Turning wood into honeycombs: Wood is an attractive material for structural applications, but it usually works best as boards or sheets. Xiao et al . have developed a process for engineering hardwood that allows these sheets to be manipulated into complex structures (see the Perspective by Tajvidi and Gardner). The key is to manipulate the cell wall structure by shrinking and blasting open the fibers and vessels by drying and “water-shocking” them. This process creates a window wherein the wood can be manipulated without ripping or tearing. Honeycomb, corrugated, or other complex structures are locked in once the wood dries. —BG

Due to the capability of utilizing light energy to drive chemical reactions, photocatalysis has been widely accepted as a green technology to help us address the increasingly severe environment and energy issues facing human society. To date, a large amount of research has been devoted to enhancing the properties of photocatalysts. As reported, coupling semiconductors with metals is one of the most effective methods to achieve high-performance photocatalysts. The excellent properties of metal/semiconductor (M/S) nanocomposite photocatalysts originate in two aspects: (a) improved charge separation at the metal-semiconductor interface; and (b) increased absorption of visible light due to the surface plasmon resonance of metals. So far, many M/S nanocomposite photocatalysts with different structures have been developed for the application in environmental remediation, selective organic transformation, hydrogen evolution, and disinfection. Herein, we will give a review on the M/S nanocomposite photocatalysts, regarding their fundamentals, structures (as well as their typical synthetic approaches), applications and properties. Finally, we will also present our perspective on the future development of M/S nanocomposite photocatalysts.

Excellent mechanical strength and conductivity are essential and exigent features for advanced gel materials. The trade-off between them, however, remains a challenge. Here, we proposed an ion-molecular engineering strategy to develop a strong (4.46 MPa) yet high conductivity (67.43 mS cm⁻¹), freezing tolerant (−103 °C), and transparent (94%) cellulose ionogel via ZnCl₂ doping (namely CZ ionogel). Doping Zn²⁺ induces coordination interactions with cellulose molecules (Zn²⁺–COO⁻) through coupling hydrogen bonding and ion–dipole interactions, resulting in a robust CZ ionogel with 15- and 10-times improvement in the elastic modulus and toughness, respectively. The Zn²⁺–cellulose engineering produces a confined nanostructure that supports the efficient transport of small-size Cl⁻ anions, while limiting the movement of large-size cations, thereby allowing the CZ ionogel to function as a rare n-type ionic thermoelectric material to convert low-grade waste heat into useful electricity (∼110 mV at ΔT = 36 K). This ion-molecular engineering strategy offers unprecedented degrees of freedom for developing adaptable gel materials.

Flexible hybrid nanogenerators (HNGs) have received significant attention for their potential in harvesting mechanical energy to power portable and miniaturized portable devices. This work presents a method to fabricate flexible, durable and biodegradable electrospun polydopamine@barium titanate/cellulose acetate (PDA@BTO/CA) nanofiber films. This design integrates polydopamine (PDA) and piezoelectric barium titanate (BTO) nanoparticles within a flexible cellulose acetate (CA) matrix to enable self-powered wearable biomonitoring. The inclusion of PDA enhances the physical adhesion between BTO and CA, resulting in a significant 40% increase in voltage output. Notably, the PDA-modified composite PDA@BTO/CA demonstrates remarkable durability over 15,000 cycles and effectively detects a range of human motions (such as fist clenching, wrist bending, elbow movement, walking, running and jumping), transducing them into stable, precise electrical signals. Intriguingly, the hybrid nanogenerator device exhibits robust performance in extreme conditions, including underwater and high or low temperatures, while maintaining its good biodegradability. This work paves the way for advanced self-powered wearable biosensor devices capable of precise and reliable human motion monitoring.