Article
Engineering, Manufacturing
Yuyi Wei, Chuanshuang Hu, Zhenhua Dai, Yanfei Zhang, Weiwei Zhang, Xiuyi Lin
Summary: A smart electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding material with a dynamically adjustable electromagnetic response based on real-time requirements has been developed. The material, a highly anisotropic MXene@wood composite (M@wood) fabricated by coating MXene on natural wood, offers convenient shielding effectiveness (SE) regulation. The M@wood exhibits better impedance match in the tangential-section, allowing it to switch between electromagnetic wave transmission and shielding by responding to changes in dihedral angle. The SE ranges from 27.4 to 57.6 dB when the dihedral angle alters from 90 degrees to 0 degrees.
COMPOSITES PART A-APPLIED SCIENCE AND MANUFACTURING
(2023)
Review
Materials Science, Paper & Wood
Thabisile Brightwell Jele, Jerome Andrew, Maya John, Bruce Sithole
Summary: Wood is a versatile resource with unique properties that make it a valuable material for various applications. Engineered transparent wood (ETW) is a sustainable alternative to glass, offering excellent optical, thermal, and mechanical properties. ETW has the potential to be used in a wide range of applications, including construction and optics.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Xiaofei Wang, Ju Fang, Weiwei Zhu, Chuanxin Zhong, Dongdong Ye, Mingyu Zhu, Xiong Lu, Yusheng Zhao, Fuzeng Ren
Summary: This study successfully fabricates highly anisotropic, ultrastrong and stiff, and osteoconductive hydrogel composites that possess excellent mechanical properties and biocompatibility for bone repair, through a biomimetic strategy inspired by natural bone and wood.
ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Sophie Marie Koch, Christian Goldhahn, Florence J. Muller, Wenqing Yan, Christine Pilz-Allen, Cecile M. Bidan, Beatrice Ciabattoni, Laura Stricker, Peter Fratzl, Tobias Keplinger, Ingo Burgert
Summary: Delignified wood (DW) offers a versatile platform for manufacturing composites with a wide range of material properties. This study presents a method for fabricating anisotropic and mechanically tunable DW-hydrogel composites. The mechanical properties of these composites can be adjusted by crosslinking time and diffusion-led crosslinking allows for the manufacturing of mechanically graded structures. The resulting anisotropic DW-hydrogel composite enables cell alignment in vitro, which has potential applications in tissue engineering.
MATERIALS TODAY BIO
(2023)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Tianyang Chu, Yuxin Gao, Liang Yi, Chuangang Fan, Long Yan, Chao Ding, Changcheng Liu, Que Huang, Zhengyang Wang
Summary: This paper presents the preparation of a new fire-retardant transparent wood (FRTW) with excellent optical properties and flame retardancy. The FRTW, achieved by impregnating a refractive index matching transparent fireproof coating (PEAG) into delignified wood, exhibited high transparency, enhanced thermal stability, and improved flame-retardant performance compared to natural wood. Additionally, the FRTW demonstrated excellent mechanical performance.
ADVANCED COMPOSITES AND HYBRID MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Forestry
Priya Bisht, Krishna K. Pandey, G. Srinivas
Summary: This study prepared adjustable thickness transparent wood composites using bleaching and resin infiltration method, and investigated the effects of bleaching duration and sample thickness on their optical properties.
Article
Chemistry, Applied
Qianqian Chen, Daofa Ying, Yiwen Chen, Hongxia Xie, Huaran Zhang, Chunyu Chang
Summary: In this study, a coating-annealing approach was utilized to fabricate highly transparent, hydrophobic, and durable anisotropic cellulose films. Low surface energy chemicals poly(methyl methacrylate)-b-poly(trifluoroethyl methacrylate) (PMMA-b-PTFEMA) were coated onto regenerated cellulose films through physical and chemical interactions. The resulting films exhibited nano-protrusions, low surface roughness, high optical transparency, good hydrophobicity, and excellent stability and durability under various conditions. This work provides a promising large-scale production strategy for transparent and hydrophobic cellulose-based films for electronic device protection and other emerging flexible electronics.
CARBOHYDRATE POLYMERS
(2023)
Article
Forestry
M. C. Anish, Krishna K. Pandey, Rakesh Kumar
Summary: Transparent wood is a novel concept with significant industrial value. This study demonstrates an economically feasible strategy for fabricating transparent wood using unsaturated polyester resin, which shows similar properties to epoxy resin. The findings have practical implications for industrial-scale production and applications.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF WOOD AND WOOD PRODUCTS
(2023)
Article
Forestry
Yajing Wang, Yan Wu, Feng Yang, Lechen Yang, Jingxian Wang, Jichun Zhou, Jing Wang
Summary: Through top-down modification method, the wood cell walls were densified and rendered transparent, resulting in a highly transparent compressed wood with improved mechanical properties. This new functional material shows great potential for various applications due to its enhanced transparency and structural characteristics.
WOOD SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Mingliang Cheng, Mengfan Ying, Rongzhi Zhao, Lianze Ji, Hongxia Li, Xianguo Liu, Jian Zhang, Yixing Li, Xinglong Dong, Xuefeng Zhang
Summary: In this study, a sandwich composite was constructed by coating the core material of transparent wood with silver nanowire@MXene, which achieved high-performance EMI shielding while maintaining high transparency and flexibility. The composite exhibited high EMI shielding effectiveness in the X-band and large-scale production feasibility, providing inspiration for the development of advanced EMI shielding materials for wide applications.
Article
Materials Science, Composites
Kyle E. O. Foster, Rollin Jones, Garret M. Miyake, Wil V. Srubar
Summary: The study investigated the effects of chemical modifications on transparent wood composites (TWCs). It was found that lignin-modified TWCs exhibited higher water resistance compared to lignin-oxidized TWCs, and interfacial modifications such as acetylation and methacrylation further improved fiber-matrix compatibility and moisture resistance. The study also showed that optical properties of select TWC classes could rebound upon drying after being degraded by moisture saturation.
COMPOSITES SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
L. Wang, X. Zhang, X. Wang, J. Yu
Summary: By adding reduced graphene oxide (rGO) into the wood matrix, conductive wood with both natural wood features and high electrical conductivity has been successfully fabricated. It exhibits low bulk density and outstanding electrical conductivity, making it a versatile conductor in various applications such as electromagnetic shielding and wave absorbing materials.
MATERIALS TODAY SUSTAINABILITY
(2022)
Correction
Biodiversity Conservation
Jonas J. Lembrechts
Summary: Soils in cold and/or dry biomes are warmer than gridded air temperature, while soils in warm and humid environments are cooler on average.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Shennan Wang, Lengwan Li, Li Zha, Salla Koskela, Lars A. Berglund, Qi Zhou
Summary: Researchers have developed a method to fabricate strong transparent wood composites by using wood xerogel that allows solvent-free infiltration of resin monomers into the wood cell wall under ambient conditions. The wood xerogel has a high mesopore volume and can provide precise control of the microstructure, wood volume fraction, and mechanical properties for the transparent wood composites without compromising the optical transmittance. This approach shows potential scalability and can be used to prepare large-sized transparent wood composites with high wood volume fraction.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Correction
Computer Science, Interdisciplinary Applications
Natashia Boland, Riley Clement, Hamish Waterer
Summary: This note corrects an error in a paper published in the INFORMS Journal on Computing.
INFORMS JOURNAL ON COMPUTING
(2021)
Review
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yonggang Yao, Qi Dong, Alexandra Brozena, Jian Luo, Jianwei Miao, Miaofang Chi, Chao Wang, Ioannis G. Kevrekidis, Zhiyong Jason Ren, Jeffrey Greeley, Guofeng Wang, Abraham Anapolsky, Liangbing Hu
Summary: High-entropy nanoparticles have unique structures and multielemental compositions that offer potential for tunable activity and enhanced stability, but they face challenges from complex atomic structures. The review focuses on discussing important progress in high-entropy nanoparticles and critical needs for their future development.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Ye-Chuang Han, Meng-Li Liu, Li Sun, Xu-Cheng Li, Yonggang Yao, Chao Zhang, Song-Yuan Ding, Hong-Gang Liao, Li Zhang, Feng Ru Fan, Martin Moskovits, Zhong-Qun Tian
Summary: A general strategy for controllable synthesis of thermodynamically metastable sub-3 nm non-noble metal nanoparticles (NPs) with ultrahigh metal loading has been reported, enabling the rational design and controlled synthesis of advanced catalysts with a good balance between ultrasmall size and high metal loading.
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Zhi Zhang, Bo Song, Yonggang Yao, Lei Zhang, Xiaobo Wang, Junxiang Fan, Yusheng Shi
Summary: This study designs and manufactures a new type of composite material with excellent heat dissipation and high energy absorption capabilities, inspired by the structure of pomelo peel. Experimental and numerical simulation results show that the bionic polyhedron metamaterials (BPMs) with circular struts exhibit the highest thermal efficiency index and moderate specific energy absorption, which have potential applications in gas turbines and cooling structures.
ADVANCED MATERIALS TECHNOLOGIES
(2022)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Zhi Zhang, Lei Zhang, Bo Song, Yonggang Yao, Yusheng Shi
Summary: Mechanical metamaterials, such as those used in aerospace applications, lightweight construction, bone implants, and energy absorption, have excellent mechanical properties but still lag behind biological architectures. Inspired by the hollow structure of strong and ductile bamboo, the researchers developed mechanical metamaterials with high strength and low density using a biomimetic approach. These structures can be tailored to achieve specific performances and maintain isotropy, providing a strategy for light-weight and high-strength mechanical metamaterials.
APPLIED MATERIALS TODAY
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Yaoxing Wang, Ying Shang, Zhifeng Cao, Kaizhu Zeng, Yanjun Xie, Jian Li, Yonggang Yao, Wentao Gan
Summary: A magnetic field-enhanced, bifunctional Ni3Fe/wood carbon electrode (Ni3Fe-CW) was reported for efficient overall water splitting. The Ni3Fe-CW showed low overpotentials and good stability due to accelerated electron transfer under a magnetic field. This strategy has promising applications in highly efficient catalysis for energy conversion technologies.
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING JOURNAL
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Lei Zhang, Bingjin Wang, Bo Song, Yonggang Yao, Seung-Kyum Choi, Cao Yang, Yusheng Shi
Summary: In recent years, biomimetic metallic biomaterials for bone scaffolds have gained increasing attention. The topological design of scaffolds, which is crucial for efficient cell seeding and bone regeneration, remains a challenging task due to the coupling of mechanical and mass-transport properties in conventional scaffolds. Inspired by the microstructure of natural sea urchin spines, biomimetic scaffolds were additively manufactured using pentamode metamaterials, allowing simultaneous tuning of mechanical and mass-transport properties. These biomimetic scaffolds exhibit graded pore distribution, suitable strength, improved cell seeding efficiency, permeability, and impact-tolerant capacity, as well as the ability to promote in vivo osteogenesis, making them promising for cell proliferation and bone regeneration through structural innovation.
BIOACTIVE MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Rong Hu, Liyun Wei, Jinglin Xian, Guangyu Fang, Zhiao Wu, Miao Fan, Jiayue Guo, Qingxiang Li, Kaisi Liu, Huiyu Jiang, Weilin Xu, Jun Wan, Yonggang Yao
Summary: A 2D porous La0.2Sr0.8CoO3 perovskite was rapidly prepared using a microwave shock method, which exhibited excellent oxygen evolution reaction (OER) activity. The rapid entropy increase associated with the microwave process effectively exposed abundant active sites in the La0.2Sr0.8CoO3 structure. The introduction of Sr2+ into the lattice of LaCoO3 through high-energy microwave shock process increased the number of oxygen vacancies, leading to improved intrinsic catalytic activity of the material. The prepared La0.2Sr0.8CoO3 catalyst displayed an excellent overpotential of 360 mV at 10 mA center dot cm-2 and a Tafel slope of 76.6 mV center dot dec-1 in alkaline electrolytes, and maintained 97% of the initial current density after a long-term cycle test of 30000 s.
ACTA PHYSICO-CHIMICA SINICA
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Sainan Li, Hao Zhang, Hongcheng Ruan, Zhiheng Cheng, Yonggang Yao, Fuwei Zhuge, Tianyou Zhai
Summary: Physical vapor deposition (PVD) methods, traditionally used for crystal growth and thin-film deposition, face challenges in fabricating low dimensional nanostructures. A pulsed PVD method is introduced, allowing precise control of temperature and heating time, enabling the separation of nucleation and growth events. The new method yields uniform and high-density nanostructures, in contrast to the random structures formed in conventional PVD.
ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS
(2023)
Review
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Cheng Lin, Yonggang Yao
Summary: Metal corrosion can lead to resource waste, economic losses, and safety incidents. High-entropy alloy coatings have gained attention for their unique structure, excellent properties, and corrosion resistance. This paper reviews fabrication methods, elemental compositions, and the effects on corrosion resistance of high-entropy alloy coatings. It also discusses future directions for high-performing corrosion-resistant coatings based on high-entropy alloy design.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Hao Zhang, Qin Ouyang, Lanlan Yu, Rong Hu, Jun Wan, Bo Song, Qing Huang, Yonggang Yao
Summary: By using shockwave-type transient heating, a conformal SiC coating and massive SiC nanowires are grown on carbon fibers, which serve as a high surface area and durable support for catalysis under harsh environments.
ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Yan Sun, Kaili Liang, Ren Tu, Xudong Fan, Charles Q. Q. Jia, Zhiwen Jia, Yingnan Li, Hui Yang, Enchen Jiang, Hanwen Liu, Yonggang Yao, Xiwei Xu
Summary: This study reports a heterogeneous catalyst of high-entropy alloy (HEA) on high-entropy oxide (HEO) for efficient and selective conversion of biomass into value-added chemicals. The catalyst exhibits excellent catalytic performance with 100% conversion of vanillin and 95% selectivity towards high-value 2-methyl-4 methoxy phenol at 120 degrees C. This is attributed to the synergistic effect among the HEO matrix, anchored HEA nanoparticles, and their intimate hetero-interfaces.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENTAL MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Hao Zhang, Yongsheng Ji, Yonggang Yao, Long Qie, Zhiheng Cheng, Zhihao Ma, Xin Qian, Ronggui Yang, Chenghang Li, Yaqing Guo, Yifei Yuan, Haoyu Xiao, Haiping Yang, Jing Ma, Jun Lu, Yunhui Huang
Summary: Battery recycling is becoming increasingly important due to the widespread use of Li-ion batteries. Direct recycling methods have advantages of high-purity material recovery and lower environmental impact, but most methods are complex and have low yield. This study presents a transient recycling approach with high efficiency for battery materials, achieving a recovery ratio of over 97% and intact metal foil of nearly 100% through shock-type or rolled-over heating.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Wenhui Shi, Hanwen Liu, Zezhou Li, Chenghang Li, Jihan Zhou, Yifei Yuan, Feng Jiang, (Kelvin) Kun Fu, Yonggang Yao
Summary: In this study, a hybrid catalysts design featuring noble metal clusters uniformly dispersed and stabilized on high-entropy alloy nanoparticles was reported. The design achieved high dispersity, stability, and tunability of the noble metal clusters by using high entropy stabilization and core-shell interactions. The resulting catalyst showed significantly improved catalytic activity in various energy conversion applications.
Review
Chemistry, Physical
Lanlan Yu, Kaizhu Zeng, Chenghang Li, Xiaorong Lin, Hanwen Liu, Wenhui Shi, Hua-Jun Qiu, Yifei Yuan, Yonggang Yao
Summary: High-entropy alloys (HEAs) with their unique multielement composition space and high-entropy mixing structure have been developed as catalysts for complex carbon and nitrogen loop reactions. However, the design, synthesis, and understanding of HEA catalysts are challenging due to the complexity of both high-entropy materials and reactions.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Junjie Zhang, Hanwen Liu, Wenran Gao, Dongfang Cheng, Fatang Tan, Wei Wang, Xinyun Wang, Xueliang Qiao, Po Keung Wong, Yonggang Yao
Summary: This study reports an in situ zinc cyanamide coordination strategy for preparing nitrogen-doped graphene with high nitrogen content and tunable nitrogen configurations. By adjusting the pyrolysis parameters and starting materials, nitrogen-rich graphene with different nitrogen contents and configurations can be obtained. The optimized graphene exhibits excellent performance in peroxymonosulfate activation, and there is a clear linear correlation between graphitic nitrogen content and activity.
JOURNAL OF MATERIALS CHEMISTRY A
(2022)
