Herein, we report a facile and efficient electro-reductive debrominative hydrogenation/deuteration of 2-bromo--aryl acetamides using HO/DO as an economical source of hydrogen/deuterium at room temperature. The reactions proceeded efficiently C-Br bond activation, enabling facile synthesis of a range of -substituted amides in moderate to high yields with broad functional group compatibility.

In this study, a high-load self-supporting thick carbon electrode (35.2 mg cm) was constructed by hot-pressing densification combined with KOH activation of natural wood. Its hierarchical pore structure synergistically optimizes energy storage performance (3.5 F cm) and provides a new strategy for the practical application of supercapacitors.

Nature, especially plants, can inspire scientists and engineers in the development of bioinspired machines able to adapt and interact with complex unstructured environments. Advances in manufacturing techniques, such as 3D printing, have expanded the range of materials and structures that can be fabricated, enabling better adaptation to specific applications and closer mimicking of natural systems. Furthermore, biohybrid systems-integrating plant-based or living materials-are getting attention for their ability to introduce functionalities not possible with purely synthetic materials. This joint feature article reviews and highlights recent works of two groups in microfabrication and plant-inspired robotics as well as plant-hybrid systems for energy conversion with applications in soft robotics to environmental sensing, reforestation, and autonomous drug-delivery in plant tissue.

This study investigates the use of ultraviolet (UV) photoactivation to structurally characterize atomically precise clusters in the gas phase. UV photoactivation of negatively charged precursor ions generates electron photodetachment species in lower charge states. These ions dissociate through single ligand losses, a mechanism that differs notably from the well known dissociation pathways of 8-electron cluster ions caused by collisional activation with implications to photochemistry. Computations show that the photodetachment induced by UV photoactivation perturbs the metal-ligand interfaces, providing a mechanistic understanding of UV based dissociation processes across different cluster systems.

We combined catalytic hairpin assembly (CHA) with the Cas12a system for detecting melamine adulteration. This system involved two-step signal conversion and two-level amplification, boosting the sensor's versatility and sensitivity. The sensor showed excellent specificity and applicability for melamine detection in dairy products, and was broadened to viral nucleic acid detection.

Mn-based layered oxide cathodes with anionic redox activity are desirable for sodium-ion batteries due to their high specific energy and low cost. Rational modulation of electronic configurations enables a complete solid-solution reaction in the Na-O-Li configuration, enhancing and stabilizing the capacity derived from anionic redox.

Thin carbon-coated copper catalysts facilitate the electroreduction of acetonitrile to ethylamine, in which a faradaic selectivity of 98% and a partial current density of 117 mA cm towards ethylamine at -0.8 V can be achieved. The carbon shells benefit the formation of rich active interfaces and suppress copper agglomeration.

Pyridine is a versatile structural unit found in a broad spectrum of pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, and materials. Achieving selective -functionalization under mild conditions remains challenging due to its inherent electronic properties. In this work, we accomplished a photoinduced method for -selective sulfonylation of pyridines, facilitated by an electron donor-acceptor (EDA) complex between iodide ions and sulfonyl chlorides. The reaction proceeds an oxazino-pyridine intermediate, with sulfonyl chloride acting as the sulfonyl radical precursor. This protocol stands out for its mild, photocatalyst-free conditions, high C5-selectivity, and good scalability, offering a promising approach for the synthesis of -sulfonylated pyridines.

This review explores the catalytic decomposition of ammonia into hydrogen, a critical process for sustainable hydrogen production. As ammonia rapidly emerges as the preferred carrier for hydrogen storage and transport, efficient decomposition methods are crucial for advancing hydrogen's role in the energy transition. While previously published reviews have primarily focused on metal catalysts such as Ru, Ni, and Co, as well as the influence of supports and other catalytic systems, recent developments in transitioning from nanoparticles to single-atom and cluster catalysts (SACs) have not been extensively covered. Here, we provide a comprehensive analysis of recent advances in the development of nanoparticle, SAC, and metal cluster catalysts-including noble metals, transition metals, and bimetallic systems-for ammonia cracking and their structure-activity relationships. In particular, ruthenium (Ru) remains the standout catalyst due to its exceptional activity and stability. Additionally, it was found that SACs, and metal clusters exhibit remarkable catalytic performance due to their high atom utilization and distinct electronic properties compared to traditional nanoparticle catalysts. This review also discusses the challenges and future opportunities in the field, highlighting the potential of metal catalysts, SACs, and metal clusters to revolutionize ammonia cracking and hydrogen production technologies.

In contrast to the normal allenoates (2,3-butadienoates) that undergo phosphine/amine addition generating dipolar-type intermediates, acetoxy allenoates that contain a facile-leaving -OAc group create electrophilic diene-phosphonium/ammonium intermediates rendering the reactivity pattern vastly different in the two cases. This review highlights the fascinating chemistry of acetoxy allenoates and related substrates. The diene-phosphonium/ammonium intermediate thus formed from acetoxy allenoate [substituted 5-acetoxypenta-2,3-dienoate or 2-(acetoxymethyl)buta-2,3-dienoate] participates in a plethora of cycloaddition/annulation reactions with bisnucleophiles generating multifunctional hetero- or homo-cycles in very few steps. Thus the electron-withdrawing effect of the phosphonium as well as carboxylate groups, making the diene-phosphonium/ammonium intermediates quite electrophilic, has been pivotal to the growth and significant interest during the last 10-15 years in this emerging class of substrates as revealed in this article. A comparison of this chemistry with that of (acetoxy)(acyl)allenes and allenyl acetates is also made briefly.

This study presents a rapid preparation method for a self-supporting polymer electrolyte thiol-ene click reaction. The resulting electrolyte demonstrates a high ionic conductivity of 9.5 × 10 S cm at 90 °C and a lithium ion transference number of 0.77. The lithium symmetrical battery stably operated for 1200 h at 0.1 mA cm, significantly suppressing the formation of lithium dendrites.

Spin-polarized catalysts have garnered significant interest in electrocatalysis, namely in the electrocatalytic oxidation of water, which has very sluggish kinetics due to its high overpotential. After the groundbreaking discovery that the electron's spin employing the chiral-induced spin selectivity (CISS) effect can control the kinetics of the oxygen evolution reaction (OER), numerous studies have been carried out to demonstrate the impact of electron's spin on reducing the overpotential of the OER. Apart from CISS, various magnetic materials have been explored as OER catalysts, and the outcomes are found to be very promising for the development of spin-based OER catalyst materials. This review highlights the remarkable journey of the evolution of the spin-polarized catalyst, starting from chiral materials to magnetic materials, which has happened in the last decade and its contribution toward the enhancement of OER kinetics, which is a very essential process for the advancement of renewable energy technologies.

Spin labelling enables the study of biomolecules using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy. Here, we describe the synthesis of a cysteine-reactive spin label based on a spirocyclic pyrrolidinyl nitroxide containing an iodoacetamide moiety. The spin label was shown to be highly persistent under reducing conditions while maintaining excellent EPR relaxation parameters up to a temperature of 180 K. After successful double spin labelling of a calmodulin variant, interspin distances were measured by the EPR experiment double electron-electron resonance (DEER) at 120 K.

Aggregation-enhanced emission (AEE) in polynuclear transition metal complexes (PTMCs) represents a major advancement in luminescent materials, overcoming the limitations of aggregation-caused quenching (ACQ) in traditional systems. Unlike conventional materials that suffer from quenching, AEE-active PTMCs exhibit enhanced luminescence in the aggregated state, driven by mechanisms such as restricted molecular motion, π-π stacking, and metal-metal interactions. These properties make PTMCs highly versatile for applications including chemical sensing, bioimaging, photodynamic therapy (PDT), optoelectronics (, OLEDs, WOLEDs, and LEDs), and security technologies (, anti-counterfeiting inks). They enable the sensitive detection of pollutants, facilitate high-performance bioimaging, and enhance the efficiency of energy devices. However, PTMCs face several challenges, including complex synthesis, limited thermal and photostability, solubility issues, and environmental and toxicity concerns. Additionally, high production costs, instability in different media, and the need for optimized energy transfer efficiency must be addressed to enhance their practical performance. This review explores the mechanisms behind AEE in PTMCs and discusses strategies for overcoming these challenges, including ligand engineering, hybrid material development, and sustainable synthesis methods. It also highlights their potential in advancing energy-efficient technologies, precision therapeutics, and secure communication systems, contributing to a more sustainable and innovative future.

2-Oxoglutarate-dependent non-heme iron hydroxylases offer a direct route to functionalizing C(sp)-H bonds across a range of substrates, making them prime candidates for chemoenzymatic synthetic strategies. Here, we demonstrate the ability of a non-heme iron L-lysine dioxygenase to perform sequential oxidation and computationally explore structural elements that promote this reactivity.

We have developed CFBH·SMe as a unique, metal-free precatalyst for alkene hydroboration. It combines high reactivity and excellent regio- and chemoselectivity. Mechanistic studies reveal that the catalyst's structure is nearly ideal: the transborylation step occurs an [sp-C-B/B-H] transition state and the hydroborylation step goes through a low barrier (Δ = 15.2 kcal mol) with cyclohexene as a substrate.

The P-CoMoO/MoO heterostructure catalyst exhibits excellent HER performance. Both experimental and DFT results show that MoO acts as the water-dissociation promoter, while CoMoO favors hydrogen desorption. This work provides a new idea for the design of heterojunction HER catalysts.

Chiral tartaric acid (TA)-modified Ni(OH) shows chiral-induced spin selectivity (CISS) effect, creating spin channels that significantly enhance electron transfer to promote the formation of NiOOH species. D-TA-Ni(OH) achieves a current density of 100 mA cm at 1.38 V with a Tafel slope of 21.88 mV dec, highlighting its potential for the urea oxidation reaction.

We designed and synthesized three methacrylate-derived sulfurized polymer cathodes a one-step polymerization at room temperature. Among them, the cyclohexyl methacrylate-based sulfurized polymer (SP-2) cathode exhibited both high capacity and stability, enabling stable cycling over a 0-60 °C temperature range.

We present a lithium zincate-enabled, divergent one-pot synthesis for regioselective dual C-C bond formation in thiophenes. By modifying the zinc coordination environment, a single set of reagents (ZnCl, RLi, and diethyl (5-halo)thenylphosphate) was found to generate two distinct products. This approach extends the versatility of lithium organozincates to regioselective C(sp)-C(sp) and C(sp)-C(sp) couplings without requiring transition metals and/or arenes pre-activated with a boronic acid.

This work reports the intramolecular phosphine-oxide stabilized tetra-coordinated germanium(IV) di-cation on an acenaphthene platform, 1iPrPO. Computational study shows that the positive charges and the acceptor orbitals are localized on the Ge site. 1iPrPO is Lewis super acidic, capable of catalysing hydrodefluorination reaction. 1iPrPO also catalyses hydrosilylation of electron-deficient aldehydes.