significant insights to design and development of PSC devices with high efficiency.

Smart drug delivery nanocarriers with high drug loading capacity are of great importance in the treatment of diseases, and can improve therapeutic effectiveness as well as alleviate side effects in patients. In this work, a pH and H₂O₂-responsive drug delivery platform with high doxorubicin (DOX) loading capacity has been established through coordination interaction between DOX and phenylboronic acid containing block polymer. A composited drug nanocarrier is further fabricated by growing a zeolitic imidazolate framework 8 (ZIF-8) on the surface of drug-loaded polymer micelles. The study verifies that ZIF-8 shell can act as intelligent “switch” to prevent DOX leaking from core–shell nanoparticles upon H₂O₂ stimulus. However, a burst drug release is detected upon pH and H₂O₂ stimuli due to the further disassociation of ZIF-8 in acid solution. Moreover, the in vitro anti-cancer experiments demonstrate that the DOX-loaded core–shell nanoparticles provide effective treatment towards cancer cells but have negligible effect on normal cells, which results from the high concentration of H₂O₂ and low pH in the microenvironment of tumor cells.

Self-healing polyurethane (PU) faces aging deterioration due to active dynamic bonds, which remain a challenging predicament for practical use. In this work, a novel strategy is developed to address this predicament by leveraging the hydrophobicity and gas barrier of hydrogenated hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene (HHPB). The dynamic oxime-carbamate bonds derived from 2, 4-pentanedione dioxime (PDO) enable the elastomer to exhibit surface self-repairability upon applied mild heat and achieve ~99.5% mechanical self-healing efficiency. The mechanical properties remained nearly intact after 30-d exposure to thermal oxidation, xenon lamp, acids, bases, and salts. Gas permeability, positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy (PALS), and contact angle measurements reveal the pivotal role of gas barrier, free volume, and hydrophobicity in blocking undesirable molecules and ions which effectively protects the elastomer from deterioration. HHPB-PU also exhibits excellent adhesion to steel substrate. The shear strength achieves (3.02 ± 0.42) MPa after heating at 80 °C for 4 h, and (3.06 ± 0.2) MPa after heating at 130 °C for 0.5 h. Regarding its outstanding anti-corrosive and weatherproof performances, this self-healable elastomer is a promising candidate in surface-protective applications.

Managing wounds is a growing universal problem and developing effective wound dressings to staunch bleeding and protect wounds from bacterial infections is an increasingly serious challenge. In this work, a remolding electrospinning nanofiber three-dimensional structure wound dressing (CCP) was prepared with superhydrophilicity, high water absorption and absorbing capacity, excellent hemostatic capacity and antibacterial ability, and biocompatibility to promote wound healing. Polyhexamethylene guanidine hydrochloride (PHMG) was grafted to cellulose diacetate (CDA) wound dressing surface through an amide reaction. A water contact angle analysis demonstrated that CCP wound dressing could be beneficial to promote wound exudate management effectively with rapid absorption of water within 0.2 s. In vitro hemo- and cytocompatibility assay showed that a CCP wound dressing had no significant hemotoxicity or cytoxicity. Specifically, CCP wound dressings could be beneficial to accelerate wound hemostasis and further reduce mortality caused by uncontrolled bleeding. Furthermore, CCP wound dressings have an excellent antibacterial ability, which could be beneficial to inhibit wound inflammatory over-reaction and promote normal wound healing. Combined together, the prepared wound dressing in this research effort is expected to have high-potential in clinical applications.

Tin dioxide nanotubes with N-doped carbon layer (SnO₂/N-C NTs) were synthesized through a MoO₃ nanorod-based sacrificial template method, dopamine polymerization and calcination process. Applied to the Li-ion battery, SnO₂/N-C NTs exhibited excellent electrochemical properties, with a first discharge capacity of 1722.3 mAh·g⁻¹ at 0.1 A·g⁻¹ and a high capacity of 1369.3 mAh·g⁻¹ over 100 cycles. The superior electrochemical performance is ascribed to the N-doped carbon layer and tubular structure, which effectively improves the electrical conductivity of the composites, accelerates the migration of Li⁺ and electrons, and alleviates the volume change of the anode to a certain extent.

The SnO₂-based family is a traditional but important gas-sensitive material. However, the requirement for high working temperature limits its practical application. Much work has been done to explore ways to improve its gas-sensing performance at room temperature (RT). For this report, SnO₂, SnO, and SnO/SnO₂ heterojunction was successfully synthesized by a facile hydrothermal combined with subsequent calcination. Pure SnO₂ requires a high operating temperature (145 °C), while SnO/SnO₂ heterojunction exhibits an excellent performance for sensing NO₂ at RT. Moreover, SnO/SnO₂ exhibits a fast response, of 32 s, to 50 ppm NO₂ at RT (27 °C), which is much faster than that of SnO (139 s). The superior sensing properties of SnO/SnO₂ heterojunction are attributed to the unique hierarchical structures, large number of adsorption sites, and enhanced electron transport. Our results show that SnO/SnO₂ heterojunction can be used as a promising high-performance NO₂ sensitive material at RT.

Microbe-related, especially viral-related pandemics have currently paralyzed the world and such pathogenesis is expected to rise in the upcoming years. Although tremendous efforts are being made to develop antiviral drugs, very limited progress has been made in this direction. The nanotheranostic approach can be a highly potential rescue to combat this pandemic. Nanoparticles (NPs) due to their high specificity and biofunctionalization ability could be utilized efficiently for prophylaxis, diagnosis and treatment against microbial infections. In this context, titanium oxide, silver, gold NPs, etc. have already been utilized against deadly viruses like influenza, Ebola, HIV, and HBV. The discovery of sophisticated nanovaccines is under investigation and of prime importance to induce reproducible and strong immune responses against difficult pathogens. This review focuses on highlighting the role of various nano-domain materials such as metallic NPs, magnetic NPs, and quantum dots in the biomedical applications to combat the deadly microbial infections. Further, it also discusses the nanovaccines those are already available for various microbial diseases or are in clinical trials. Finally, it gives a perspective on the various nanotechnologies presently employed for efficient diagnosis and therapy against disease causing microbial infections, and how advancement in this field can benefit the health sector remarkably.

The low surface area, high recombination rate of photogenerated charge carriers, narrow visible range activity, and difficulty in the separation from cleaned solutions limit the wide application of g-C₃N₄ as a photocatalyst. Herein, we have succeeded in developing a one-pot strategy to overcome the above-mentioned difficulties of g-C₃N₄. The broadening of the visible-light response range and inducing magnetic nature to g-C₃N₄ was succeeded by preparing a nanocomposite with Fe₂O₃ via a facile solvothermal method. The preparation method additionally imparted layer exfoliation of g-C₃N₄ as evident from the XRD patterns and TEM images. The strong interaction between the components is revealed from the XPS analysis. The broadened visible-light absorbance of Fe₂O₃/g-C₃N₄ with a Z-scheme photocatalytic degradation mechanism is well evident from the UV‒Vis DRS analysis and PL measurement of the composite with terephthalic acid. The active species of photocatalysis were further investigated using scavenging studies in methylene blue degradation that revealed hydroxyl radicals and holes as the major contributors to the activity of Fe₂O₃/g-C₃N₄.

Lithium–sulfur (Li‒S) battery has been considered as one of the most promising future batteries owing to the high theoretical energy density (2600 W·h·kg⁻¹) and the usage of the inexpensive active materials (elemental sulfur). The recent progress in fundamental research and engineering of the Li‒S battery, involved in electrode, electrolyte, membrane, binder, and current collector, has greatly promoted the performance of Li‒S batteries from the laboratory level to the approaching practical level. However, the safety concerns still deserve attention in the following application stage. This review focuses on the development of the electrolyte for Li‒S batteries from liquid state to solid state. Some problems and the corresponding solutions are emphasized, such as the soluble lithium polysulfides migration, ionic conductivity of electrolyte, the interface contact between electrolyte and electrode, and the reaction kinetics. Moreover, future perspectives of the safe and high-performance Li‒S batteries are also introduced.

The preparation of large-scale Cu‒Al‒Ni shape memory alloys with excellent microstructure and texture is a significant challenge in this field. In this study, large-scale Cu‒Al‒Ni shape memory alloy (SMA) slabs with good surface quality and strong orientation were prepared by the horizontal continuous casting (HCC). The microstructure and mechanical properties were compared with the ordinary casting (OC) Cu‒Al‒Ni alloy. The results showed that the microstructure of OC Cu‒Al‒Ni alloy was equiaxed grains with randomly orientation, which had no obvious superelasticity. The alloys produced by HCC had herringbone grains with strong orientation near〈1 0 0〉and the cumulative tensile superelasticity of 4.58%. The superelasticity of the alloy produced by HCC has been improved by 4‒5 times. This work has preliminarily realized the production of large-scale Cu‒Al‒Ni SMA slab with good superelasticity, which lays a foundation for expanding the industrial production and application of Cu-based SMAs.

Inorganic nanocarriers are potent candidates for delivering conventional anticancer drugs, nucleic acid-based therapeutics, and imaging agents, influencing their blood half-lives, tumor targetability, and bioactivity. In addition to the high surface area-to-volume ratio, they exhibit excellent scalability in synthesis, controllable shape and size, facile surface modification, inertness, stability, and unique optical and magnetic properties. However, only a limited number of inorganic nanocarriers have been so far approved for clinical applications due to burst drug release, poor target specificity, and toxicity. To overcome these barriers, understanding the principles involved in loading therapeutic and imaging molecules into these nanoparticles (NPs) and the strategies employed in enhancing sustainability and targetability of the resultant complexes and ensuring the release of the payloads in extracellular and intracellular compartments of the target site is of paramount importance. Therefore, we will shed light on various loading mechanisms harnessed for different inorganic NPs, particularly involving physical entrapment into porous/hollow nanostructures, ionic interactions with native and surface-modified NPs, covalent bonding to surface-functionalized nanomaterials, hydrophobic binding, affinity-based interactions, and intercalation through co-precipitation or anion exchange reaction.

Nitrogen-doped carbon-coated hollow SnS₂/NiS (SnS₂/NiS@N–C) microflowers were obtained using NiSn(OH)₆ nanospheres as the template via a solvent-thermal method followed by the polydopamine coating and carbonization process. When served as an anode material for lithium-ion batteries, such hollow SnS₂/NiS@N–C microflowers exhibited a capacity of 403.5 mAh·g⁻¹ at 2.0 A·g⁻¹ over 200 cycles and good rate performance. The electrochemical reaction kinetics of this anode was analyzed, and the morphologies and structures of anode materials after the cycling test were characterized. The high stability and good rate performance were mainly due to bimetallic synergy, hollow micro/nanostructure, and nitrogen-doped carbon layers. The revealed excellent electrochemical energy storage properties of hollow SnS₂/NiS@N–C microflowers in this study highlight their potential as the anode material.

Hollow nanospheres exhibit unique properties and find a wide interest in several potential applications such as drug delivery. Herein, novel hollow bioactive glass nanospheres (HBGn) with large hollow cavity and large mesopores in their outer shells were synthesized by a simple and facile one-pot ultrasound assisted sol‒gel method using PEG as the core soft-template. Interestingly, the produced HBGn exhibited large hollow cavity with ~43 nm in diameter and mesoporous shell of ~37 nm in thickness and 7 nm pore size along with nanosphere size around 117 nm. XPS confirmed the presence of Si and Ca elements at the surface of the HBGn outer shell. Notably, HBGn showed high protein loading capacity (~570 mg of Cyto c per 1 g of HBGn) in addition to controlled protein release over 5 d. HBGn also demonstrated a good in vitro capability of releasing calcium (Ca²⁺: 170 ppm) and silicate (SiO₄⁴⁻: 78 ppm) ions in an aqueous medium over 2 weeks under physiological-like conditions. Excellent in vitro growth of bone-like hydroxyapatite nanocrystals was exhibited by HBGn during the soaking in SBF. A possible underlying mechanism involving the formation of spherical aggregates (coils) of PEG was proposed for the formation process of HBGn.

We present a straightforward method for one-pot electrodeposition of platinum atoms-doped molybdenum oxide (Pt·MoO_3−x) films and show their superior electrocatalytic activity in the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). A ~15-nm-thick Pt·MoO_3−x film was prepared by one-pot electrodeposition at −0.8 V for 1 ms. Due to considerably different solute concentrations, the content of Pt atoms in the electrodeposited composite electrocatalyst is low. No Pt crystals or islands were observed on the flat Pt·MoO_3−x films, indicating that Pt atoms were homogeneously dispersed within the MoO_3−x thin film. The catalytic performance and physicochemical features of Pt·MoO_3−x as a HER electrocatalyst were characterized. The results showed that our Pt·MoO_3−x film exhibits 23- and 11-times higher current density than Pt and MoO_3−x electrodeposited individually under the same conditions, respectively. It was found that the dramatic enhancement in the HER performance was principally due to the abundant oxygen defects. The use of the developed one-pot electrodeposition and doping method can potentially be extended to various catalytically active metal oxides or hydroxides for enhanced performance in various energy storage and conversion applications.

An air superoleophobic/superhydrophilic composite coating with a unique structure was fabricated by oxidation and further modification of the copper mesh, and its design principle was clarified. This unique bird-nest-like configuration gives it instant superhydrophilicity due to the high surface roughness and high polar surface free energy components, while air superoleophobicity is caused by its extremely low dispersive surface free energy components. Furthermore, a water-resistance mechanism was proposed whereby a polyelectrolyte plays a critical role in improving the water-resistance of fluorosurfactants. It can separate oil–water mixtures with high efficiency (98.72%) and high flux (25185 L·m⁻²·h⁻¹), and can be reused. In addition, our composite coating had certain anti-acid, anti-alkali, anti-salt and anti-sand impact performance. More importantly, after being soaked in water for a long time or being exposed to the air for a long time, it still retained ultra-high air oil contact angle and showed excellent stability, which provided the possibility for practical applications. Thus, these findings offer the potential for significant practical applications in managing oily wastewater and marine oil spill incidents.

Recently, alcohols have attracted more attention due to their excellent tribological performance, especially superlubricity under low loads. Alcohol solution, as a liquid lubricant, can easily reach the superlubricity state under low loads because of the formed low shear hydroxylation interfaces induced by the tribochemical reactions. A general picture and its influencing factors have been elucidated, not only at the macroscopic scale but also at the nanoscale, which is sufficient to provide effective guidance for lubrication design and tribology research in engineering. Herein, we provide a review on the recent applications of alcohols in lubrication. In addition, the material transformation caused by alcohols in friction is a key factor affecting the tribological properties. As an important two-dimensional material, the growth mechanisms of graphene are variable, and the most famous is the formation of carbon radicals under the action of metal catalysts. Thus, based on the formation mechanism of carbon friction film (such as amorphous carbon and graphene), the main content of this review also includes the transformation of graphene in alcohol solution friction process.

As an excellent room temperature sensing material, polyaniline (PANI) needs to be further investigated in the field of high sensitivity and sustainable gas sensors due to its long recovery time and difficulty to complete recovery. The ZnO/PANI film with p‒n heterogeneous energy levels have successfully prepared by spraying ZnO nanorod synthesized by hydrothermal method on the PANI film rapidly synthesized at the gas‒liquid interface. The presence of p‒n heterogeneous energy levels enables the ZnO/PANI film to detect 0.1‒100 ppm (1 ppm = 10⁻⁶) NH₃ at room temperature with the response value to 100 ppm NH₃ doubled (12.96) and the recovery time shortened to 1/5 (31.2 s). The ability of high response and fast recovery makes the ZnO/PANI film to be able to detect NH₃ at room temperature continuously. It provides a new idea for PANI to prepare sustainable room temperature sensor and promotes the development of room temperature sensor in public safety.

Electroactive hydrogels could guide the regeneration of nerves and promote their functional recovery. An aniline pentamer-crosslinked chitosan (CS-AP) hydrogel with better electroactivity and degradation was fabricated by the carbodiimide method, and then injected into the repair site of sciatic nerve damage, with its gelation time, tensile strength, and conductivity reaching 35 min, 5.02−6.69 MPa, and from 2.97 × 10⁻⁴ to 3.25 × 10⁻⁴ S·cm⁻¹, respectively, due to the cross-linkage and well-distribution of AP. There was better cytocompativility of CS-AP hydrogel on nerve cells. The results of the in vivo repair indicated that CS-AP10 hydrogel induced the capillaries formation and the repair of sciatic nerve defect, and re-innervated gastrocnemius muscle in the CS-AP10 group were obviously better than other experimental groups, due to the electroactivity of CS-AP and its degradation into fragments. These results indicated the potential application of CS-AP hydrogel in the regeneration and function recovery of peripheral nerve injury.

Metal oxides are considered as potential anodes for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs). Nevertheless, they suffer from poor cycling and rate capability. Here, we investigate conductive polymer coating on Co₃O₄ nanoparticles varying with different percentages. X-ray diffraction, electron microscopy and surface chemical analysis were adopted to analyze coated and uncoated Co₃O₄ nanoparticles. Conducting polymer, poly(3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS), has been utilized for coating. Improved specific capacity and rate capability for an optimal coating of 0.5 wt.% were observed. The 0.5 wt.% coated sample outperformed the uncoated one in terms of capacity, rate capability and coulombic efficiency. It delivered a reversible capacity of 561 mAh·g⁻¹ at 100 mA·g⁻¹ and maintained a capacity of 318 mAh·g⁻¹ at a high rate of 1 A·g⁻¹. Increasing the PEDOT:PSS coating percentage led to lower performance due to the thicker coating induced kinetic issues. Ex-situ analysis of the 0.5 wt.% coated sample after 100 cycles at 1 A·g⁻¹ was characterized for performance correlation. Such a simple, cost-effective and wet-chemical approach has not been employed before for Co₃O₄ as the SIB anode.

Microorganisms coexist with human beings and have formed a complex relationship with us. However, the abnormal spread of pathogens can cause infectious diseases thus demands antibacterial agents. Currently available antimicrobials, such as silver ions, antimicrobial peptides and antibiotics, have diverse concerns in chemical stability, biocompatibility, or triggering drug resistance. The “encapsulate-and-deliver” strategy can protect antimicrobials against decomposing, so to avoid large dose release induced resistance and achieve the controlled release. Considering loading capacity, engineering feasibility, and economic viability, inorganic hollow mesoporous spheres (iHMSs) represent one kind of promising and suitable candidates for real-life antimicrobial applications. Here we reviewed the recent research progress of iHMSs-based antimicrobial delivery. We summarized the synthesis of iHMSs and the drug loading method of various antimicrobials, and discussed the future applications. To prevent and mitigate the spread of an infective disease, multilateral coordination at the national level is required. Moreover, developing effective and practicable antimicrobials is the key to enhancing our capability to eliminate pathogenic microbes. We believe that our conclusion will be beneficial for researches on the antimicrobial delivery in both lab and mass production phases.

A hydrophilic hyperbranched polyester (poly (tetramethylol acetylenediurea (TA)-CO-succinyl chloride) (PTS)) was proposed to be used as an organic additive in aqueous ZnSO₄ electrolyte to achieve a highly reversible zinc/manganese oxide battery. It is found that the zinc symmetric battery based on the 2.0 wt.% PTS/ZnSO₄ electrolyte showed a long cycle stability of more than 2400 h at 1.0 mA·cm⁻², which is much longer than that including the blank ZnSO₄ electrolyte (140 h). Furthermore, the capacity retention of the Zn||MnO₂ full cells employing the 2.0 wt.% PTS/ZnSO₄ electrolyte remained 85% after 100 cycles at 0.2 A·g⁻¹, which is much higher than 20% capacity retention of the cell containing the blank ZnSO₄ electrolyte, and also greater than 59.6% capacity retention of the cell including the 10.0 wt.% TA/ZnSO₄ electrolyte. By using 2.0 wt.% PTS/ZnSO₄ electrolytes, the capacity retention of the Zn||MnO₂ full cells even reached 65% after 2000 cycles at a higher current density of 1.0 A·g⁻¹. It is further demonstrated that the PTS was firmly adsorbed on the zinc anode surface to form a protective layer.

During this decade, graphene which is a thin layer of carbon material along at ease with synthesis and functionalization has become a hot topic of research owing to excellent mechanical strength, very good current density, high thermal conductivity, superior electrical conductivity, large surface area, and good electron mobility. The research on graphene has exponentially accelerated specially when Geim and Novoselov developed and analyzed graphene. On this basis, for industrial application, researchers are exploring different techniques to produce high-quality graphene. Therefore, reviewed in this article is a brief introduction to graphene and its derivatives along with some of the methods developed to synthesize graphene and its prospective applications in both research and industry. In this work, recent advances on applications of graphene in various fields such as sensors, energy storage, energy harvesting, high-speed optoelectronics, supercapacitors, touch-based flexible screens, and organic light emitting diode displays have been summarized.

As an anode material for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs), bismuth (Bi) has attracted widespread attention due to its suitable voltage platform and high volumetric energy density. However, the severe volume expansion of Bi during charging and discharging leads to a rapid decline in battery capacity. Loading Bi on the graphene can relieve volume expansion and improve electrochemical performance. However, excessive loading of Bi on graphene will cause the porosity of the composite material to decrease, which leads to a decrease of the Na⁺ transmission rate. Herein, the Bi/three-dimensional porous graphene (Bi/3DPG) composite material was prepared and the pore structure was optimized to obtain the medium-load Bi/3DPG (Bi/3DPG-M) with better electrochemical performance. Bi/3DPG-M exhibited a fast kinetic process while maintaining a high specific capacity. The specific capacity still remained at 270 mA·h·g⁻¹ (93.3%) after 500 cycles at a current density of 0.1 A·g⁻¹. Even at 5 A·g⁻¹, the specific capacity of Bi/3DPG-M could still reach 266.1 mA·h·g⁻¹. This work can provide a reference for research on the use of alloy–graphene composite in the anode of SIBs.

Herein, the rational design micromilieus involved silk fibroin (SF)-based materials have been used to encapsulate the osteoblasts, forming an extracellular coated shell on the cells, which exhibited the high potential to shift the regulation of osteoblasts to osteocytes by encapsulation cues. SF coating treated cells showed a change in cell morphology from osteoblasts-like to osteocytes-like shape compared with untreated ones. Moreover, the expression of alkaline phosphatase (ALP), collagen I (Col I) and osteocalcin (OCN) further indicated a potential approach for inducing osteoblasts regulation, which typically accelerates calcium deposition and cell calcification, presenting a key role for the SF encapsulation in controlling osteoblasts behavior. This discovery showed that SF-based cell encapsulation could be used for osteoblasts behavior regulation, which offers a great potential to modulate mammalian cells’ phenotype involving alternating surrounding cues.

As a novel energy-harvesting device, a triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) can harvest almost all mechanical energy and transform it into electrical energy, but its output is low. Although the micro-nano structures of triboelectrode surfaces can improve their output efficiency, they lead to high costs and are not suitable for large-scale applications. To address this problem, we developed a novel TENG coating with charge-storage properties. In this study, we modified an acrylic resin, a friction material, with nano-BaTiO₃ particles and gas phase fluorination. The charge-trapping ability of nanoparticles was used to improve the output of TENG. The short-circuit current and the output voltage of coating-based TENGs featuring charge storage and electrification reached 15 μA and 800 V, respectively, without decay for longtime working. On this basis, self-powered anticorrosion and antifouling systems are designed to reduce the open circuit potential of A3 steel by 510 mV and reduce the adhesion rate of algae on the surface of metal materials. This study presents a high-output, stable, coating-based TENG with potential in practical applications for anticorrosion and antifouling.

Non-noble metal electrocatalysts for water cracking have excellent prospects for development of sustainable and clean energy. Highly efficient electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) are very important for various energy storage and conversion systems such as water splitting devices and metal‒air batteries. This study prepared a NiMo₄@C₃N₄ catalyst for OER and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) by simple methods. The catalyst exhibited an excellent OER activity based on the response at a suitable temperature. To drive a current density of 10 mA·cm⁻² for OER and HER, the overpotentials required for NiMo₄@C₃N₄-800 (prepared at 800 °C) were 259 and 118 mV, respectively. A two-electrode system using NiMo₄@C₃N₄-800 needed a very low cell potential of 1.572 V to reach a current density of 10 mA·cm⁻². In addition, this catalyst showed excellent durability after long-term tests. It was seen to have good catalytic activity and broad application prospects.