In the present study, hygroscopicity of the choline chloride-urea (ChCl-2Urea) ionic liquid (IL) was confirmed through Karl-Fisher titration examination, indicating that the water content in the hydrated ChCl-2Urea IL was exposure-time dependent and could be tailored by simple heating treatment. The impact of the absorbed water on the properties of ChCl-2Urea IL, including viscosity, electrical conductivity, electrochemical window and chemical structure was investigated. The results show that water was able to dramatically reduce the viscosity and improve the conductivity, however, a broad electrochemical window could be persisted when the water content was below ~6 wt.%. These characteristics were beneficial for producing dense and compact coatings. Nickel (Ni) coatings plating from hydrated ChCl-2Urea IL, which was selected as an example to show the effect of water on the electroplating, displayed that a compact and corrosion-resistant Ni coating was plated from ChCl-2Urea IL containing 6 wt.% water doped with 400 mg/L NA at a moderate temperature. As verified by FTIR analysis, the intrinsic reason could be ascribed that water was likely linked with urea through strong hydrogen bond so that the water decomposition was suppressed during plating. Present study may provide a reference to prepare some similar water-stable ILs for plating.

High-efficiency, environment friendly, renewable energy-based methods of desalination represent attractive and potentially very powerful solutions to the long-standing problem of global water shortage. Many new laboratoryscale materials have been developed for photothermal desalination but the development of low-cost, easy-to-manufacture, and scalable materials and systems that can convert solar irradiation into exploitable thermal energy in this context is still a significant challenge. This paper presents work on a geopolymer-biomass mesoporous carbon composite (GBMCC) device with mesoporous and macroporous structures for harvesting solar energy, which is then used in a device to generate water vapor with high efficiency using negative pressure, wind-driven, steam generation. The GBMCC device gives water evaporation rates of 1.58 and 2.71 kg m −2 h −1 under 1 and 3 suns illumination, with the solar thermal conversion efficiency up to 84.95% and 67.6%, respectively. A remarkable, record high water vapor generation rate of 7.55 kg m −2 h −1 is achieved under 1 sun solar intensity at the wind speed of 3 m s −1 . This is a key step forward todays efficient, sustainable and economical production of clean water from seawater or common wastewater with free solar energy.

CO2 gas sensing is of great importance because of the impact of CO2 on global climate change. Here, utilizing an inverse opal hydrogel, we describe a CO2 gas sensing method that allows highly sensitive and selective detection over a wide concentration range. The CO2 sensor is specific, quantitative, interference tolerant and without the need for special instruments.

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Inverse‐opal strong polyelectrolyte sensors, achieved by using a colloidal crystal templating method, respond sensitively and universally to various anions, cations, and zwitterions with brilliant structural colors that can even be observed by the naked eye. They are very attractive for a range of applications, such as ion detection, separation, ionic conduction, and catalysts.

Accurate forecasting of N required for plant growth can help optimize grain yields, farm profits, and N use efficiency and reduce the risk of environmental pollution. The objectives of this study were to: (i) establish a critical N (Nc) dilution curve for winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) based on the leaf area index (LAI), (ii) compare this curve with Nc dilution curves for winter wheat that are based on plant dry matter, and (iii) assess the plausibility of using this new curve to estimate the N status of winter wheat. Four field experiments were conducted with different N application rates. Twenty plants from each plot were sampled from the Feekes 3 to the Feekes 10.5 stage for growth analysis. The relationship between Nc and LAI could be described by a negative power equation, Nc = 4.06LAI −0.4, when the LAI values were in the range of 1.4 to 7.5. For LAI values <1.4, however, the constant value Nc = 3.58% was used. The N nutrition index (NNI) ranged from 0.34 to 1.31 during the vegetative stage under different N application rates from 2009 to 2011. There was a significant positive relationship between differences in NNI and differences in N application rates across four wheat development stages. Validation of the models with independent data produced a root mean squared error of 28 kg ha−1. The Nc dilution curve identified limiting and nonlimiting wheat N status and could be used as a reliable indicator of in‐season N stress of wheat grown in eastern China.