Jiakuan Yang

N-acyl-homoserine lactone-mediated quorum sensing can regulate biofilm formation and microbial metabolism, but its effects on concurrent electricity generation and nitrogen removal in bioelectrochemical systems remain unclear. Here, we examined the responses of single-chamber air-cathode microbial fuel cells (MFCs) to exogenous N-hexanoyl-DL-homoserine lactone (C6-HSL; 10 and 20 μM). Both treatments accelerated voltage stabilization, prolonged the stable-output period and improved electrical electron recovery. Maximum power density increased from 50.05 mW/m2 in the control to 59.90 and 55.46 mW/m2 at 10 and 20 μM, respectively. These changes coincided with greater anodic extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) contents, lower fitted biofilm resistance and enrichment of Burkholderiaceae. In contrast, C6-HSL impaired nitrogen removal. At an initial NH4Cl concentration of 0.5 g/L, total nitrogen removal after 48 h decreased from 94.24 ± 1.50% (control) to 80.66 ± 1.06% (10 μM) and 73.31 ± 2.01% (20 μM). Higher residual NH4+-N and NO2--N concentrations, together with lower cathodic amoA and nirS gene abundances, were consistent with impaired nitrogen transformation. An electron-equivalent comparison revealed increased electrical electron recovery alongside a lower stoichiometric electron requirement associated with observed nitrogen removal; it did not establish a causal diversion of electrons. Collectively, the findings identify contrasting electrogenic and nitrogen-removal responses to C6-HSL and underscore the need to evaluate both functions when applying quorum-sensing-based regulation in MFCs.

The rapid deployment of perovskite solar modules (PSMs) raises an urgent need for recycling strategies that can selectively recover critical metals from their complex multilayer architectures. Here, an architecture‐guided sequential recycling strategy is developed by coupling interfacial accessibility with calcination‐induced phase transformation. Ultrasonic water leaching removes >99.8% of Pb from the perovskite layer without detectable dissolution of other target metals. During subsequent HCl leaching, the polymer encapsulant functions as a physical barrier, enabling >99.9% In leaching while protecting the Sn‐coated Cu ribbon from acid attack. Air calcination then removes the encapsulant and promotes the formation of CuO and chemically stable SnO ₂ , creating a strong contrast in leaching behavior that enables selective Cu dissolution in an acetic acid‐hydrogen peroxide system. Overall, recovery ratios of In and Cu exceed 99.7% and 96.1%, respectively, while most of the initial Sn is retained in a Sn‐rich residue. The process further achieves a net economic benefit of about 4.735 USD/m ² module, demonstrating an economically promising and architecture‐enabled route for selective multi‐metal recovery from discarded industrial PSMs.

The accelerating deployment of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) has intensified scrutiny of their lead content and associated environmental risks. We combined dynamic material flow analysis with freshwater ecotoxicity modeling to project lifecycle lead stocks, flows, and leakage for PSCs in China from 2026 to 2060, benchmarked against crystalline silicon (c-Si) photovoltaics including a prospective lead-free soldering pathway. Under business-as-usual conditions, the cumulative lead input into the PSC life cycle reaches 29.2 ± 3.1 kt, 58.9% of which is lost, mainly in manufacturing. However, PSCs reduce cumulative lead leakage by up to 94% relative to the lead-solder c-Si baseline at equivalent installed capacity under the best practice scenario. All PSC mitigation scenarios, including cleaner production, extended service lifetimes, and enhanced recycling, also outperform the c-Si lead-free trajectory by 2060. These domestic environmental gains are complicated by international trade, which spatially redistributes environmental burdens. Developed economies outsource manufacturing impacts while tropical developing countries incur domestic leakages up to 3-fold higher than upstream leakage, driven by accelerated degradation and limited recycling infrastructure. These findings demonstrate that lead does not constitute a prohibitive barrier to PSC commercialization, if governance evolves from material restrictions toward transnational extended producer responsibility systems.

Electrochemical two-electron oxygen reduction (2e− ORR) provides a decentralized route for hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) production, yet rational tailoring of MOF-derived electrocatalysts remains challenging because carbonization entails substantial structural reorganization. Here, we report a precursor-substituent-induced pyrolytic reconstruction strategy to regulate the carbon microenvironment and interfacial electronic properties of Ni-MOF-derived electrocatalysts for selective H2O2 electrosynthesis. Using terephthalate-based Ni-MOF-X (X = H, NH2, NO2, or OH) precursors, we show that the strongly electron-withdrawing nitro substituent is associated with anisotropic fragmentation, high mesoporous accessibility, and pronounced carbon-lattice disorder after pyrolysis. Spectroscopic analyses establish an ensemble dominated by metallic Ni nanoparticles within an N/O-enriched polar carbon environment, rather than a uniquely defined first-shell Ni-N/O coordination structure. In a gas-diffusion flow cell, it reaches an H2O2 yield rate of 6.77 mol g−1 h−1 and sustains approximately 95% Faradaic efficiency over 100 h in 1.0 M KOH. Idealized descriptor-model calculations indicate that an N/O-polarized microenvironment shifts *OOH adsorption toward a more favorable energetic range, consistent with the experimentally observed kinetic and selectivity trends. These results establish precursor substituent chemistry as an effective means of directing pyrolytic reconstruction in MOF-derived electrocatalysts.

Upcycling spent lead-acid batteries into photovoltaic precursors offers a route to couple mature batteries recycling infrastructure with the growing material demand of perovskite photovoltaics. Here, we develop an upcycling strategy that converts industrial spent lead paste into electronic-grade PbI2 for all-perovskite tandem solar cells for the first time. The process transforms chemically heterogeneous PbSO4, PbO2, PbO and metallic Pb into a uniform PbO intermediate, followed by pH controlled acetic acid leaching that selectively dissolves Pb2+ while retaining major impurity components in the solid residues. Subsequent iodide precipitation yields PbI2 with a measured purity of 99.9925%. Kilogram-scale production achieves an overall Pb recovery of 95.12%, demonstrating that the reaction selectivity and product quality can be retained during scale-up. Compared with low-purity recycled PbI2, the purified product improves precursor solubility, film morphology and carrier lifetime, enabling a wide-bandgap perovskite solar cell efficiency of 20.51%. The recycled PbI2 enables all-perovskite tandem solar cells with an impressive efficiency of 28.65%. Combined life-cycle and techno-economic analyses demonstrate that this strategy offers a practical route for transforming industrial battery waste into photovoltaic materials.

The efficient separation of monovalent and divalent ions remains a core challenge in desalination and ion resource recovery. Here, we propose an electrochemical confinement strategy to spatially organize EDTA into aligned arrays within the one-dimensional transport channels of TFP-Tag membrane with a pore size of 1.1 nm. This structure establishes a biomimetic, gradient-functionalized conical nanochannel. The negatively charged upper channel regions capture and block divalent ions, while the lower regions with their larger pore size and an anion-affinitive local environment facilitate monovalent ion transport, thereby achieving highly selective monovalent/divalent ion separation. The membrane exhibits outstanding monovalent/divalent ion separation performance in multi-ion mixed solutions, with Na ⁺ flux reaching 10.6 mmol m ⁻² hour ⁻¹ and the selectivity of Na ⁺ /Mg ²⁺ exceeding 500. This breakthrough separation behavior is attributed to an induced transport lag effect arising from the synergy between the COF structure and the chelation-assisted retardation of divalent ions by EDTA. This study establishes a theoretical framework for the rational design of ion-separation membranes exhibiting simultaneous high-selectivity and high-flux performance.

Co-processing municipal solid waste (MSW) in cement kilns can recover waste as an alternative fuel and raw material, but MSW-derived organic chlorine (O-Cl) may circulate within the kiln system and deteriorate clinker quality and cement performance, thereby limiting MSW dosage. Here, polyvinyl chloride was used as a representative O-Cl source and co-processed with cement raw meal (CRM) to quantify Cl transformation, clinker retention, and cement compressive strength. Released Cl was captured by CRM and transformed into C12A7Cl2 and Alinite. C12A7Cl2 first remained in clinker when the initial Cl content in CRM (CI) reached 0.50%, corresponding to a residual clinker Cl content of 0.18%, whereas Alinite first remained in clinker when CI reached 1.00%, corresponding to a residual clinker Cl content of 0.74%. A residual clinker Cl content of 0.46% produced the greatest compressive-strength enhancement. A dynamic steady-state Cl circulation model was developed using experimental Cl volatilization data. The simulation results showed that, under continuous Cl cycling, the cycled Cl mass reaches 14 times the initial Cl mass when CI<0.016%. Additionally, residual clinker Cl contents of 0.18%, 0.46%, and 0.74% corresponded to CI values of 0.13%, 0.32%, and 0.50%, respectively, which were significantly lower than identified CI in the isolated experiments without Cl circulation. This study provides a predictive framework for tracking MSW-derived Cl flow and regulating Cl input during cement kiln co-processing.

Developing bulk substrates with high phosphorus (P) removal efficiency remains a critical bottleneck in constructed wetlands (CWs). In this study, an alkaline-activated substrate (FBG) modified by lanthanum (La) for effective P removal was synthesized from fly ash and sludge biochar utilizing over 80 wt% of industrial solid wastes. The incorporation of biochar enlarged the mesoporous structure (D = 23.66 nm) of FBG while maintaining a high compressive strength (36.16 MPa). Two La modification strategies, oscillation-assisted precipitation (O-La-FBG) and ultrasound-assisted dispersion (U-La-FBG), were systematically compared. O-La-FBG yielded La(OH)3 agglomerates favoring a higher P adsorption capacity (3.34 mg/g), whereas U-La-FBG generated well-defined La(OH)3 nanoflowers with a more exceptional La utilization efficiency (209 mg P/g La). Theoretical calculations of the bonding state of La on the substrate indicated that La(OH)3 species were significantly more reactive toward silicon-oxygen species than structurally stable Al-O tetrahedrons. XPS and FTIR analyses revealed the P adsorption mechanism dominated by electrostatic attraction and inner-sphere ligand exchange between protonated La(OH)2+ and H2PO4-. Furthermore, a 30-day dynamic column study validated that although U-La-FBG offered higher La utilization efficiency, O-La-FBG was more suitable for long-term applications in CWs, with both consistently reducing effluent P concentration to below 0.2 mg/L. Overall, this study provides a sustainable management option for recycling industrial solid wastes into functional materials for P removal and benefits to realize the ”waste to resources” strategy.