Porosity and surface area analysis play a prominent role in modern materials science. At the heart of this sits the Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) theory, which has been a remarkably successful contribution to the field of materials science. The BET method was developed in the 1930s for open surfaces but is now the most widely used metric for the estimation of surface areas of micro‐ and mesoporous materials. Despite its widespread use, the calculation of BET surface areas causes a spread in reported areas, resulting in reproducibility problems in both academia and industry. To prove this, for this analysis, 18 already‐measured raw adsorption isotherms were provided to sixty‐one labs, who were asked to calculate the corresponding BET areas. This round‐robin exercise resulted in a wide range of values. Here, the reproducibility of BET area determination from identical isotherms is demonstrated to be a largely ignored issue, raising critical concerns over the reliability of reported BET areas. To solve this major issue, a new computational approach to accurately and systematically determine the BET area of nanoporous materials is developed. The software, called “BET surface identification” (BETSI), expands on the well‐known Rouquerol criteria and makes an unambiguous BET area assignment possible.

Monitoring structural integrity during and after extreme events such as an earthquake or a tsunami is a mundane yet important task that still awaits a workable solution. Currently available stress sensors are not sufficiently robust and are affected by humidity. Insufficient information about crack formation preceding structural failure increases risk during rescue operations significantly. Designing durable stress sensors that are not affected by harsh and changing environment and do not fail under catastrophic conditions is a fundamental challenge. To address this problem, we developed a stress sensor based on creased singlewalled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) encapsulated in a non-fluorinated superhydrophobic coating. The creased SWCNT film was fabricated and integrated in polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) to provide a highly linear response under elastic deformation. The non-fluorinated water-repellent coating was fabricated by spray-coating the film with nanosilica particles, providing water resistance during elastic deformation.The compact design and superior water resistance of the sensor, along with its appealing linearity and 1 large stretchability, demonstrates the scalability of this approach for fabricating efficient strain sensors for applications in infrastructure and robotic safety management as well as advanced wearable sensors.Monitoring structural integrity during and after extreme events such as an earthquake or a tsunami is a mundane yet important task that still awaits a workable solution. Additionally, the mechanical frame strength of transportation must be continuously monitored for sufficient safety. Currently available strain sensors are not sufficiently robust and are affected by humidity. A water-proof strain sensor would be applicable for infrastructure safety management in harsh environments. Such a harmless water-proof strain sensor could also be used as an advanced wearable sensor. Insufficient information about crack formation preceding structural failure increases risk during rescue operations significantly. To address this problem, we developed a strain sensor based on creased single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) encapsulated in a non-fluorinated superhydrophobic coating. The SWCNT film was fabricated and integrated in polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) to provide a highly linear response under elastic deformation.The non-fluorinated water-repellent coating was fabricated by spray-coating the film with nanosilica particles, providing water resistance during elastic deformation. The compact design and superior water resistance of the sensor, along with its appealing linearity and large stretchability, demonstrates the scalability of this approach for fabricating efficient strain sensors for applications in infrastructure and robotic safety management.Governments must guarantee safety and present environments to preserve life while maintaining a comfortable urban landscape with minimal economic burden. Particularly, numerous infrastructures, such as buildings, bridges, dams, and tunnels, in adva...

The efficient separation of hydrogen from methane and light hydrocarbons for clean energy applications remains a technical challenge in membrane science. To address this issue, we prepared a graphene-wrapped MFI (G-MFI) molecular-sieving membrane for the ultrafast separation of hydrogen from methane at a permeability reaching 5.8 × 10 6 barrers at a single gas selectivity of 245 and a mixed gas selectivity of 50. Our results set an upper bound for hydrogen separation. Efficient molecular sieving comes from the subnanoscale interfacial space between graphene and zeolite crystal faces according to molecular dynamic simulations. The hierarchical pore structure of the G-MFI membrane enabled rapid permeability, indicating a promising route for the ultrafast separation of hydrogen/methane and carbon dioxide/methane in view of energy-efficient industrial gas separation.

We report a bimetallic Zn/Al complex as an efficient inorganic dispersant for SWCNT, synthesized from Zn(CH3COO)2 and Al(NO3)3. The Zn/Al complex shows more than four times greater efficiency at dispersing SWCNT than widely used surfactants (CTAB and SDS). Besides remarkable dispersibility, the Zn/Al complex does not foam upon any shaking treatment and it can be used just after quick dissolution of the powdered form, which is a marked advantage over surfactants. The Zn/Al complex, containing amorphous Al(CH3COO)3 and a complex of Zn 2+and NO 3 − ions, should have a unique dispersion mechanism, differing from the surfactants.Al(CH3COO)3 has higher affinity for SWCNT than ions, adsorbing onto their surface in the first layer and attracting Zn 2+ and NO 3 − ions. Charge transfer interactions between the Zn/Al complex and SWCNT as evidenced by optical absorption spectroscopy should induce a charge on SWCNT; the zeta potential of such coated SWCNT was +55 mV, which is in agreement with the high stability of SWCNT in water. Hence, the Zn/Al complex can widen the applications of SWCNT to various technologies such as the transparent and conductive films, as well as high performance composite polymers.