Rh1/CeO2 single-atom catalyst is highly active for CO oxidation which is potential to server as a multifunctional catalyst to save other noble metals in three way catalysts. The high activity is achieved on single-atom acitve sites via Mars-van Krevelen mechanism, thus avoiding CO poisoning at low temperatures.

The Pt-catalyzed hydrosilylation of equilibrating allylic azides is reported. The reaction provides only one out of four possible hydrosilylation products in good yields and with very high chemoselectivity (alk-1-ene vs alk-2-ene), regioselectivity (linear vs branched), and excellent functional group tolerance.

We report a general strategy for the fabrication of binder-free, flexible and weavable transition-metal dichalcogenide nanosheet-based hybrid fibers by using well-aligned multi-walled carbon nanotubes as host. The resulting hybrid fibers are used as electrodes for electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution, showing excellent performance in both acidic and basic environments, as well as excellent long-term

As a compliment to several other publications that present Rolf Huisgen’s research achievements, the first part of this paper reveals the human side of this eminent chemist as he edges closer to his 100th birthday. From excerpts from many of his personal and professional writings, Huisgen’s personality and philosophies of life are revealed. Also revealed is Huisgen functioning as a historian of chemistry

The library of true two-dimensional materials is limited since many transition metal compounds are not stratified and can thus not be easily isolated as nanosheets. Here, micron-sized ultrathin rutile TiO2 nanosheets featuring uniform thickness (2 ± 0.5 nm) with dielectric constant (εꞱ=24) have been synthesized via a liquid metal synthesis strategy.

Intense research efforts in electrochemical energy storage are being devoted to multivalent ion technologies in order to meet the growing demands for high energy and low‐cost energy storage systems. However, the development of multivalent metal (such as Mg and Ca) based battery systems is hindered by lack of suitable cathode chemistries that show well reversible multi‐electron redox reactions. Cationic

Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) are promising candidates for advanced molecular sieving membranes, but there is very limited progress in selective gas separation due to the wide nanometer-sized pores of the COF family. Herein, we propose a new concept of vertically aligned 2D COF layers forming a membrane for efficient gas separation on the basis of precise size exclusion. Gas transport takes place

Pnictogen complexes are ideal for mediating multi-electron chemical reactions in two-electron steps. We report a Sb(V) bis-μ-oxo corrole that photochemically oxidises the C–H bonds of organic substrates. In the case of toluene, the substrate is oxidized to benzaldehyde, a rare example of a four-electron photoreaction.

The assembly of two-dimensional (2D) nanosheets into three-dimensional (3D) well-organized superstructures is one of the key topics in materials chemistry and physics, due to their potential applications in various fields. Herein, starting from the crystalline metal-organic framework (MOF) particles, a spherical superstructure consisting of metal-organic framework nanosheets (SS-MOFNSs) is synthesized

Stiff‐stilbene, a sterically restricted fused ring analogue of stilbene, has been regularly used as a model compound in theoretical studies of stilbene photoisomerization. Lately, owing to its excellent photoswitching properties, it is increasingly being applied to reversibly control the properties and function of chemical as well as biological systems. Stiff stilbene photoswitches possess a number

In this paper we report drug delivery systems that are based on phosphonate MOFs. These employ biologically-acceptable metal ions (eg. Ca2+ and Mg2+) and several anti-osteoporosis bisphosphonate drugs (etidronate, pamidronate, alendronate and neridronate), as the organic linkers. These materials have been synthesized, structurally characterized, and studied for the self-sacrificial release (by pH-driven

We report the rational design and synthesis of a new, water-stable metal-organic framework (MOF), Fe-HAF-1, constructed from supramolecular, Fe3+-hydroxamate-based polyhedra with mononuclear metal nodes. Owing to its chelate-based con-struction, Fe-HAF-1 displays exceptional chemical stability in organic and aqueous solvents over a wide pH range (pH 1-14), including in the presence of 5 M NaOH. Despite

The exponential proliferation of data during the Information Age has required the continuous exploration of novel storage paradigms, materials, and devices with increasing data density. As a step toward the ultimate limits in data density, the development of an electrically‐controllable, single‐molecule memristive element is reported. In this device, digital information is encoded through switching

Electrically conductive metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) provide a rare example of porous materials that can efficiently transport electrical current, a combination favorable for a variety of technological applications. The vast majority of such MOFs are highly anisotropic in both their structures and properties: only two electrically conductive MOFs reported to date exhibit cubic structures that enable

We report the synthesis, characterization, and spectroscopic investigations of a new responsive‐at‐metal cyclometalated platinum(II) complex. Through mild chemical oxidants and reductants, it was possible to obtain the same complex in three different oxidation states and each of these complexes was structurally characterized by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction. We discovered that the platinum(II) complex

The separation of alkanes with different degrees of branch-ing, particularly mono- and di-branched isomers, represents a challenging yet important industrial process for the pro-duction of premium gasoline blending components with high octane number. We report here the separation of line-ar/mono-branched and di-branched alkanes through com-plete molecular sieving by a robust aluminum-based MOF material

Bacterial ice-nucleating proteins (INPs) promote heterogeneous ice nucleation more efficiently than any other known material. Their potential applications include cryopreservation, agriculture, biomedicine and the modulation of precipitation patterns. The details of the working mechanism of bacterial ice nucleators remain elusive, but their high activity has been shown to involve the formation of large

Targeted anticancer prodrugs that can be controllably activated are highly desired for personalized precision medicine of cancer therapy. Such prodrugs with unique action modes are also promising to overcome drug resistance. Herein, we report coumaplatin, an oxaliplatin-based and photocaged Pt(IV) prodrug, to realize nuclear accumulation along with “on-demand” activation. This prodrug is based on a

Fabrication of crystalline covalent triazine frameworks (CTFs) under mild conditions without induction of carbonization is a long-term challenging subject. Herein, a tandem transfor-mation strategy was demonstrated for the preparation of highly crystalline CTFs with high surface areas under mild, metal- and solvent-free conditions. CTF-1 with a staggered AB stacking order (orange powder) obtained in

The grain boundary in copper-based electrocatalysts has been demon-strated to improve the selectivity of solar-driven electrochemical CO2 reduction towards multi-carbon products. However, the approach to form grain boundaries in copper is still limited. This paper describes a controllable grain growth of copper electrodeposition via poly (vinylpyr-rolidone) used as an additive. A grain-boundary-rich

Closed-to-open structural transformations in flexible coordination networks are of potential utility in gas storage and separation. Herein, we report the first example of a flexible SiF62--pillared square grid material, [Cu(SiF6)(L)2]n (L = 1,4-bis(1-imidazolyl)benzene), SIFSIX-23-Cu. SIFSIX-23-Cu exhibits reversible switching between non-porous (β1) and several porous (α, γ1, γ2 and γ3) phases triggered

We describe a general method for the entrapment of enzymes within bulk metallic gold. This is a new approach for the immobilization of enzymes on metals, which is commonly carried out by 2D adsorption or covalent biding, that is, the enzyme is in contact with the metal at a specific contact zone of the enzyme, while most of the rest of it remains exposed to the environment. The 3D metallic encaging

We describe the discovery of unprecedented annulation processes of 1,7-allenedienes, promoted by Pt or Au catalysts. These transformations allowed to unveil mechanistic pathways that had not been previously observed in reactions involving carbophilic catalysis. In particular, we have found that allenedienes bearing a silyl ether at the carbon tether connecting the diene and the allene, divergently

Site-selective functionalizations of C-H bonds are often achieved with a directing group that leads to five- or six-membered metallacyclic intermediates. Analogous reactions that occur through four-membered metallacycles are rare. We report a challenging palladium-catalyzed oxidation of primary C-H bonds β to nitrogen in an imine of an aliphatic amine, a process that occurs through a four-membered

Natural photosynthesis utilizes redox cascade consisting of enzymes and molecular mediators that trap and stabilize hot carriers to achieve efficient multiple charge transfer. In this aspect, great challenges are facing artificial photochemistry regarding extremely short lifetimes of photo-generated hot carriers. Herein, using Au nanoparticle photocatalysts as a model, we report that photoelectrodeposited

Fully annulated pyrazine-linked porous graphitic frameworks (PGFs) have garnered attention because of their potential applications in optoelectronics and energy storage. In this issue of Chem, Zhang, Liu, and co-workers report a base-promoted aqueous synthesis of such porous heterographenes with high crystallinity and application potential as cathodes in lithium-ion batteries.

We present a new organic-inorganic hybrid, (Me2NH2)[KFe(CN)5(NO)], possessing a unique nitroprusside-based inorganic host anionic framework in 4-connected sra topology encapsulating organic guest cations. The flexible host-guest hydrogen bonds together with the synchronously deformable inorganic framework give rise to thermal-responsive switching behaviours on both thermal expansion and nonlinear optical

Exploiting supramolecular synthon approach based on a Cambridge Structural Database (CSD) analysis, a series of easily accessible primary ammonium sulfonates have been synthesized as potential supramolecular gelators. Single crystal X-ray diffraction (SXRD) structures of majority of the sulfonates reported herein revealed the existence of both 1D and 2D supramolecular synthons which are known to play

A ring-opening iodination and bromination of unstrained cycloalkanols with NaI or NaBr and PhI(OAc)2 under visible light irradiation is developed. In this protocol the concentration of I2 is modulated through the generation of triiodide (I3-), thus significantly avoiding the undesired side reactions. The reaction is under mild conditions and has wide substrate scope, thus providing a pratically useful

The p-type Co-ZnFe2O4 film with one-dimensional (1D) rod-like morphology is firstly fabricated on Fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) through hydrothermal reaction and sintering treatment. The p-type Co-ZnFe2O4 is obtained by doping Co ions into n-type ZnFe2O4 which Zn sites are substituted by Co. Compared with the n-type ZnFe2O4, the light absorption edge of Co-ZnFe2O4 is obviously shifted from 589 nm

Lewis acid/base catalysts of AlCl3/N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (O-NMP) and AlCl3/1-methylimidazole (N-Mim) were prepared and found to have higher catalytic activity in the Friedel–Crafts alkylation of benzene than the known super acidic ionic liquid chloroaluminate [HN222][Al2Cl7] ( [HN222]+ = triethylammonium). Crystals structures were obtained for AlCl3(N-Mim), [AlCl2(O-NMP)2][AlCl4], and [Al(O-NMP)6][AlCl4]3·(C6H6)3

Correction for ‘Can aromaticity be a kinetic trap? Example of mechanically interlocked aromatic [2-5]catenanes built from cyclo[18]carbon’ by Nikita Fedik et al., Chem. Commun., 2020, 56, 2711–2714.

A novel ion separation methodology using a cation-exchange membrane modified with iron oxide nanoparticles (Fe3O4 NPs) coated with polyhexamethylene guanidine (PHMG) is proposed. The separation is performed in an electrodialysis cell, where firstly phosphate is electro-adsorbed to the PHMG@Fe3O4 NPs coating, followed by a desorption step by applying an electric current.

A hierarchical electrode consisting of Ni foam substrate, intermediate layer of Mo doped basic cobalt carbonate microwire array and surface NiCoP was fabricated for hydrogen evolution. The intermediate layer introduction accounted for the low overpotential (45 mV, 10 mA cm−2) and high solar-to-hydrogen conversion efficiency (14.9%) in PEC water splitting application.

Ribosomal peptide synthesis begins almost exclusively with the amino acid methionine, across all domains of life. The ubiquity of methionine initiation raises the question; to what extent could polypeptide synthesis be realized with other amino acids, proteinogenic or otherwise? This highlight describes the breadth of building blocks now known to be accepted by the ribosome initiation machinery, from

A new and efficient anodic Ru(bpy)32+ ECL system by using acridine orange (3,6-Bis(dimethylamino)acridine, AO) as a coreactant was reported in neutral medium. The developed Ru(bpy)32+–AO system displayed higher ECL intensity than that of the classic Ru(bpy)32+– oxalate ECL system, and was further exploited for the ECL detection of thiourea for the first time.