As
one of the promising alternatives of lithium-ion batteries,
zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) have received growing interest from researchers
due to their good safety, eco-friendliness, and low cost. Nevertheless,
aqueous ZIBs are still a step away from practical applications due
to the nonuniform deposition of Zn and parasitic side reactions, which
cause capacity fading and even short circuit. To tackle these problems,
here we introduce a single-Zn-ion conducting hydrogel electrolyte
(SIHE), P(ICZn-AAm), synthesized with iota carrageenan (IC) and acrylamide
(AAm). The SIHE manifests single Zn2+ conductivity via
the abundant sulfates fixed on the IC polymer backbone, delivering
a high Zn2+ transference number of 0.93. It also exhibits
outstanding ionic conductivity of 2.15 × 10–3 S cm–1 at room temperature. The enhanced compatibility
at the electrode–electrolyte interface was verified by the
stable Zn striping/plating performance along with a homogenous and
smooth Zn deposition layer. It is also found that the passivation
of the Zn anode can be effectively prohibited due to the lack of free
anions in the electrolyte. The practical performance of the SIHE is
further investigated with Zn–V2O5 batteries,
which showed a stable capacity of 271.6 mA h g–1 over 150 cycles at 2 C and 127.5 mA h g–1 over
500 cycles at 5 C.
Poor
mechanical properties and freezing at low temperatures of
traditional photochromic hydrogels limit their applications. Here,
a novel type of photochromic nanocomposite organohydrogels (NC OGHs)
by adding tungsten oxide nanoparticles was prepared by a simple one-pot
method. The photochromic NC OGHs demonstrated excellent integrated
properties, including high transparency, high mechanical properties,
low-temperature resistance, anti-dehydration, rewrite capability,
and UV blocking ability. In addition, the degree of coloration of
NC OGHs could be precisely controlled by UV irradiation, and the bleaching
process could be controlled by the temperature and atmosphere. Besides
flexible optical information storage devices and optical filters,
these photochromic NC OGHs were also used for smart windows in both
room temperature and cold environments. The work provides a new insight
into photochromic organohydrogels.
Directional water transport that occurs in natural insects and plants is important to both organisms and advanced science and technology. Despite the many studies conducted to facilitate directional liquid transport by constructing doublelayered hydrophilic/hydrophobic materials, it remains difficult to achieve continuous water transport and reduce liquid wastage due to the hydrophilic regions. Herein, a directional water transport fabric (DWTF) was fabricated using a simple single-side coating method based on entirely hydrophobic materials. With coating thicknesses of 13−29 μm, the fabric could guide the continuous water motion from the coated to the uncoated side and can be utilized as a "liquid diode". In addition, the DWTF exhibited a water wastage reduction during the transport process, benefiting from the intrinsic hydrophobic properties of the material. Moreover, a plausible mechanism of water transport is proposed to explain the water droplet transfer in the bilayered hydrophobic materials. Consequently, the resulting DWTF exhibited an excellent accumulative one-way transport capability (AOTC) of 965.7% and a desirable overall moisture management capability (OMMC) of 0.92. This work provides an avenue for fabricating smart fluid delivery materials to various applications such as flexible microfluidics, wound dressing, oil−water separation processes, and engineered desiccant materials.
Transparent wood (TW)‐based materials have increasingly become the focus of researchers worldwide owing to their superior physico‐chemical‐optical properties, sustainable nature, as well as the fact that they are highly accommodating frameworks that can act as building blocks to readily explore a vast range of potential functionalities, holding great potential to displace glass and plastics in their various respective applications. The integration of multiple functionalities into TW has been undertaken to fulfill the demands of prospective sophisticated applications through the utilization of functional fillers or coatings. Herein, the up‐to‐date foundational developments and reports concerning emergent TW composites and coatings from a perspective of fabrication‐functionality‐application are comprehensively summarized, with a particular focus on seven specific functionalities; i) solar control; ii) chromically‐responsive, iii) electrically‐conductive, iv) shape‐memory active; v) flame‐retardant; vi) electromagnetic interference shielding; and vii) aesthetics. The potential applications of TW with these functionalities are also discussed. Finally, the current challenge with TW is addressed, as well as the future developments required for eventual real‐world application.
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