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African swine fever virus (ASFV) causes hemorrhagic infectious disease in pigs with a fatality rate of nearly 100%. In this study, we developed a visual strand exchange amplification detection assay for ASFV. In the presence of ASFV, DNA amplification products containing multimeric G-quadruplex sequences were amplified by strand exchange amplification. These G-quadruplexes, assembled with hemin to form DNAzyme, displayed enhanced significant "turned-on" colorimetric signals to indicate detection results. The results showed that dimeric DNAzyme had the best visualization effect. Under the optimal reaction parameters, there was a linear relationship between the absorbance of the reaction solution at 417 nm and the logarithm of ASFV concentration ranged from 1 × 10

Due to climate variation and global warming, utilization of renewable energy becomes increasingly imperative. Rechargeable potassium-ion batteries (PIBs) have lately attracted much attention due to their earth-abundance and cost-effectiveness. Because soft carbon materials are cheap, abundant, and safe, extensive feasible research studies have indicated that they could become promising anode materials for PIBs. In spite of gaining achievements, fundamental questions regarding effects of the basic structure unit inside soft carbon on potassium storage potential have not been sufficiently addressed yet. Here, a series of soft carbon pyrolyzed from 900 to 2900 °C were systematically and quantitatively characterized by combining Raman spectroscopy, near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) spectroscopy, X-ray pair distribution function analysis, and advanced evaluation of wide-angle X-ray scattering data. All these characterizations reveal structural details of soft carbon with increasing pyrolysis temperature. Our results show that the potassium storage behavior, especially the potential plateau is closely correlated to non-uniformity in interlayer distance and defect concentration in soft carbon, which is further confirmed by reverse Monte Carlo (RMC) modeling and density functional theory calculation. On the basis of these results, optimizing strategies are discussed to design an advanced soft carbon anode. This work provides significant insights into the structure engineering of soft carbon for high-performance rechargeable PIBs.

Rechargeable lithium (Li)-metal batteries have great potential for high energy and low cost, but poor Li anode stability remains a challenge. Carbon host structures have been widely studied; howeve...

Aqueous batteries have engendered increasing attention as promising solutions for stationary energy storage due to their potentially low cost and innate safety. In various aqueous battery systems, Prussian blue analogues (PBAs) represent a class of promising electrode materials with fascinating electrochemical performance, owing to their large open frameworks, abundant ion insertion sites, and facile preparation. To date, PBAs have shown substantial progress towards storage of alkali metal ions (Li+, Na+, and K+), H+, and NH4+ in aqueous electrolytes, which, however, has yet not been specifically summarized. This review selects some representative research to introduce the progress of PBAs in these battery systems and aims to discuss the crucial role of ionic charge carrier in affecting the overall electrode performance. Besides, some critical knowledge gaps and challenges of PBA materials have been pointed out for future development. This review introduces the recent progress of Prussian blue analogues for aqueous monovalent ion batteries, including metal ions of Li+, Na+, K+, and non-metal ions of H+ and NH4+.

Although the utilization of mildly acidic electrolyte can enhance the stability and reversibility of Zn anode, it is still challenging to achieve long cycling life for aqueous Zn batteries at low currents, due to the structural instability of cathode materials during the charge/discharge processes. Herein, we report a series of polypyrenes with different linking patterns and electronic structures as Cl−-hosting organic cathodes for aqueous Zn dual-ion batteries (AZDIBs). The comparative study demonstrates that the electronic structures are pivotal to the redox activity of the polypyrenes, which can be tuned by altering the linking patterns on the pyrene unit. Owing to the high surface area, the highly delocalized HOMO distribution, the high HOMO level and the narrow band gap, the polymer CLPy with 1,3,6,8-linking pattern delivers a much higher capacity of 180 mA h g−1 than the two linear counterparts (24 mA h g−1 for LPy-1 and 44 mA h g−1 for LPy-2). Impressively, CLPy exhibits ultra-stable cyclabilities with the capacity retentions of 97.4% after 800 cycles at 50 mA g−1 and 96.4% after 38 000 cycles at 3 A g−1. CLPy also shows a low self-discharge rate with around 90% capacity retention after resting for 28 days. The excellent electrochemical performance demonstrates that CLPy can be a promising cathode material for high-performance AZDIBs.

A non-aqueous proton electrolyte is devised by dissolving H3 PO4 into acetonitrile. The electrolyte exhibits unique vibrational signatures from stimulated Raman spectroscopy. Such an electrolyte exhibits unique characteristics compared to aqueous acidic electrolytes: 1) higher (de)protonation potential for a lower desolvation energy of protons, 2) better cycling stability by dissolution suppression, and 3) higher Coulombic efficiency owing to the lack of oxygen evolution reaction. Two non-aqueous proton full cells exhibit better cycling stability, higher Coulombic efficiency, and less self-discharge compared to the aqueous counterpart.

Cronobacter sakazakii is an important opportunistic food-borne pathogen, and it can cause severe diseases with main symptoms including neonatal meningitis, necrotizing enterocolitis, and sepsis. For the achievement of practical and convenient detection of viable C. sakazakii, a simple and robust strategy based on the cascade signal amplification of RT-PCR triggered G-quadruplex DNAzyme catalyzed reaction was firstly used to develop an effective and sensitive DNAzyme electrochemical assay. Without viable C. sakazakii in the samples there are no RT-PCR and DNAzyme products, which can cause a weak electrochemical response. Once viable C. sakazakii exists in the samples, an obvious enhancement of the electrochemical response can be achieved after the target signal is amplified by RT-PCR and the resulting DNAzyme, which catalyze the oxidation of 3,3',5,5'-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) by H2O2 with the assistance of the cofactor hemin. Our novel assay can be performed in a range of 2.4 × 107 CFU mL-1 to 3.84 × 104 CFU mL-1 (R2 = 0.9863), with a detection limit of 5.01 × 102 CFU mL-1. Through the assay of 15 real samples, electrochemical detection assay provided the same results as conventional detection methods. Therefore, detection of viable C. sakazakii based on G-quadruplex DNAzyme electrochemical assay with RT-PCR demonstrates the significant advantages of high sensitivity, low cost and simple manipulation over existing approaches and offers an opportunity for potential application in pathogen detection.

For early detection and diagnosis of gastric cancer, a novel, highly sensitive detection of microRNA-378 was developed through rolling circle amplification and DNA-templated silver nanoclusters as a lable-free fluorescent probe. DNA-templated fluorescent silver nanoclusters (DNA/AgNCs) to make target signal cascade amplification were prepared and identified through their fluorescent spectrum. MiRNA-378 trigged rolling circle amplification to obtain the complementary sequence (cDNA) to combine with two DNA/AgNCs in the middle of a sandwich structure to induce the new fluorescent signal at a new wavelength. In the presence of microRNA-378, a large amount of RCA product cDNAs were hybridized with DNA/AgNCs as the fluorescence nanocluster beacon, resulting in fluorescence enhanced “turn-on” phenomenon. This study indicated that amplified fluorescence detection of microRNA-378 is a stable, low-cost, highly specific, and ultra-low as 1.07 fM detectability. The proposed approach of signal synergetic amplification facilitating the fluorescence detection microRNA shows great potential for potentially clinically diagnosis.

Machine learning algorithms as a powerful tool can efficiently utilize and process large quantities of data generated by high-throughput experiments in various fields. In this work, we used a general ionic salt-assisted synthesis method to prepare oxidase-like Fe-N-C SANs. The possible reason for the excellent enzyme-mimicking activity and affinity of Fe-N-C SANs was further verified by density functional theory calculations. Due to the remarkable oxidase-mimicking activity, the prepared Fe-N-C SANs were used to detect ascorbic acid (AA) with a detection limit of 0.5 μM. Based on the machine learning algorithms, we successfully distinguished six antioxidants (ascorbic acid, glutathione, L-cysteine, dithiothreitol, uric acid, and dopamine) with the same concentration by either one kind of Fe-N-C SANs or three kinds of different Fe-N-C SANs. The usefulness of the Fe-N-C SANs sensor arrays was further validated by the hierarchal cluster analysis, where they also can be correctly identified. More importantly, a SANs-based digital-image colorimetric sensor array has also been successfully constructed and thereby achieved visual and informative colorimetric analysis for practical samples out of the lab. This work not only provides a design synthesis method to prepare SANs but also combines machine learning algorithms with SANs sensors to identify analytes with similar properties, which can further expand to the detection of proteins and cells related to diseases in the future.

Potassium-ion batteries (KIBs) have attracted wide interests for energy storage because of the abundance of the electrode materials involved; however, their electrochemical performances are far behind what can be achieved from lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) or sodium-ion batteries (SIBs). This paper identifies key promising electrode and electrolyte materials for potassium-ion batteries, investigates the coupled electrochemical reactions in the cell, and demonstrates that the compatibility between different materials plays the most important role. K2 Mn[Fe(CN)6 ] cathode can deliver a high capacity of ∼125 mAh g-1 and exceptional cycling stability over 61,000 cycles (∼9 months) if the side reactions from the anode can be prevented. Graphite is a good anode material but is subjected to degradation in traditional carbonate electrolytes. New concentrated electrolytes are developed and evaluated. A stable KIB system is demonstrated by coupling a stable K2 Mn[Fe(CN)6 ] cathode, a pre-potassiated graphite anode with a concentrated electrolyte to achieve a high energy density of ∼260 Wh kg-1 (based on the active mass of cathode and anode) and good cycling of over 1000 cycles. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

We demonstrate a disposable aqueous primary battery chemistry that comprises environmentally benign materials of the sulfur cathode and Zn anode in a 1 M ZnCl2 aqueous electrolyte. The Zn–S battery shows a high energy density of 1083.3 Wh kg−1 for sulphur with a flat discharge voltage plateau around 0.7 V. When operating at a high mass loading of 8.3 mg cm−2 for sulfur in the cathode, the battery exhibits a very high areal capacity of 11.4 mA h cm−2 and areal energy of 7.7 mW h cm−2.

Iron ion batteries using Fe

The elemental sulfur electrode with Cu2+ as the charge carrier gives a four-electron sulfur electrode reaction through the sequential conversion of S↔CuS↔Cu2 S. The Cu-S redox-ion electrode delivers a high specific capacity of 3044 mAh g-1 based on the sulfur mass or 609 mAh g-1 based on the mass of Cu2 S, the completely discharged product, and displays an unprecedently high potential of sulfur/metal sulfide reduction at 0.5 V vs. SHE. The Cu-S electrode also exhibits an extremely low extent of polarization of 0.05 V and an outstanding cycle number of 1200 cycles retaining 72 % of the initial capacity at 12.5 A g-1 . The remarkable utility of this Cu-S cathode is further demonstrated in a hybrid cell that employs an Zn metal anode and an anion-exchange membrane as the separator, which yields an average cell discharge voltage of 1.15 V, the half-cell specific energy of 547 Wh kg-1 based on the mass of the Cu2 S/carbon composite cathode, and stable cycling over 110 cycles.

The interactions between charge carriers and electrode structures represent one of the most important considerations in the search for new energy storage devices. Currently, ionic bonding dominates the battery chemistry. Here we report the reversible insertion of a large molecular dication, methyl viologen, into the crystal structure of an aromatic solid electrode, 3,4,9,10-perylenetetracarboxylic dianhydride. This is the largest insertion charge carrier when non-solvated ever reported for batteries; surprisingly, the kinetic properties of the (de)insertion of methyl viologen are excellent with 60% of capacity retained when the current rate is increased from 100 mA g−1 to 2000 mA g−1. Characterization reveals that the insertion of methyl viologen causes phase transformation of the organic host, and embodies guest-host chemical bonding. First-principles density functional theory calculations suggest strong guest-host interaction beyond the pure ionic bonding, where a large extent of covalency may exist. This study extends the boundary of battery chemistry to large molecular ions as charge carriers and also highlights the electrochemical assembly of a supramolecular system., Rechargeable batteries are governed by reversible intercalation reactions. Here the authors expand the intercalation chemistry to include methyl viologen as a large dicationic charge carrier in aqueous batteries. The bonding between guest and aromatic host is not pure ionic but shows strong covalent character.

Summary It is accepted that the performance of batteries is dominated by the properties of their electrode materials. However, this maxim is built from the practice that the majority of research efforts have been directed toward batteries that use metal ions as the charge carriers. Herein, we show that the use of NH4+ results in battery performance governed by the chemical nature of the ion-electrode interaction. Specifically, we show that H bonding between NH4+ and a bi-layered V2O5 electrode is coupled with prominent pseudocapacitive behavior. The importance of the H bonding is demonstrated by comparing the storage of NH4+ in V2O5 with storage of K+. In addition to having a higher capacity and longer life of 30,000 cycles, NH4+ storage is overwhelmingly more pseudocapacitive than the K+ storage. Furthermore, first-principle calculations reveal an intriguing ion rotation-diffusion mechanism of NH4+ inside the V2O5 structure, akin to swinging on monkey bars.

Dual-ion batteries are known for anion storage in the cathode coupled to cation incorporation in the anode. We flip the sequence of the anion/cation-storage chemistries of the anode and the cathode...

We report reversible electrochemical insertion of NO3 - into manganese(II, III) oxide (Mn3 O4 ) as a cathode for aqueous dual-ion batteries. Characterization by TGA, FTIR, EDX, XANES, EXAFS, and EQCM collectively provides unequivocal evidence that reversible oxidative NO3 - insertion takes place inside Mn3 O4 . Ex situ HRTEM and corresponding EDX mapping results suggest that NO3 - insertion de-crystallizes the structure of Mn3 O4 . Kinetic studies reveal fast migration of NO3 - in the Mn3 O4 structure. This finding may open a new direction for novel low-cost aqueous dual-ion batteries.

The design of Faradaic battery electrodes that exhibit high rate capability and long cycle life equivalent to those of the electrodes of electrical double-layer capacitors is a big challenge. Here we report a strategy to fill this performance gap using the concept of Grotthuss proton conduction, in which proton transfer takes place by means of concerted cleavage and formation of O–H bonds in a hydrogen-bonding network. We show that in a hydrated Prussian blue analogue (Turnbull’s blue) the abundant lattice water molecules with a contiguous hydrogen-bonding network facilitate Grotthuss proton conduction during redox reactions. When using it as a battery electrode, we find high-rate behaviours at 4,000 C (380 A g−1, 508 mA cm−2), and a long cycling life of 0.73 million cycles. These results for diffusion-free Grotthuss topochemistry of protons, in contrast to orthodox battery electrochemistry, which requires ion diffusion inside electrodes, indicate a potential direction to revolutionize electrochemical energy storage for high-power applications. This Article presents a battery with protons as the charge carrier, as opposed to Li-ion batteries, which rely on the transport of Li-ions. Protons are conducted by means of the Grotthuss mechanism in a hydrated Prussian blue analogue electrode, offering potential for ultrafast rate and long-life batteries.

Well-defined Na2Zn3[Fe(CN)6]2 nanocrystals (~300 nm) have been fabricated by a facile controlled crystallization method from low-cost precursors at room temperature. By employing [Fe(CN)6]3−/[Fe(CN)6]4− couples as redox centres, this material can realize a theoretical 1Na-storage capacity of 70 mAh g−1, a superior high-rate capability of 20 C and an impressive cycle life of 1000 cycles, offering a low-cost and high-performance alternative cathode for large-scale Na-ion applications. Keywords: Na-ion batteries, Prussian blue analogues, Intercalation cathode, Energy storage

Aqueous K+ and NH4+ ion batteries are emerging as promising alternatives for energy storage; however, the lack of excellent anode materials limits their development. Here we demonstrate a polyimide material as an appealing anode in “water-in-salt” (WiS) electrolytes of potassium acetate and ammonium acetate. Specifically, this anode delivers a high capacity of ~140 mAh g−1, a high rate capability of 200C, and outstanding cycling of 30,000 cycles for K+ storage. Interestingly, it exhibits an even higher capacity of ~160 mAh g−1, a comparable rate capability of 100C, and excellent cycling of 30,000 cycles for NH4+ storage. Such electrochemical performance surpasses that in conventional diluted electrolytes, which highlights the benefits of WiS electrolytes in bolstering ion storage properties.

Listeria monocytogenes is a kind of foodborne pathogen, which can cause meningitis, septicemia, gastroenteritis, and abortion with a fatality rate of up to 30%. Rapid, sensitive, and convenient detection of L. monocytogenes in food is an important strategy for controlling contamination and infection. In this study, an enhanced visual detection assay for L. monocytogenes based on an isothermal amplified peroxidase-mimicking catalytic beacon was developed. When L. monocytogenes existed, G-quadruplex sequences were amplified together with targeted gene sequence by polymerase spiral reaction (PSR). G-quadruplex adequately formed DNAzyme with hemin to have an enhanced peroxidase-like bioactivity with help of Nb. BbvCI nicking endonuclease, which could display significant colorimetric signals for indicating positive results qualitatively. The sensitivity test results determined that our assay enabled the quantitative detection of L. monocytogenes ranging from 10 to 105 CFU mL−1, as well as had a detection limit of 3.1 CFU mL−1, which was lower than previous visual detection assays for L. monocytogenes. Besides, it was notable that this assay could detect L. monocytogenes with the concentration of 2.0 lg CFU/g in artificially contaminated pork samples within about 4 h, with the advantages of high sensitivity, simple operation, and good visual signal output. We believed the improved visual detection assay based on isothermal amplified peroxidase-mimicking catalytic beacon showed great potential for food safety analysis.

COVID-19, a new respiratory infectious disease, was first reported at the end of 2019, in Wuhan, China. Now, COVID-19 is still causing major loss of human life and economic productivity in almost all countries around the world. Early detection, early isolation, and early diagnosis of COVID-19 patients and asymptomatic carriers are essential to blocking the spread of the pandemic. This paper briefly reviewed COVID-19 diagnostic assays for clinical application, including nucleic acid tests, immunological methods, and Computed Tomography (CT) imaging. Nucleic acid tests (NAT) target the virus genome and indicates the existence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Currently, real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) is the most widely used NAT and, basically, is the most used diagnostic assay for COVID-19. Besides qPCR, many novel rapid and sensitive NAT assays were also developed. Serological testing (detection of serum antibodies specific to SARS-CoV-2), which belongs to the immunological methods, is also used in the diagnosis of COVID-19. The positive results of serological testing indicate the presence of antibodies specific to SARS-CoV-2 resulting from being infected with the virus. Viral antigen detection assays are also important immunological methods used mainly for rapid virus detection. However, only a few of these assays had been reported. CT imaging is still an important auxiliary diagnosis tool for COVID-19 patients, especially for symptomatic patients in the early stage, whose viral load is low and different to be identified by NAT. These diagnostic techniques are all good in some way and applying a combination of them will greatly improve the accuracy of COVID-19 diagnostics.

A non-aqueous proton electrolyte is devised by dissolving H

Proton batteries are emerging as a promising solution for energy storage; however, their development has been hindered by the lack of suitable cathode materials. Herein, a hydrous Turnbull's blue analogue (TBA) of Ni[Fe(CN)

Aqueous batteries represent promising solutions for large-scale energy storage considering the cost, safety, and performance. Despite the tremendous efforts devoted to the metal cations as charge carriers for batteries, scarce attention has been paid to the non-metal cations such as proton or ammonium. In this study, we report that a Berlin green framework exhibits much greater structural compatibility for NH4+ (de)insertion than Na+ and K+. Ex situ structural studies reveal that the topochemistry of NH4+ in Berlin green is of nearly zero strain. The NH4+ topotactic performance gives rise to a higher operation potential and an ultralong cycling performance of 50,000 cycles with 78% capacity retention, far superior to Na+ and K+ (de)insertion. Furthermore, we propose a double-ion battery, where the Berlin green cathode hosts NH4+ and sodium titanium phosphate NaTi2(PO4)3 accommodates Na+ during operation. Such a new system exhibits promising results in capacity and cycling life. Our results point to a new ...

To fill the gap between batteries and supercapacitors requires integration of the following features in a single system: energy density well above that of supercapacitors, cycle life much longer than Li-ion batteries, and low cost. Along this line, we report a novel nonaqueous potassium-ion hybrid capacitor (KIC) that employs an anode of K2Ti6O13 (KTO) microscaffolds constructed by nanorods and a cathode of N-doped nanoporous graphenic carbon (NGC). K2Ti6O13 microscaffolds are studied for potential applications as the anode material in potassium-ion storage for the first time. This material exhibits an excellent capacity retention of 85% after 1000 cycles. In addition, the NGC//KTO KIC delivers a high energy density of 58.2 Wh kg–1 based on the active mass in both electrodes, high power density of 7200 W kg–1, and outstanding cycling stability over 5000 cycles. The usage of K ions as the anode charge carrier instead of Li ions and the amenable performance of this device suggest that hybrid capacitor devic...