The technique to pattern aminosilanes on hydroxyl-terminated substrates will open up extensive applications in many fields. There are some existing methods to pattern aminosilanes, in particular, (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane (APTES) on SiO(2) and glass substrates through indirect routes. However, few reports focus on the direct patterning of APTES by microcontact printing (microCP), due to the volatility of "inks" which consist of APTES and organic solvents. This report shows that high-quality APTES patterns on hydroxyl-terminated substrates can be directly obtained by microCP using an APTES aqueous solution as "ink". Gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) have been used to verify the presence and quality of APTES patterns on which they are selectively adsorbed. Thus-obtained Au NP patterns can serve as templates for the growth of ZnO nanostructures. Lectins are also successfully immobilized on the APTES patterns, with glutaraldehyde as linker. We believe that our method will serve as a general approach and find a wide range of applications in the fabrication of patterns and devices.

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Although theoretical calculations indicate that the thermoelectric figure of merit, ZT, of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) could reach >2, the experimentally reported ZT values of CNTs are typically in the range of 10 À3 -10 À2 , which is not attractive for thermal energy conversion applications. In this work, we report the preparation of flexible CNT bulky paper for thermoelectric applications. The ZT values of the CNT bulky papers could be significantly enhanced by Ar plasma treatment, i.e. increasing it from 0.01 for pristine CNTs to 0.4 for Ar-plasma treated CNTs. The improved thermoelectric properties were mainly due to the greatly increased Seebeck coefficients and a reduction in the thermal conductivities, although the electrical conductivities also decreased. Such an improvement makes the plasma treated CNT bulky papers promising as a new type of thermoelectric material for certain niche applications as they are easily processed, mechanically flexible and durable, and chemically stable.

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2D nanostructured materials have shown great application prospects in energy conversion, owing to their unique structural features and fascinating physicochemical properties. Developing efficient approaches for the synthesis of well‐defined 2D nanostructured materials with controllable composition and morphology is critical. The emerging concept, confined synthesis, has been regarded as a promising strategy to design and synthesize novel 2D nanostructured materials. This review mainly summarizes the recent advances in confined synthesis of 2D nanostructured materials by using layered materials as host matrices (also denoted as “nanoreactors”). By virtue of the space‐ and surface‐confinement effects of these layered hosts, various well‐organized 2D nanostructured materials, including 2D metals, 2D metal compounds, 2D carbon materials, 2D polymers, 2D metal‐organic frameworks (MOFs) and covalent‐organic frameworks (COFs), as well as 2D carbon nitrides are successfully synthesized. The wide employment of these 2D materials in electrocatalytic applications (e.g., electrochemical oxygen/hydrogen evolution reactions, small molecule oxidation, and oxygen reduction reaction) is presented and discussed. In the final section, challenges and prospects in 2D confined synthesis from the viewpoint of designing new materials and exploring practical applications are commented, which would push this fast‐evolving field a step further toward greater success in both fundamental studies and ultimate industrialization.

An electrochemically favorable Ni(OH) with porously hierarchical structure and ultrathin nanosheets in a core-shell structure H-TiO @Ni(OH) is achieved through modulating the surface chemical activity of TiO by hydrogenation, which creates a defect-rich surface of TiO , thereby facilitating the subsequent nucleation and growth of Ni(OH) . These configuration-tailored H-TiO @Ni(OH) core-shell nanowires exhibit a superior electrochemical performance and good flexibility.