Hongbo Xu

Passive daytime radiative cooling (PDRC) textiles offer an efficient pathway for personal thermal management. However, the inherent conflict between optical performance and mechanical robustness remains a formidable challenge. Although elastomer‐based electrospun nonwovens serve as a potential solution, they typically necessitate high nano‐filler loading for sufficient reflectance, which inevitably weakens interfacial bonding, leading to performance degradation and even structural failure during cyclic deformation. Herein, inspired by spider silk, we propose a filler‐free biomimetic rigid‐flexible synergy strategy regulated by dynamic hydrogen bonding. Via coaxial electrospinning, a robust TPU@PVDF‐HFP film (RTPF) comprising a thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) core and a polyvinylidene fluoride‐co‐hexafluoropropylene (PVDF‐HFP) sheath is engineered. The RTPF demonstrates outstanding mechanical strength (10.17 MPa) and elongation (301.34%), exhibiting superior mechanical and spectral stability with a mere 10.53% residual strain and 1.58% degradation after 1000 cycles at 30% strain. Attributed to high solar reflectance (96.2%) and long‐wave infrared emittance (92.5%), the RTPF achieves an average/maximum temperature reduction of 21.3/25.4°C on uncovered heated‐pad under 950 W·m ^{− 2} irradiation. Remarkably, it exhibits exceptional stability against rigorous washing and extreme environments (high/low temperatures and acid/alkali conditions). This bioinspired design achieves a synergistic enhancement of optical performance and mechanical robustness, paving the way for long‐term wearable cooling materials.

Hydrogen sensing is of great significance for environmental monitoring and safety due to the low explosion limit and high flammability of hydrogen gas. In this work, layered and bulk Ni-MOF precursors are designed and pyrolyzed to obtain Ni-Layer-Pyrolysis and Ni-Bulk-Pyrolysis materials. Structural characterizations reveal that Ni-Layer-Pyrolysis inherits a layered morphology with a core–shell structure, higher graphitization degree, and more uniform active sites compared with its bulk counterpart. Electrochemical studies demonstrate that Ni-Layer-Pyrolysis exhibits lower charge-transfer resistance and higher carrier density, which facilitate efficient electron transport. Gas-sensing tests show that the Ni-Layer-Pyrolysis sensor achieves a low detection limit of 100 ppm, a sensitivity of 6.24 at 8000 ppm H₂. Moreover, it displays excellent selectivity against common interfering gases and outstanding long-term stability over 40 days. These results indicate that the layered structure and core–shell architecture play a decisive role in enhancing sensitivity, selectivity, and durability. This study provides new insights into the design of MOF-derived nanostructures for high-performance hydrogen sensors with practical application potential.

Flexible radiative cooling materials can dissipate heat from objects without energy consumption, offering a sustainable approach to thermal management. Current research lacks radiative cooling materials combining eco‐friendliness and UV resistance. We develop a flexible and eco‐friendly ethyl cellulose (EC) film with durable UV resistance via a scalable electrospinning approach, enabling efficient daytime radiative cooling. The EC film has an average solar reflectance of 97.4% (0.3–2.5 μm) and a mid‐infrared emittance of 89.4% (8–13 μm), resulting in a theoretical radiative cooling power of 145 W m ⁻² . Therefore, under the solar radiation of 961 W m ⁻² , the EC film achieves a significant temperature reduction of about 10.4°C below the ambient temperature. Since the electron‐donation effect of the ethyl group, the ethyl groups can reduce the reactivity of hydroxyl groups and generate sacrificial carbon‐centered free radicals to enhance the UV stability of the EC film. After 600 h of continuous UV irradiation at 0.7 kW m ⁻² , the EC film exhibits an average solar reflectivity of 96.9%. Moreover, the EC film degrades naturally in soil within ≈ 8 months. The excellent refrigeration performance, UV stability, and eco‐friendliness of the EC film make it highly promising for diverse refrigeration applications.

Radiative cooling technology shows promise for improving thermoelectric generator (TEG) efficiency, but challenges in hot-end design and model validation remain. To address this, a Janus moth-eye-inspired device was developed, leveraging microstructure-enhanced absorption/emission. This device combines a SiO₂ radiative cooler with a radiative Si photothermal absorber in a synergistic configuration. When integrated into a commercial TEG for gradient-based power generation, the Janus composite demonstrated exceptional performance: a peak output voltage of 108 mV, an average daytime voltage of 70 mV under summer daylight conditions, and an output power density reaching 41.5 μW/cm². This study systematically investigates the key parameters of the Janus structure and their impact on the voltage output. Furthermore, it experimentally validates the efficacy of both the SiO₂ radiative cooler and Si photothermal absorber in boosting TEG performance. These findings establish a foundation for future research on stable, rigid biomimetic microstructured thin films for advanced thermoelectric applications.

High‐emission coatings are the focus of significant attention for their efficient thermal protection in aerospace applications. Aluminum–chromium phosphate solution (ACP) was synthesized in this study by utilizing H ₃ PO ₄ , Al(OH) ₃ , CrO _3, and CH ₃ OH as raw materials. Subsequently, a room‐temperature curing high‐emissivity coating was effectively developed by employing ACP as the binder, Mg‐MOF‐74 as the curing agent, SiC and ZrB ₂ as radiating agents, and Al ₂ O ₃ and ZrO ₂ as high‐temperature stabilizers. Consequently, the coating exhibited exceptional thermal stability and radiation performance, with a mass residue rate of 98.71% after exposure to 1500°C. And the emissivity exceeded 0.93 at room temperature and measured ε _{(3–8 µm)} = 0.84 and ε _{(8–18 µm)} = 0.9 after treatment at 1200°C. Thus, the coating developed in this study provides durable and highly effective thermal protection under high‐temperature conditions.

Solar interfacial distillation (SID) is a highly economical and environmentally friendly freshwater obtaining technology. Although the energy efficiency for water evaporation is approaching 100%, the yield of clean liquid water still remains at a relatively low level, primarily due to inefficient condensation driving force and unstable light absorbance caused by uncondensed fog droplets. Here, we present a wavelength-anisotropic conductive interface solar distillation system (WADS) that fundamentally redefines energy flow management. By spectrally decoupling solar absorption (0.2-2.5 μm) from thermal radiation (8-13 μm), WADS achieves the simultaneous enhancement of photothermal conversion and passive radiative cooling. This dual-mode operation enables directional energy transport─sunlight influx through transparent channels and heat dissipation via high-emissivity nanostructures─establishing a self-sustaining thermal gradient that amplifies condensation kinetics while suppressing light scattering. Based on the above design, the clean liquid water production with 3D photothermal component reached 4.03 kg·m^-2·h^-1 under 1 sun, representing a 10-fold improvement over conventional SID, with nighttime production (0.75 kg·m^-2·h^-1) through continuous radiative cooling. Beyond desalination, WADS demonstrates a synergistic resource recovery from brines, enabling efficient mineral preconcentration. This integrated energy-loop architecture presents a new paradigm for addressing coupled water-energy-resource challenges.