A research team led by Professor Qiang Zhang from Tsinghua University has published a comprehensive analysis of energy storage technologies critical to China’s power system decarbonization. The study, featured in Technology Review for Carbon Neutrality, examines the multifunctional roles of storage systems across grid segments, evaluates core technologies from ultrashort-duration flywheels to seasonal hydrogen storage, and projects their deployment under cost and regional constraints. The work highlights policy mechanisms to support China’s transition to a carbon-neutral energy economy by 2060.

The flourishing development of the ‘low-altitude economy’ has not only enriched the aircraft industry but also expanded the application prospects of aircraft. However, this growth has also raised higher demands for the safety and intelligence levels of these aircraft. In emergency situations involving mechanical failures, adverse weather conditions, or strong interference, it is crucial for aircraft to autonomously select a suitable landing region and land safely. This can maximize the safety of both the aircraft and its occupants while minimizing economic losses. However, there is a lack of effective technical solutions for autonomous landing guidance under emergency conditions. This research focuses on this application and proposes a new monocular vision-based measurement method for autonomous aircraft landing guidance in unknown structured environments. The method enables the aircraft to autonomously select a suitable landing region and accurately measure the relative 6D pose (3D rotation and 3D translation) between the aircraft and the landing region, providing a reliable foundation for autonomous landing guidance.

Methanolysis of polyethylene terephthalate to dimethyl terephthalate is a sustainable route for recycling of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic. Herein, we demonstrate that mesoporous Beta zeolite supported zinc oxide (Zn-Beta-meso) is efficient for methanolysis of polyethylene terephthalate to dimethyl terephthalate, exhibiting ~99.9% dimethyl terephthalate yield at 180 °C after reaction for 30 min. Model reactions confirmed that the key step in PET methanolysis was the methanolysis of 2-hydroxyethyl methyl terephthalate to form dimethyl terephthalate, where the highly dispersed zinc species are the active sites for this step. In addition, the Zn-Beta-meso catalyst was active for the methanolysis of various PET substrates. When bottle with pigment, terylene, transparent adhesive tape, and soundproof cotton were applied as the substrates, full PET conversion and higher than 99.0% dimethyl terephthalate yield were obtained.

The research team from Shanghai Jiao Tong University has developed a MOF-derived hierarchical porous TiO₂@NPC@S composite as a high-performance cathode for lithium-sulfur batteries (LSBs). This material addresses the issues of LSBs such as poor conductivity, volume expansion, and the "shuttle effect", showing high sulfur loading, excellent cycling performance, and rate capabilities, which offers a new approach for the design of LSB cathodes.

In a paper published in Mycology, the team of Cheng-Lin Hou from the College of Life Science of Capital Normal University has made important progress in the study of species diversity and taxonomy of Rhytismatales. In this study, three new genera, eighteen new species, and three new combinations are proposed, increasing the knowledge of the fungal diversity of Rhytismataceae on species on Rhododendron, and demonstrating the use of an integrative taxonomic approach that combines morphological characteristics, multi-locus phylogenetic analysis, and ecological habits, which is of great significance for the classification and identification of Rhytismatales taxa.

Efforts to improve the performance of protonic ceramic fuel cells (PCFCs) have been hampered by the limited availability of cathode materials with high activity and durability. One potential approach to enhance electrocatalytic performance is by modifying the particle morphology of the cathode, which potentially reforms transport properties and active reaction sites. The team of material scientists led by Jie Hou from University of South China attempted to configure cathode particles through the controlled growth of cubes, aiming to improve the properties of perovskite-related Pr_1.5Ba_1.5Cu₃O₇ (PBC). This study demonstrates the potential of controlling particle growth to design highly-active electrodes with specialized properties, opening new avenues for material design in PCFCs and related electrocatalytic fields.