Archive for the ‘Materials Advances’ Category

Welcoming Dr Ji-Guang Li as an Associate Editor

We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Ji-Guang Li, National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS), Japan, as a new Associate Editor working across Journal of Materials Chemistry C and Materials Advance!

 

 

Ji-Guang Li is currently a chief researcher at the National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS) in Japan. He received his Bachelor’s degree in 1992, Master’s degree in 1995 and Ph. D. in materials science in 1998, all from the Northeastern University in China. After conducting research as an STA Fellow at the then National Institute for Research in Inorganic Materials (NIRIM) in Japan during 1999-2001 and as a postdoctoral researcher at NIMS during 2001-2002, he was appointed as a staff scientist at NIMS in 2002. He was a visiting scholar at the Georgia Institute of Technology in USA during 2008-2009.

His research interest lies in the design, controlled fabrication and evaluation of optically functional inorganic materials, particularly luminescent materials and transparent ceramics, for potential application in various relevant fields.

 

With my enthusiasm and expertise and through team work, I hope to contribute to the quality and reputation of both the Journals” – Dr Ji-Guang Li.

 

We encourage you to submit your latest work on optically functional inorganic materials, luminescent materials or transparent ceramics to his editorial office for consideration.

Submit your article to Ji-Guang’s Journal of Materials Chemistry C Office today here

Submit your article to Ji-Guang’s Materials Advances Office today here

 

Below are Dr Li’s most recent Journal of Materials Chemistry C publications for you to read!

Broadband photoluminescence toward the NIR II region and stable green ceramic pigments based on a novel NaBaScSi2O7:xCr silicate phosphor

Xuejiao Wang, Sihan Yang, Feng Jiang, Jiantong Wang, Changshuai Gong and Ji-Guang Li

J. Mater. Chem. C, 2025, Advance Article

 

Fast and versatile electrodeposition of vertically aligned layered rare-earth hydroxide nanosheets for multicolour luminescence and oil/water separation

Xiaoli Wu, Yongping Guo, Ji-Guang Li and Yuanli Liu

Mater. Chem. C, 2024, 12, 3116-3123

 

Lattice-site engineering in ZnGa2O4:Cr3+ through Li+ doping for dynamic luminescence and advanced optical anti-counterfeiting

Junqing Xiahou, Qi Zhu, Lin Zhu, Sai Huang, Tao Zhang, Xudong Sun and Ji-Guang Li

Mater. Chem. C, 2022, 10, 7935-7948

 

 

Please join us in welcoming Dr Ji-Guang Li to the Journal of Materials Chemistry C and Materials Advances Editorial Boards.

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Exploring the progress in melanins

Read the new collection in Materials Advances

We are delighted to share with you our collection focusing on the progress in fundamental, functional material and health aspects of melanins and related materials!

Guest Edited by Pooi See Lee (Nanyang Technological University, Singapore), Bernard Mostert (Swansea University, UK), and Carlos F. O. Graeff (Universidade Estadual Paulista “Julio de Mesquita Filho”, Brazil)

A note from the Guest Editors:

“We extend our gratitude to our colleagues worldwide for their contributions to this versatile and eco-friendly class of materials and trust that you, the reader, will find this themed collection enjoyable and enlightening.”

 

A small selection of the papers are featured below (all free to read):

Enlisting electrochemistry to reveal melanin’s redox-related properties
Eunkyoung Kim, Zheng Wang, Jun Wei Phua, William E. Bentley, Ekaterina Dadachova, Alessandra Napolitano and Gregory F. Payne
A computational investigation of eumelanin–drug binding in aqueous solutions
Sepideh Soltani, Anupom Roy, Arto Urtti and Mikko Karttunen
Tuning melanin: theoretical analysis of functional group impact on electrochemical and optical properties
Florian Heppner, Noah Al-Shamery, Pooi See Lee and Thomas Bredow

 

We hope you enjoy reading the full themed collection here.

 

Did you know?

At Materials Advances, our themed collections are built by collaboration between our Guest Editors and expert Associate Editors. Our Guest Editors guide the scope and curate the contributions in our collections but all submissions are handled through peer review by our team of resident Associate Editors. This means that as an author you receive a consistent experience, and as a reader you can trust the quality of the science being presented.

If you have an idea for a topical collection in your research field, we’d love to hear from you! Get in touch here.

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High-Performance Materials from Nature’s Building Blocks

Read the new collection in Materials Advances

We are delighted to share with you our collection focusing on the synthesis of high-performance materials from natural building blocks!

Guest Edited by Samantha L. Kristufek (Texas Tech University, USA) and Eleftheria Roumeli (University of Washington, USA)

 

A note from the Guest Editors:

“The collective efforts showcased in this themed collection underscore the multifaceted approaches being pursued to advance sustainable polymers.”

 

A small selection of the papers are featured below (all free to read):

Polyhydroxyalkanoates in emerging recycling technologies for a circular materials economy
Ryan W. Clarke, Gloria Rosetto, Taylor Uekert, Julia B. Curley, Hyunjin Moon, Brandon C. Knott, John E. McGeehan and Katrina M. Knauer
Conductive MXene nanosheets infused in protein fiber hydrogels for bioprinting and thin film electrodes
Mario Alfonso Arenas García, Slah Hidouri, Joshua M. Little, Daniel Modafferi, Xinxin Hao, Po-Yen Chen and Noémie-Manuelle Dorval Courchesne
Engineering lignin-derivable diacrylate networks with tunable architecture and mechanics
Yu-Tai Wong and LaShanda T. J. Korley

 

We hope you enjoy reading the full themed collection here.

 

Did you know?

At Materials Advances, our themed collections are built by collaboration between our Guest Editors and expert Associate Editors. Our Guest Editors guide the scope and curate the contributions in our collections but all submissions are handled through peer review by our team of resident Associate Editors. This means that as an author you receive a consistent experience, and as a reader you can trust the quality of the science being presented.

If you have an idea for a topical collection in your research field, we’d love to hear from you! Get in touch here

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Congratulations to the poster prize winners at SNAIA CRISTMAS 2024

Materials Advances was delighted to sponsor poster prizes at the recent SNAIA CRISTMAS 2024 conference which was held in Paris, France on 10-13 December 2024.

Congratulations to all of our winners!

Natalie Fijol receiving a poster prize Natalia Fijoł (Nobula 3D, Sweden): “Advanced Glass Fabrication and 3D Printing Using CO2-Laser”
Nilesh Gajanan Bajad receiving a poster prize Nilesh Gajanan Bajad (Indian Institute of Technology, India): “Development of Donor-Acceptor Architecture Type Benzothiazole-Based Theranostic”
Sara Stolfi receiving a poster prize Sara Stolfi (Università di Pavia, Italy): “Mechanism of CO Oxidation on High Entropy Spinels”

 

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Congratulations to Oliver Hagger, poster prize winner at the Materials Chemistry Poster Symposium

Journal of Materials Chemistry A, B and C were delighted to sponsor a poster prize at the Materials Chemistry Poster Symposium on the 29th November. Oliver Hagger from University College London won the prize for his poster titled: Rapid single step multi-metal plasma deposition and regeneration of SERS active substrates.

 

 

 

Oliver Hagger is a PhD researcher in the Department of Chemistry at University College London (UCL) in collaboration with the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl). He completed his MChem at the University of Southampton in 2020, which included a secondment at Brown University. His research focuses on utilising atmospheric pressure plasma jets (APPJs) to selectively deposit zero-valent metals on a variety of solid substrates. He has demonstrated the ability to use these metal deposits to analyse atmospheric and liquid-borne analytes through surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS). Notably, he has shown how plasma can be employed to selectively ‘clean’ SERS substrates to restore baseline, enabling their reusability and potential for continuous monitoring applications. This innovative work is highlighted in a recent publication in the RSC journal Materials Advances.

 

 

 

 

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Spotlight on Materials Advances article on contact-electro-catalysis

A perspective on contact-electro-catalysis based on frontier molecular orbitals

Materials Advances publishes research articles on topics across materials science, which are open access and free to read. We asked the authors of a recent article on mechanical-induced catalysis to discuss their work in more detail.

In this post, we share insights from our interview with Ziming Wang and learn more about the authors of recently published paper ‘A perspective on contact-electro-catalysis based on frontier molecular orbitals‘.Graphical abstract for promoted Materials Advances paper.

Insights from the authors

What aspect of your research are you most excited about at the moment?

“Contact-electrification (CE) is a ubiquitous effect, and its first documentation can be traced back to over 2600 years ago. Recent studies have proved the electron is the dominant charge carrier by employing the thermionic emission or photoelectric effect to distinguish electrons. In virtue of the CE-driven electron transfer process, our group proposed the concept of contact-electro-catalysis (CEC) in 2022. However, a series of experimental observations during CEC could not be well-explained by existing theories of CE. In our recent Materials Advances article, we have proposed a more systematic framework to bridge the concepts of CE and CEC. To be specific, by taking the energy state of electrons into consideration, this framework could not only explain the difference in transferred charges when different polymers are employed, but also specify the transfer path of electrons and corresponding energy requirement. We expect this study could lead to the establishment of a contact-electro-catalytic diagram for facilitating the selection of suitable materials and mechanical stimulations for catalyzing target reactions.”

What do you find most challenging about your research?

“Although the contact-electrification (CE) effect is very common between two contact surfaces, its underlying mechanism remains controversial due to the lack of intuitive and precise characterization methods. Moreover, existing investigations mainly focus on the density of transferred charges during CE. However, the energy state of transferred electrons is also a vital parameter, especially for evaluating the feasibility of promoting target reactions. Thus, it is very challenging to establish a systematic framework that could take both the density and energy state of electrons into consideration.”

How do you feel about Materials Advances as a place to publish research on this topic?

“I believe that Materials Advances is an ideal platform for publishing research on this topic. This high-profile journal is well-regarded in the materials science community and offers a broad readership that spans various disciplines. Its focus on interdisciplinary studies aligns well with the diverse nature of materials research, making it an ideal platform for sharing findings that can impact various applications.”

What is one piece of career-related advice or wisdom that you would like to share with early career scientists?

“One advice I would share with other early career scientists is to never stop learning and seeking new opportunities in your field. Science is constantly evolving, so it’s important to stay curious, open-minded, and adaptable. By continuously expanding your knowledge and skillset, you will be better equipped to navigate the challenges and opportunities that come your way in your career as a scientist.”

Meet the authors

Photo of Guest Editor Ziming Wang

Ziming Wang is currently a postdoctoral research fellow at the Beijing Institute of Nanoenergy and Nanosystems, Chinese Academic of Sciences. He received his Ph.D. degree in condensed matter physics from the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS), under the supervision of Prof. Zhong Lin Wang. His research interests include contact-electro-catalysis, self-powered sensors, and energy harvesting.

Photo of author Xuanli Dong.

Xuanli Dong received his bachelor’s degree from Beijing Information Science & Technology University in 2020. He is currently pursuing his PhD degree in Beijing Institute of Nanoenergy and Nanosystems, Chinese Academy of Sciences. His research focuses on contact electrification at the liquid-solid interface and contact-electro-catalysis.

Photo of author Fu-Jie Lv.

Fu-Jie Lv received his bachelor’s degree from Shandong University Of Technology in 2023. He is currently pursuing his master’s degree in Beijing Institute of Nanoenergy and Nanosystems, Chinese Academy of Sciences. His research focuses on contact-electrification at the liquid-solid interface and contact-electro-catalysis.

Photo of Guest Editor Wei Tang.

Wei Tang received his B.S. degree from the Physical Department and Ph.D. degree from the Microelectronic Department from Peking University in 2008 and 2013. He is a professor at the Beijing Institute of Nanoenergy and Nanosystems, Chinese Academic of Sciences. His research interests include interface electron transfer and its applications in wearable electronics, contact-electro-catalysis, and energy harvesting devices.

We congratulate the authors on their impactful work in this emerging field and wish them success in their future academic research!

 

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Journal of Materials Chemistry C and Materials Advances welcomes Prof. Tetsuro Kusamoto to the Advisory Board

We are delighted to welcome Professor Tetsuro Kusamoto from Institute for Molecular Science to our Journal of Materials Chemistry C and Materials Advances Advisory Board.

Professor Tetsuro Kusamoto, Institute for Molecular Science, Japan

Professor Tetsuro Kusamoto received his Ph.D. from the University of Tokyo in 2010. He started his academic career as a postdoctoral researcher at RIKEN (2010-2012). After six years as a project assistant professor and an Assistant Professor at the University of Tokyo, he began his independent academic career in 2019 as an Associate Professor at Institute for Molecular Science, National Institutes of Natural Sciences.

We took this opportunity to ask Professor Kusamoto a few questions and find out what he thinks:

  •   What does it mean to you to join the Advisory Board of Journal of Materials Chemistry C and Materials Advances?

It is a fantastic opportunity to experience cutting-edge material science and contribute to its advancement.

  • What is the current biggest challenge you face in your field?

Understanding how the spin degree of freedom based on assembled spins affects materials’ electronic excitation, excited state, and relaxation dynamics.

  •  What advances in your field are you most excited about?

I’m excited about truly two-dimensional ferromagnetism realized by the monolayer of chromium tri-iodide (CrI3) .

Check out some of Professor Kusamoto’s recent publications in Royal Society of Chemistry journals:

S. Kimura, S. Kimura, K. Kato, Y. Teki, H. Nishihara, T. Kusamoto “A Ground-State-Dominated Magnetic Field Effect on the Luminescence of Stable Organic RadicalsChemical Science, 2021,12, 2025-2029.

S. Mattiello, F. Corsini, S. Mecca, M. Sassi, R. Ruffo, G. Mattioli, Y. Hattori, T. Kusamoto, G. Griffini, L. Beverina “First Demonstration of the Use of Open-Shell Derivatives as Organic Luminophores for Transparent Luminescent Solar Concentrators” Materials Advances, 2021,2, 7369-7378.

S. Kimura, S. Kimura, H. Nishihara, T. Kusamoto “Excimer Emission and Magnetoluminescence of Radical-Based Zinc(II) Complexes Doped in Host CrystalsChemical Communications, 2020,56, 11195-11198.

Join us in welcoming Professor Kusamoto to our Advisory Boards!

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Journal of Materials Chemistry A and Materials Advances welcomes Prof. Hui (Claire) Xiong to the Advisory Board

Journal of Materials Chemistry A and Materials Advances are delighted to welcome Prof. Claire Xiong from Boise State University, USA to their Advisory Boards.

Prof. Claire Xiong,  Boise State University, USA

Prof. Hui (Claire) Xiong is an Associate Professor in the Micron School of Materials Science and Engineering at Boise State University, USA. Dr. Xiong received her BE degree in Applied Chemistry and MS degree in Inorganic Chemistry from East China University of Science and Technology. She received her Ph.D. in Electroanalytical Chemistry from the University of Pittsburgh in 2007. Between 2008 and 2012, she conducted postdoctoral work at Harvard University and Argonne National Laboratory where her research involved electrochemical characterization of micro-fabricated cathode materials for micro-solid oxide fuel cells and the development of novel nanostructured electrode materials for Li-ion and Na-ion batteries. She joined Boise State University in 2012. Dr. Xiong received NSF CAREER Award in 2015, is a Scialog Fellow, and the Fellow of the Center for Advanced Energy Studies (CAES). Her research group focuses on design and development of nanoarchitectured and defect-driven electrode materials for Li-ion and Na-ion batteries and beyond, ion irradiation effects on electroceramics, mechanistic insights on electrolyte degradation, interface/interphase engineering, and in situ and operando characterizations.

Here is what Prof. Xiong had to say about joining the Materials Advances family:

  • What does it mean to you to join the Advisory Board of Materials Advances?

I am very delighted to join the Advisory Board of Materials Advances to provide my perspectives and give feedback to the journal related to my field of materials research. It will be especially valuble to encourage and promote the young investigators to publish their best work in the journal.

  • What is the current biggest challenge you face in your field?

The current biggest challenge I face is to understand and charaterize defects and metastable phases in the electrode materials that might play a big role in high performance battery systems.

  • What advances in your field are you most excited about?

I am most excited about the advances in characterization tools that enable us to understand materials and their related processes with high spatial and temporal resolution.

  • Why do you feel that researchers should choose to publish their work in Materials Advances?

Shared editors with JMC family and this journal is open access so the work can reach out to a broader audience.

Check out some of Claire’s recent publications in Royal Society of Chemistry journals:

C. R. Ma, Z. Xu, J. Jiang, Z.-F. Ma, T. Olsen, H. Xiong, S. Wang and X.-Z. Yuan “Tailored nanoscale interface in a hierarchical carbon nanotube supported MoS2@ MoO2-C electrode toward high performance sodium ion storage“, Journal of Materials Chemistry A, 8 (2020) 11011-11018.

C. J. Deng, M. L. Lau, C. R. Ma, P. Skinner, Y. Z. Liu, W. Xu, H. Zhou, X. Zhang, D. Wu, Y.D. Yin, Y. Ren, J. Perez, D. Jaramillo, P. Barnes, D. Hou, M. Dahl, B. Williford, M. Dahl, C. Zheng and H. Xiong “A mechanistic study of mesoporous TiO2 nanoparticle negative electrode materials with varying crystallinity for lithium ion batteries“, Journal of Materials Chemistry A, 8 (2020) 3333-3343.

C. R. Ma, H. Yang, Z. Xu, Z. Fu, Y. Xie, H. Zhang, M. Hong, Z.-F. Ma, H. Xiong and X.-Z. Yuan ” Insights into High Capacity and Ultrastable Carbonaceous Anodes for Potassium-Ion Storage via Hierarchical Heterostructure“, Journal of Materials Chemistry A, 8 (2020) 2836-2842.

I. Savva, K. A. Smith, M. Lawson, S. R. Croft, A. E. Weltner, C. D. Jones, H. Bull, P. J. Simmonds, L. Li, and H. Xiong “Defect generation in TiO2 nanotube anodes via heat treatment in various atmospheres for lithium- ion batteries”, Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, 20 (2018) 22537-22546.

Join us in welcoming Claire to our Advisory Boards!

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Professor Magdalena Titirici is in the Highly Cited Researcher list

We are delighted to announce that our recently retired Associate Editor for Journal of Materials Chemistry A and Materials Advances, Professor Magdalena Titirici, was included in the annual Highly Cited Researcher list recently released by Clarivate!

Titirici Group

 

We interviewed Professor Titirici to take this opportunity to find out more about her recent work and the challenges she faces in her field.

Please could you provide a short summary of your most recent work?

My most recent work has been on two fronts: (1) Raising awareness on the importance of developing more sustainable batteries. I am currently researching Na, K and Al based systems as well as looking to reduce the amount of Li in Li-S batteries; (2) Turning waste (biomass or plastic) with electricity into high value chemicals and fuels.

What is the current biggest challenge you face in your field?

The biggest challenge is the complexity of electrochemical devices with many components and interfaces in between. Most groups are studying one individual component at the time (either the anode, cathode, electrolyte, current collector, etc). This makes progress too slow. We need a holistic system approach, but the complexity of the many interfaces resulting from putting various components together hinders progress. Yet these interfaces are interdependent and should be understood cooperatively. In addition, there is no standardisation on how measurements on electrochemical performance should be done in various fields. Consequently, the data published in the literature are often inaccurate and difficult to reproduce due to the different ways of making, assembling, and measuring various components and devices. I think we need to learn from other fields such as pharma industry, and bring in robots that are able to perform laborious task to do the synthesis, characterisation, and assembly. Such robots should operate hypothesis driven based on the knowledge already developed in the literature by many individual research groups. This new way of working would eliminate errors and help standardisation of electrochemical measurements and data sharing. Human researchers should instead focus on developing tools for the complex data analysis from high throughput experimentation and on understanding the fundamental science for optimisation and new discoveries with the help of computational approaches. Funders, can we please get a robot in each electrochemical laboratory in the world? 😊

What advances in your field are you most excited about?

I am very excited about all the recent developments on Na ion batteries from fundamentals up to higher TRL level at cells and packs. I am equally excited about the boom in research on electrochemical driven processes to make our future chemicals and fuels.

What does it mean to you to be a Highly Cited Researcher?

It is an interesting question. Today, researchers are told that citations, a high h-index and impact factors of journals are not a measure of research quality. I think they need to be used carefully and will depend a lot on the area of research. I work on materials for energy, which is a popular topic these days, so I guess it is easier for me to be highly cited compared to peers working in other areas. Yet, within my research field, I see it as a recognition of all the team efforts from my past and current research group members and collaborators. For me, it is a testimony that best research is done collaboratively working in very diverse teams. It would be nice if Clarivate could come up with a way of awarding teams rather than individuals.

Why is it important and what advice would you give to up-and-coming scientists hoping to increase their visibility?

Be true to yourself, your values, and your beliefs. There are a lot of good and supportive people in academia, and fortunately, this trend is on the rise. Find them, work with them, and build your network of trust, scientific excellence and human kindness. Be supportive of those who need and value your advice, build a diverse scientific community, and the rest will follow naturally. But even more importantly, don’t forget to also have a life outside work.

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Our Associate Editor Professor Kisuk Kang is in the Highly Cited Researcher list

We are delighted to announce that our Associate Editor for Journal of Materials Chemistry A and Materials Advances, Professor Kisuk Kang, was included in the annual Highly Cited Researcher list recently released by Clarivate!

Professor Kang answered our questions and told us about his recent work and the challenges he faces in his field.

Please could you provide a short summary of your most recent work?

I have been working on the discovery of new electrode chemistry for lithium-ion batteries and elucidating the limitations of conventional electrodes by combined first-principles calculations and experiments. Recently, we discovered a new iron-based compound that exhibits unusually high specific capacity, which could be possible by cumulatively harnessing the capacity from both conversion and intercalation reactions. While employing these two reactions in a reversible way has been challenging, we succeeded it by exploiting a new amorphous framework.

What is the current biggest challenge you face in your field?

Breaking the energy density ceiling of current lithium-ion batteries is one of the most essential tasks for the wide employment of electric vehicles and large-scale energy storage. We are revisiting the current lithium-ion batteries with respect to the degradation mechanism or synthetic route in order to provide a breakthrough solution by employing new capabilities of characterizations such as in situ TEM and theoretical tools.

What does it mean to you to be a Highly Cited Researcher? Why is it important and what advice would you give to up-and-coming scientists hoping to increase their visibility?

As a scientist, the dissemination of new knowledge is important, and good science deserves better exposure. I am grateful for having been selected as a Highly Cited Researcher for the last five years. I will keep trying to address the current important challenges for batteries and, in the course of it, hope to share the new findings with colleagues in the field through publications.

 

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