A new study by researchers from Sichuan Agricultural University and international collaborators provides the most comprehensive evidence to date that biochar, a charcoal-like substance made from organic materials, plays a crucial role in faster, cleaner composting.

A zero-shot comprehensive benchmark of 19 universal machine learning interatomic potentials re- veals that strategic training data and particularly non-equilibrium atomic configurations deliver five to seventeen times greater improvement than architectural sophistication for predicting cleavage en- ergies, a property governing surface stability critical for catalysis, electron emission devices, and next- generation battery interfaces.

Restoring degraded peatlands could play a vital role in tackling climate change, according to a new study led by researchers from Bangor University and the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology. The study shows that combining rewetting with biochar and iron sulphate additions can significantly slow down carbon loss and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from drained agricultural peat soils.

In a pioneering exploration of the evolving landscape of carbon fiber composite material recycling, researchers are leveraging bibliometric analysis to uncover the latest advancements and emerging hotspots in this critical field. The study, titled "Research Advances and Hotspot Evolution of Carbon Fiber Composite Material Recycling Based on Bibliometrics Analysis," is led by Prof. Da Chen from the Science and Technology Innovation Research Institute at the Civil Aviation University of China in Tianjin, China, and the Tianjin Engineering Research Center of Civil Aviation Energy-Environment and Green Development. This comprehensive analysis offers valuable insights into the current state and future directions of carbon fiber recycling research.

A team led by Associate Researcher Zhaoming Zhang and Researcher Xuzhou Yan from Shanghai Jiao Tong University introduced pseudorotaxane end groups of varying sizes and utilized their steric hindrance to modulate the dissociation kinetics of supramolecular crosslinks, thereby achieving control over the mechanical properties of supramolecular polymer networks (SPNs). This study systematically elucidated the relationship between supramolecular structure, dissociation kinetics, and macroscopic mechanical properties of the network, providing new insights into the development of high-performance SPNs.

A research team led by Prof. BI Guo-Qiang from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), in collaboration with several domestic and international institutions, has resolved a 50-year-old controversy in neuroscience. By employing a self-developed, time-resolved cryo-electron tomography (cryo-ET) technique, the team has delineated the intricate choreography of synaptic vesicle (SV) release and rapid recycling, the cornerstone of neural communication. Their findings, which introduce a new biophysical mechanism termed the “Kiss-Shrink-Run”, were published in Science on October 17 (Beijing time).

The secret to tomato size lies within the flower's core. Scientists have discovered that the gene SlKNUCKLES (SlKNU), which encodes a zinc finger protein, serves as a key switch that determines fruit size by regulating floral meristem activity—the tissue responsible for forming reproductive organs. 

The size of a tomato fruit begins with its flower. Scientists have revealed that the gene SlKNUCKLES (SlKNU), which encodes a zinc finger protein, plays a decisive role in determining tomato fruit size by regulating the activity of floral meristems—the tissue that gives rise to reproductive organs. 

The development of proton conductors that demostrate high conductivity with mechanical resilience is critical for advancing energy devices operating under harsh conditions. Polymer nanocomposites offer a promising route to reconcile these competing requirements through strategic material design. In this work, we report an anhydrous proton-conducting nanocomposite composed of a comb-like crosslinked polymer network and superacidic polyoxometalate (POM) clusters. The modular tunability of both polymer topology and inorganic clusters establishes this approach as a generalizable platform for tailoring ion-transport materials and opens new avenues for high-performance energy technologies.

Photocatalytic conversion of plastic waste into valuable chemicals represents a groundbreaking approach to addressing global plastic pollution while generating clean energy. Nickel-substituted polyoxometalates (Ni-POMs), when combined with cadmium sulfide (CdS) nanospheres, create highly efficient single-cluster catalysts that enable simultaneous hydrogen production and plastic degradation under visible light irradiation. The optimized Ni₉@CdS-10 catalyst demonstrates exceptional performance, achieving a hydrogen evolution rate of 22.29 mmol g⁻¹ alongside 19.01 mmol g⁻¹ of pyruvate production from polylactic acid (PLA) degradation. This innovative system, developed by researchers at Tianjin University of Technology, offers a sustainable solution for plastic waste management through its unique electron-sponge mechanism that enhances charge separation efficiency by 160-fold compared to conventional CdS catalysts.