Metal nanoparticles (MNPs) hold great technological promise because of the possibility of engineering their electronic and optical properties through material design.

It remains a grand challenge to develop electrocatalysts with simultaneously high activity, long durability, and low cost for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER), originating from two competing reaction pathways and often trade-off performances. The adsorbed evolution mechanism (AEM) suffers from sluggish kinetics due to a linear scaling relationship, while the lattice oxygen mechanism (LOM) causes unstable structures due to lattice oxygen escape. We propose a MoZnFeCoNi high-entropy alloy (HEA) incorporating AEM-promoter Mo and LOM-active Zn to achieve dual activation and stabilization for efficient and durable OER. Density functional theory and chemical probe experiments confirmed dual-mechanism activation, with representative Co-Co ^† -Mo sites facilitating AEM and Zn-O ^† -Ni sites enhancing LOM, resulting in an ultralow OER overpotential (η ₁₀ = 221 mV). The multielement interaction, high-entropy structure, and carbon network notably enhance structural stability for durable catalysis (>1500 hours at 100 mA cm ⁻² ). Our work offers a viable approach to concurrently enhance OER activity and stability by designing HEA catalysts to enable dual-mechanism synergy.

With the development of science and technology, the scale of industrial production continues to grow, and the types and quantities of gas raw materials used in industrial production and produced during the production process are also constantly increasing. These gases include flammable and explosive gases, and even contain toxic gases. Therefore, it is very important and necessary for gas sensors to detect and monitor these gases quickly and accurately. In recent years, a new two-dimensional material called MXene has attracted widespread attention in various applications. Their abundant surface functional groups and sites, excellent current conductivity, tunable surface chemistry, and outstanding stability make them promising for gas sensor applications. Since the birth of MXene materials, researchers have utilized the efficient and convenient solution etching preparation, high flexibility, and easily functionalize MXene with other materials to prepare composites for gas sensing. This has opened a new chapter in high-performance gas sensing materials and provided a new approach for advanced sensor research. However, previous reviews on MXene-based composite materials in gas sensing only focused on the performance of gas sensing, without systematically explaining the gas sensing mechanisms generated by different gases, as well as summarizing and predicting the advantages and disadvantages of MXene-based composite materials. This article reviews the latest progress in the application of MXene-based composite materials in gas sensing. Firstly, a brief summary was given of the commonly used methods for preparing gas sensing device structures, followed by an introduction to the key attributes of MXene related to gas sensing performance. This article focuses on the performance of MXene-based composite materials used for gas sensing, such as MXene/graphene, MXene/Metal oxide, MXene/Transition metal sulfides (TMDs), MXene/Metal–organic framework (MOF), MXene/Polymer. It summarizes the advantages and disadvantages of MXene composite materials with different composites and discusses the possible gas sensing mechanisms of MXene-based composite materials for different gases. Finally, future directions and inroads of MXenes-based composites in gas sensing are presented and discussed.

As a flourishing member of the two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterial family, MXenes have shown great potential in various research areas. In recent years, the continued growth of interest in MXene derivatives, 2D transition metal borides (MBenes), has contributed to the emergence of this 2D material as a latecomer. Due to the excellent electrical conductivity, mechanical properties and electrical properties, thus MBenes attract more researchers' interest. Extensive experimental and theoretical studies have shown that they have exciting energy conversion and electrochemical storage potential. However, a comprehensive and systematic review of MBenes applications has not been available so far. For this reason, we present a comprehensive summary of recent advances in MBenes research. We started by summarizing the latest fabrication routes and excellent properties of MBenes. The focus will then turn to their exciting potential for energy storage and conversion. Finally, a brief summary of the challenges and opportunities for MBenes in future practical applications is presented.

Carbon materials, including graphite, hard carbon, soft carbon, graphene, and carbon nanotubes, are widely used as high‐performance negative electrodes for sodium‐ion and potassium‐ion batteries (SIBs and PIBs). Compared with other materials, carbon materials are abundant, low‐cost, and environmentally friendly, and have excellent electrochemical properties, which make them especially suitable for negative electrode materials of SIBs and PIBs. Compared with traditional carbon materials, modifications of the morphology and size of nanomaterials represent effective strategies to improve the quality of electrode materials. Different nanostructures make different contributions toward improving the electrochemical performance of electrode materials, so the synthesis of nanomaterials is promising for controlling the morphology and size of electrode materials. This paper reviews the progress made and challenges in the use of carbon materials as negative electrode materials for SIBs and PIBs in recent years. The differences in Na⁺ and K⁺ storage mechanisms among different types of carbon materials are emphasized.

In 2011, Gogotsi et al. discovered a new type of two‐dimensional transition metal carbides and nitrides, called MXenes, which have become a dazzling new star in the energy storage industry. MXenes are endowed with a series of fascinating properties due to their unique structures and tunable surface chemical functional groups. The application of MXenes in electrochemical energy storage has attracted special attention, especially showing great potential in supercapacitor applications. Compared with other materials, MXenes have high mechanical flexibility, high energy density, and good electrochemical performance, so they are especially suitable as electrode materials for supercapacitors. However, similar to other 2D materials, due to the strong van der Waals forces, MXene layers inevitably undergo stacking agglomeration, resulting in severe loss of electrochemically active sites. If the self‐stacking of MXenes layers can be effectively suppressed, their electrochemical performance will be enhanced. Structural optimization of MXenes and composite doping of MXenes with other materials are two strategies with significant effects. This review summarizes recent advances in MXene synthesis, fundamental properties, and composite materials, focusing on the latest electrochemical performance of MXene‐based electrodes/devices, and puts forward the challenges and new opportunities that MXenes face in this emerging energy storage field.