In recent times, plastic pollution has become the focus of public and scientific interest, and microplastics in particular have been a subject of concern. This special issue, introduced in article 2000026, discusses different angles of this global challenge, including its potential risks to humans and the ecological impact. Cover credit: Christian Laforsch.

In article 1900079, Jie Shang, Run‐Wei Li, and co‐workers report a wearable capacitive sensor that can monitor human physiological signals (pulse and respiratory) in the non‐contact mode. This is achieved by using asymmetrical ring/disk‐shaped conductive material and low‐dielectric porous material to enhance the capacitive coupling effect.

The success of plastic as a material has shaped the development of modern society and challenged older materials in many of their established uses. However, plastic is now a major component of litter and is extensively reported within the marine environment. Impacts from plastic debris have been identified as a major global conservation issue with implications for maritime industries, tourism, marine

In article number 2000001, Jurgen Kosel and co‐workers design a wearable, flexible piezoresistive graphene sensor by a facile, one‐step laser‐printing fabrication process. The sensors feature long‐term stability, biocompatibility, and a low detection limit in combination with an extensive dynamic range. They can function as wearable artificial skins, monitors for heart rate or plantar pressure, or

Wearable sensors are gradually enabling decentralized healthcare systems. However, these sensors need to be closely attached to skin, which is unsuitable for long‐term dynamic health monitoring of the patients, such as infants or persons with burn injuries. Here, a wearable capacitive sensor based on the capacitively coupled effect for healthcare monitoring in noncontact mode is reported. It consists

While the outstanding properties of graphene have attracted a lot of attention, one of the major bottlenecks of its widespread usage is its availability in large volumes. Laser printing graphene on polyimide films is an efficient single‐step fabrication process that can remedy this issue. A laser‐printed, flexible pressure sensor is developed utilizing the piezoresistive effect of 3D porous graphene

In article number 1900087, Goutam Kumar Dalapati and co‐workers develop a low cost, stable and efficient photocathode for sun‐light driven hydrogen generation. Copper oxide (CuO) functionalized with graphene enhances hydrogen generation through water splitting in presence of solar radiation. Hydrogen generation in this way is an effective path to address global challenges and can be used to minimize

Preparation of superhydrophobic carbon materials from lignocellulosic biomass waste via one‐step carbonization is very difficult due to the existences of polar functional groups and ashes, which are extremely hydrophilic. Herein, superhydrophobic carbon materials can be facilely synthesized by catalytic pyrolysis of biomass waste using FeCl3 as catalyst. The results show that the surface energy of

Nanoparticles are valuable materials with widespread use. The fact that these materials are obtained by biological resources with an environmentally friendly method contributes to the development of studies in this field. Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) from waste vegetable sources (green leaves of Capsicum annum L.) are economically and easily synthesized. The obtained particles are characterized by UV–vis

Photothermal‐material‐assisted solar‐steam generation has recently attracted intensive attention due to its superior evaporation rate with high energy conversion efficiency for desalination. In this work, a simple approach for fabrication of porous carbon nanofoam (PCN) is reported, which is prepared by the carbonization of pitch using a combination of CaCO3 and NaCl templates, Meanwhile, NaCl saturated

Use of plastics faces much criticism because of its shocking and increasing impact on the environment. But banning plastic will not help the environment. Only appropriate recycling of plastic waste can give satisfying solution. A lab‐scale chemical recycling method, in which a mixture of plastic wastes and plant oil is continuously cracked into ethylene, propylene, and other useful chemicals by using

Research efforts are increasingly focused on the development of portable devices for the on‐site evaluation of pesticide residues in food. In article 1900076, Jimena S. Tuninetti and co‐workers develop a chemi‐impedimetric sensor of imazalil using metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) incorporated into a conductive PEDOT composite film. The high affinity of the pesticide for the MOF crystallites allows for

Water collection from fog has received much attention to meet the challenges of scarcity of clean drinking water in desert and arid regions. Currently, solar‐thermal technology is being used as an efficient, sustainable, and low‐cost method for water desalination to produce clean water. To collect the clean water, in recent years, most researchers have designed the structure of water collection surfaces

Cupric oxide (CuO) is a promising candidate as a photocathode for visible‐light‐driven photo‐electrochemical (PEC) water splitting. However, the stability of the CuO photocathode against photo‐corrosion is crucial for developing CuO‐based PEC cells. This study demonstrates a stable and efficient photocathode through the introduction of graphene into CuO film (CuO:G). The CuO:G composite electrodes

A large‐scale solar photovoltaic system (LSS PV) aims to reduce the gap as Malaysia plans to shift electricity generation from conventional sources like fossil fuels to renewable energy sources. The government plans to increase renewable energy to 20% of the generation mix by 2025. The first and second round of Malaysia's LSS programme has 958 MW of PV projects to be realized by 2020. The third round

The low specific capacitance and energy density of carbon electrode has extremely limited the wide application of supercapacitors. For developing a high‐performance carbon electrode using a simple and effective method, a fishnet‐like, N‐doped porous carbon (FNPC) film is prepared by calcining the KOH‐activated polyindole precoated on carbon cloths. The FNPC film is tightly anchored on carbon cloths

Due to its deleterious effects on health, development of new methods for detection and removal of pesticide residues in primary and derived agricultural products is a research topic of great importance. Among them, imazalil (IMZ) is a widely used post‐harvest fungicide with good performances in general, and is particularly applied to prevent green mold in citrus fruits. In this work, a composite film

In article number 1900064 by Marcos Cruz, Brenda Parker, and co‐workers, a 1000 × 500 mm fibrous panel is robotically extruded from alginate‐based hydrogels immobilized with microalgal cells. Additively deposited layer by layer with three different hydrogels with varying water percentages, the biocompatible scaffold is hierarchically constructed and has mechanical stability. This bioprinting technique

Hydrogen energy is considered to be a critical environmentally friendly and widely sourced renewable energy source that can be used as an alternative to fossil fuels. At present, the preparation of hydrogen (H2) mainly depends on traditional fossil fuels. In order to achieve sustainable development of environmental protection, great attention has been paid to the preparation of H2 by electrocatalysis

In article number 1900052, Xueming Zhong and co‐workers propose a mechanochemical activation method to synthesize 8‐hydroxyquinoline barium, which is of interest as a luminescent material for energy applications. The synthesized material can photoluminesce under 408 nm visible light and has a higher crystallinity and smaller particle size than that synthesized by the traditional liquid‐phase method

Malaysia targets to become the second‐largest producer of solar photovoltaic (PV) in the world by increasing the current output from 12% to 20% in 2020. The government also expects to achieve 45% reduction of greenhouse gas emission by 2030 through renewable energy mainly by solar PV. Large‐scale solar (LSS) aims to produce 2.5 GW, which contributes to 10% of the nation's electricity demands. The LSS

To solve the problems of fast‐charging of lithium‐ion batteries in essence, development of new electrode materials with higher lithium‐ion diffusion coefficients is the key. In this work, a novel flower‐like Ni@SnNi structure is synthesized via a two‐step process design, which consists of the fabrication of Ni cores by spray pyrolysis followed by the formation of SnNi shells via a simple oxidation–reduction

DNA nanostructures have attracted considerable attention as drug delivery carriers. However, the transmembrane kinetics of DNA nanostructures remains less explored. Herein, the dynamic process of transporting single tetrahedral DNA nanostructures (TDNs) is monitored in real time using a force‐tracing technique based on atomic force microscopy. The results show that transporting single TDNs into living