Andrea Lucotti

By depositing zinc nitride on bare Zn, the present study showcases that nitride coating suppresses the insulating oxide/hydroxide layer formation, controls the growth of Zn nucleation and forms a uniform network of Zn nanostructures. Hence, an aqueous zinc-ion hybrid micro-capacitor delivers better charge-storage performance and long lifespan with capacitance retention of 110% after 10000 cycles. Corresponding author email: subrata.ghoshk@rediffmail.com or subrata.ghosh@upes.ac.in (S.G.) and carlo.casari@polimi.it (C.S.C.)

Microplastics (MPs) are found almost everywhere in the environment and the food chain. The long-term effects of MPs on living organisms are still unclear, so preventing anthropogenic MP generation has become crucial. Fibre-based packaging recycling is investigated here, shedding light on possible MP generation and its consequences. As a typically overlooked source of secondary MPs, cellulosic packaging often consists of thin polymeric coatings that can fragment during recycling. Dispersion coating technology for paper substrates is considered here. The coating formulation was tagged with rhodamine-B and investigated using semi-automatised techniques, including fluorescence microscopy, optical microscopy, and Raman spectroscopy. The results raise concerns as the coating under investigation (8 g/m²) broke into more than 75,000 secondary MPs, whose equivalent diameter and particle count density in the recycled material averaged 75.4 µm and 4.7 particles/mm², respectively. Wastewater analysis found finer particles (average equivalent diameter: 51.4 µm) with a higher particle count density (6.7 particles/mm²). Overall, 72% of the retrieved particles were smaller than 100 µm. Without proper wastewater screening, such particles (representing 87% in the wastewater filter) may enter the environment, hence representing a hazard for living organisms including humans.

Coherent molecular vibrations determine many molecular properties like intersystem crossing or intramolecular charge transfer, holding potential for developing systems with vibrationally controlled electronic dynamics and reactivity. Research efforts have been focused mainly on localized vibrational modes, leaving collective vibrational modes widely unexplored despite their prominent role in driving molecular dynamics. Besides, the lower intensity associated to collective vibrational modes and their low frequency makes their study a demanding task. In this sense, nanographenes are promising materials that can be synthesized with tailored shapes and sizes—including edge substituents—, offering a great platform for studying collective vibrational modes. Here, femtosecond impulsive vibrational spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and density functional theory calculations are combined to investigate for the first time low‐frequency vibrational motions in two dibenzo[ hi , st ]ovalene (DBOV) nanographenes. The systematic study of mesityl‐substituted DBOV (DBOV‐Mes) and its chloro‐functionalized derivative (Cl‐DBOV‐Mes) demonstrates that collective vibrational modes supported by DBOV derivatives can be altered with edge substitution, while optoelectronic properties are preserved. The multidisciplinary approach followed in this work sets the stage for studies on collective vibrational modes in nanographenes and other π ‐conjugated systems.

Identifying catalytic routes for magnesite and calcite precipitation from Mg‐ and Ca‐bearing minerals is key to developing carbon‐neutral or negative industrial processes. This study experimentally evaluates the catalytic activity of over 20 environmentally friendly additive anions—including carboxylates, inorganics, and ammonium salts—for promoting magnesite and calcite formation during the carbonation of brucite [Mg(OH)₂] and portlandite [Ca(OH)₂] in aqueous slurries. Carbonation is driven by microwave (MW)‐assisted heating at 100–200 °C under hydrothermal conditions, with CO₂ partial pressures below 8 bar. Results reveal a significant enhancement in magnesite precipitation when additives are combined with MW energy, enabling crystallization at much lower temperatures. For calcite, MWs alone nearly double the precipitation yield, with further improvements in the presence of additives. Among promising catalyzers, chelating agents like citrate and tartrate increase induction times and reduce overall yield at higher concentrations. In contrast, additives forming simple ion pairs—such as acetate and sulfate—show improved performance with increased concentration. These findings highlight the importance of additive selection and MW energy in optimizing mineral carbonation for sustainable applications.

LaFeO₃/TiO₂ composites were prepared in the range 0–12.2 wt% of LaFeO₃, characterized, and tested for both benzoic acid (BA) and 4-methoxycinnamic acid (MCA) degradation in aqueous solution, and hydrogen evolution. The preparation method was via ball-milling without thermal treatment. The composite materials presented agglomerates of LaFeO₃ with an average size from 1 to 5 μm, and the TiO₂ powder was well dispersed onto the surface of each sample. They showed varying activities for BA degradation depending on composition and light wavelength. The 6.2 wt% and 12.2 wt%-LaFeO₃/TiO₂ composites exhibited the highest activity under 380–800 nm light and could degrade BA in 300 min at BA concentration 13.4 mg L⁻¹ and catalyst 0.12 g L⁻¹. Using a 450 nm LED light source, all composites degraded less than 10% of BA, but in the presence of H₂O₂ (1 mM) the photocatalytic activity was as high as 96% in 3/TiO₂ composite being the most efficient sample. It was found that in the presence of H₂O₂, BA degradation followed first order kinetic with a reaction rate constant of 4.8 × 10⁻⁴ s⁻¹. The hydrogen production rate followed a classical volcano-like behavior, with the highest reactivity (1600 μmol h⁻¹g⁻¹ at 60 °C) in the presence of 3.86%wt- LaFeO₃/TiO₂. It was also found that LaFeO₃/TiO₂ exhibited high stability in four recycled tests without losing activity for hydrogen production. Furthermore, a discussion on photogenerated charge-carrier transfer mechanism is briefly provided, focusing on lacking significant photocatalytic activity under 450 nm light, so p-n heterojunction formation is unlikely.

A persistent concealed non-Kekulé nanographene featuring two phenalene units fused in a cis configuration to a perylene core was successfully synthesized in solution and characterized.

We present the inaugural synthesis of a chiral teropyrene achieved through a four‐fold alkyne benzannulation catalyzed by InCl₃, resulting in good yields. The product underwent thorough characterization using FT‐Raman and FT‐IR spectroscopies, demonstrating a close agreement with calculated spectra. X‐ray crystallographic analysis unveiled a notable twist in the molecule‘s backbone, with an end‐to‐end twist angle of 51°, consistent with computational predictions. Experimentally determined enantiomeric inversion barriers revealed a significant energy barrier of 23 kcal/mol, facilitating the isolation of enantiomers for analysis by circular dichroism (CD) and circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) spectroscopies. These findings mark significant strides in the synthesis and characterization of chiral teropyrenes, offering insights into their structural and spectroscopic properties.

We present the inaugural synthesis of a chiral teropyrene achieved through a four‐fold alkyne benzannulation catalyzed by InCl₃, resulting in good yields. The product underwent thorough characterization using FT‐Raman and FT‐IR spectroscopies, demonstrating a close agreement with calculated spectra. X‐ray crystallographic analysis unveiled a notable twist in the molecule‘s backbone, with an end‐to‐end twist angle of 51°, consistent with computational predictions. Experimentally determined enantiomeric inversion barriers revealed a significant energy barrier of 23 kcal/mol, facilitating the isolation of enantiomers for analysis by circular dichroism (CD) and circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) spectroscopies. These findings mark significant strides in the synthesis and characterization of chiral teropyrenes, offering insights into their structural and spectroscopic properties.