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Covalent reactions on carbon nanotube surfaces typically occur at random positions on the hexagonal lattice. Denget al. show that Billups–Birch reductive alkylation takes place at, and propagates from, sp³defect sites, leading to confinement of the reaction fronts in the tubular direction.

Vapour-phase methods are promising for nanomaterial synthesis but the vaporization of different precursors for the synthesis of a broad nanomaterial space is challenging. Here electrified vapour deposition generates ultrahigh-temperature, high-flux atomic vapour at atmospheric pressure to rapidly vaporize diverse precursors, enabling the synthesis of multi-elemental nanomaterials with uniform compositions and tunable structures.

A pore-modulated pyrolysis reactor that enables catalyst-free and energy-efficient upcycling of plastic waste is demonstrated. The graded-pore structure imposes molecular-weight-dependent transport barriers, establishing a gating effect that enhances product selectivity and yields aviation fuel precursor (C₈–C₁₈) with high efficiency.

In this work, authors propose a flash Joule heating-based process for meat preservation, enabled by the formation of a thin, microbe-inactivated, and dehydrated layer on the surface. The method is energetically efficient and shown to significantly extend the food shelf life while maintaining food freshness.

A depolymerization method is described that uses electrified spatiotemporal heating to selectively generate monomers from the commodity plastics polypropylene and poly(ethylene terephthalate), allowing control over the pyrolysis of plastic waste and reducing the formation of side products.

By using a programmable electric current to allow rapid pulsed heating and quenching, a non-equilibrium, continuous synthesis technique shows improved performance in thermochemical reactions, as well as lower energy costs.

Multi-principal element alloy (MPEA) 3D printing is challenging due to the tradeoff between achieving high-temperature and sufficient heating zone. Here, the authors report an ultrahigh-temperature melt printing method that can achieve rapid melting and uniform elemental mixing for MPEA fabrication.

A plasma set-up consisting of a pair of carbon-fibre-tip-enhanced electrodes enables the generation of a uniform, ultra-high temperature and stable plasma (up to 8,000  K) at atmospheric pressure using a combination of vertically oriented long and short carbon fibres.

An antiviral and antibacterial cotton textile based on a fundamentally different principle of incorporating copper ions into the cotton structure at the atomic level is fabricated with excellent air/water retainability and superior mechanical stability.

By coordinating copper ions with the oxygen-containing groups of cellulose nanofibrils, the molecular spacing in the nanofibrils is increased, allowing fast transport of lithium ions and offering hopes for solid-state batteries.

Multi-element oxide catalysts can feature superior properties compared with their single-element analogues but obtaining such complex structures remains a challenge. Here, a method is reported to access single-phase denary nanoparticles as stable and efficient catalysts for the combustion of methane.

A Cu²⁺-crosslinked chitosan material with unique 1 nm hexagonal nanochannels is synthesized and applied as a high-performance and alkaline-stable hydroxide exchange membrane.

Synthetic fibres derive from petrochemicals that are not renewable and cannot be recycled. Here, the authors show a top-down synthetic strategy that allows for the production of high-performance natural macrofibres from bamboo.

Opportunities for the application of fibrillated cellulose materials—which can be extracted from renewable resources—and broader manufacturing issues of scale-up, sustainability and synergy with the paper-making industry are discussed.

Light emitting, molecularly tunable organic colour-centers are sp³ quantum defects that create localized two-level systems within the host crystals, providing unique tools to harness electrons, excitons, phonons and spin for novel functionality.