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It is commonly believed that pressure-induced crystallization in Ce-Al amorphous alloy is caused by Ce 4f orbital delocalization. Here, Wu et al. propose an alternative mechanism, whereby the crystallization is driven by a steric effect of dominant packing of cerium atoms at high pressure.

Electrochemical CO reduction to multi-carbon products offers a carbon-negative approach to produce chemicals, but the intricate reaction pathways lead to a broad spectrum of products. Now it has been shown that alkali cations alter the mechanistic pathways that govern the reaction selectivity involved in the formation of hydrocarbons versus oxygenates.

The development of advanced electrocatalysts with high efficiency and longevity is essential to alleviate the energy crisis. Here, the authors report an atomic editing strategy to access atomically dispersed, heteronuclear triatomic Fe and Co sites to endow improved activity and stability.

Electrical transport across hetero-structured thin films of band and Mott insulators is intriguing. Here, the authors report an emergence of interfacial metallic conduction across thin film of a Cu(I)- and Cu(II)-based metal-organic frameworks.

Copper-based catalysts are preferred for electrochemical CO₂ reduction to hydrocarbons, which however easily undergo structural reconstruction. Here, the authors report a class of reconstruction-resistant copper sites with tunable electronic structures through σ-π dative bonding interaction.

Here the authors report NiGa₂O_4–x(OH)_y for light-driven CO₂ hydrogenation to methanol. The surface Lewis acid–base pairs and -OH groups act as conduits for H^- /H⁺ transport to active sites, enhancing photocatalytic methanol production.

Discovery proteomics offers deep insights but is currently not applied clinically in diagnostics. Here, the authors present ADAPT-MS, a flexible machine learning framework that enables fast, personalized diagnostic and prognostic decisions directly from proteome-wide data.

Pressure causes profound changes in the properties of atoms and chemical bonding leading to unusual materials. Here, the authors investigate the Ca-C system and find that it becomes increasingly complex and develops a multitude of phases with various compositions and new structures at higher pressures.

Ammonia cracking for H₂ is vital, but inexpensive Ni catalyst needs high temperatures due to slow N–N coupling. A photothermal Ni–CeO₂₋x/CNT with defect-rich interfaces speeds N–H cleavage, eases N–N coupling, delivering high H₂ rates and 50 h stability.

Efficient and accurate constant potential simulation is essential for electrochemical modeling. Here, authors propose a constant potential framework by combining the machine learning force field with the charge equilibration method to study the dendrites nucleation at the Li metal battery interface.

Achieving atomic control during the synthesis of heterogeneous catalysts remains challenging. Here the authors tackle this challenge by applying a liquid-phase atomic layer deposition approach to the synthesis of Cu/ZrO_x clusters on MgO as efficient catalysts for CO₂ hydrogenation to methanol.

The kinetics and product selectivity of electrocatalytic reactions depend on interfacial hydration, probing hydration structures alongside reaction intermediates and products is challenging. Now it has been shown that carbonates structure interfacial water during CO₂ electroreduction and exist in equilibrium with their radicals, which serve various roles during the electrochemical processes.

Oxygen evolution reaction is a key process for sustainable energy, although the mechanistic processes for industrially used IrO2 are not solved yet. Here, the authors demonstrate that oxygen evolution over IrO2 is governed by mechanisms consisting of concerted desorption-adsorption steps.

Cell voltage is a key indicator of battery performance, but its prediction often involves first-principles calculations. Here the authors propose a simple approach that allows rapid assessment of the cell potential as well as provides insights into factors influencing potential amplitude.

Enhancing the kinetics and selectivity of CO₂/CO electroreduction towards valuable multi-carbon products poses a scientific challenge and is imperative for practical applicability. Here the authors report that modifying copper catalysts with surface thiol ligands significantly improves acetate selectivity.

Rechargeable batteries are governed by reversible intercalation reactions. Here the authors expand the intercalation chemistry to include methyl viologen as a large dicationic charge carrier in aqueous batteries. The bonding between guest and aromatic host is not pure ionic but shows strong covalent character.

Diatomic catalysts show promise for the oxygen reduction reaction, but their complex kinetics hinder rational design. Here, the authors synthesize strongly bonded Fe-Co diatomic catalysts where Co acts as the main active site and Fe aids *OH adsorption, revealing a synergistic effect.

As silica melts are believed to be important components of the Earth’s mantle, their structure should determine many of its properties. Here, the authors identify two crystalline modifications of SiO₂, whose local structures closely resemble those of known melts, providing a structural model for their atomic ordering at the nanoscale.

CO₂ reduction (CO₂R) to C₂₊ alcohols has low selectivity and current density due to competing C₂+ pathways that produce ethylene. Defect-rich Pr–Cu oxide heterointerfaces are developed to induce asymmetric carbon–carbon coupling and selective hydrodeoxygenation of CO₂R intermediates, accelerating the production of C₂₊ alcohols.

The authors demonstrate that carbides with infinite chains of fused [C6] and [C5] rings are synthesized at deep planetary pressures and temperatures. Hydrolysis of these carbides may lead to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the Universe.

Polymeric stabilization of photocatalysts at the gas–liquid interface enhances both the catalytic activity and stability for solar hydrogen production from plastic waste. The photocatalyst retains its performance over 2 months under harsh conditions, and scaling to 1 m² yields a hydrogen production rate of 0.906 l per day from polyethylene terephthalate waste under natural sunlight.

Platinum nanoclusters comprising about ten atoms each made by reducing isolated platinum cations in CeO_x nests isolated on high-area silica are demonstrated. Two forms of platinum were reversibly interconverted by oxidation/reduction, remaining stably confined to the nests even under severe conditions, in H₂ at 600 °C and under atmospheric pressure.

Predicting metal–support combinations that can afford stable single-atom catalysts remains a complex problem. Now, a computational method is reported that can be used to screen interaction strengths between metals and supports and identify those pairs that generate strongly adsorbed single-atom catalysts.

Current industrial methods of ethylene glycol production generate substantial CO₂ emissions. Here electrocatalytic ethylene-to-ethylene glycol conversion is coupled to electrochemical CO₂ capture, decreasing carbon intensity by an order of magnitude.

Engineered Escherichia coli strains expressing a colibactin antitoxin, ClbS, on the surface prevent the genotoxic effects of colibactin released by genotoxin-producing bacteria in the mouse gut.

A scalable strategy to assemble anisotropic GO and MXene membranes with pH-tuned edge functionalization enables programmable bending via thermo-responsive water release, with applications in soft robotics and adaptive bionic architecture

The irreversible oxygen redox reaction during charging to the high-voltage region causes cathode structural degradation and Na-ion cell capacity fading. Here, the authors report a B-doped cathode active material to mitigate the irreversible oxygen oxidation and increase the cell capacity.

A ligand-restricted strategy is developed to realize the synthesis of dual-atom catalysts with high pairing ratio and tunable atomic distances.

Increasing the Ni content to replace Co can increase the capacity and sustainability of cathode for batteries but leads to performance degradation issues. Here the authors address the structural and oxygen instabilities of Ni-rich cathodes by doping with tellurium.

During SARS-CoV-2 infection caspase-8 fuels harmful inflammation independent of apoptosis. Genetic loss of caspase-8 reduces cytokine levels, lowers viral load and mitigates disease severity, revealing non-apoptotic caspase-8 as a key driver of severe COVID-19.

Promoters are able to modulate the performance of catalysts for a given process, but this can be done through various mechanisms. Here the role of Mn as a promoter on Fe-based catalysts for CO₂ hydrogenation to olefins is comprehensively investigated via spectroscopic and kinetic analyses. The promoter induces a restructuring of the catalyst surface, balancing the strength of the adsorption of reactants and intermediates.

White adipose tissue (WAT) dysfunction leads to ageing-related metabolic disorders. Here, the authors show that the FMO3-TMAO axis in adipocytes induces senescence and inflammation in WAT microenvironment via NLRP3 inflammasome, leading to systemic glucose, lipid, and energy dysregulation in ageing

Atomically thin alloys are promising electrocatalysts but suffer from poor homogeneity. Here a multi-element metallene system is synthesized using an auto-catalytic method. The hexagonal close-packed intermetallic structure and isolated surface Ru–O₃ sites provide optimal adsorption of intermediates, contributing to high hydrogen oxidation activity and stability.

Single-atom catalysts (SACs) are potent tools for Fenton catalysis. However, current SACs face limitations due to the specificity of their supports. Here, the authors synthesised CoSAs-ZnO, that can selectively generate sulfate radicals and singlet oxygen in peroxymonosulfate and peracetic acid systems, respectively.

High-entropy nanocarbides (HENCs) containing 5–22 metal elements are synthesized through a nanoconfined impulse synthetic strategy enabled by Joule heating-induced in situ reactions in carbon nanotube films. These HENCs exhibit multi-element effects and enhanced electrocatalytic activities due to their nanoscale size and modified catalytic sites.

SACs are known for their Fenton-like catalytic performance but face a trade-off between activity and stability in PMS -based systems. Here, authors address this issue by developing a nano-island encapsulated Co SAC that enhances the activity and stability of PMS activation via an “island-sea” effect.

Direct solar-driven methane (CH₄) reforming is highly desirable but challenging. Here, the synergy of atomic Cu species and partially reduced tungsten (W^δ+), stabilized over an oxygen-vacancy-rich WO₃, enables exceptional CH₄ conversion to formaldehyde (HCHO) under visible light.

Silane coupling agents retard early hydration when incorporated into fresh cement paste. Here the authors show how silane coupling agents hinder calcium dissolution of tricalcium silicate from ab initio metadynamics simulations and hydration experiments.