Covalent Organic Framework Fiber-Constructed Artificial Solid Electrolyte Interphase Layer: Facilitated Uniform Deposition of Li+ and Encapsulated Li Dendrite.

Due to ultrahigh theoretical capacity and ultralow redox poteneial, lithium metal is considered as a promising anode material. However, uneven lithium deposition, uncontrollable lithium dendrite formation, and fragile solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) lead to low lithium utilization, rapid capacity decay, and poor cycle performance. Herein, a robust artificial SEI film by coating the lithium surface with fibrous covalent organic framework (Fib-COF) was constructed, which effectively prevented dendrite penetration and battery short-circuits. Experimental results demonstrated that the Fib-COF-decorated batteries showcased higher Coulombic efficiency (CE), extended cycling stability, and superior electrolyte compatibility. The strong affinity of the carbonyl group in Fib-COF towards Li+ contributes to facilitating the Li+ uniform transfer and nucleation. In situ optical microscopy dynamically revealed the formation process of dendrite-free interphase under the function of Fib-COF layer. As a result, the modified Li anode demonstrated remarkable cycle stability for more than 650 h at 20 mA cm-2 and 5 mAh cm-2 in ether-based electrolyte and 1000 h at 0.5 mA cm-2 and 0.5 mAh cm-2 in carbonate-based electrolyte. The dendrite-free Fib-COF@Li electrodes endowed higher specific capacities of 650 mAh g-1 for Fib-COF@Li|S full cell after 250 cycles and 120 mAh g-1 for Fib-COF @Li|LiFePO4 full cells after 300 cycles.

Climate change effects on hatching success and embryonic development of fish: Assessing multiple stressor responses in a large-scale mesocosm study.

Climate change threatens freshwater fish species due to predicted changes in thermal, sedimentary and hydrological properties of stream ecosystems. Gravel-spawning fish are particularly sensitive to such alterations as warming, higher inputs of fine sediment and low-flow all have potentially negative effects on the functionality of their reproductive habitat, the hyporheic zone. Multiple stressors can interact in synergistic and antagonistic manners, causing surprise-effects that cannot be predicted from the additive consideration of individual stressors. For obtaining reliable, yet realistic data on the climate change stressor effects warming (+3-4 °C), fine sediment (increase in <0.85 mm by 22 %) and low-flow (eightfold discharge-reduction), we constructed a unique large-scale outdoor-mesocosm facility consisting of 24 flumes to study individual and combined stressor responses in a fully-crossed, 3-way-replicated design. To acquire representative results reflecting individual susceptibilities of gravel-spawning fish species due to taxonomic affiliation or spawning seasonality, we studied hatching success and embryonic development in the three fish species brown trout (Salmo trutta L.), common nase (Chondrostoma nasus L.) and Danube salmon (Hucho hucho L.). Fine sediment had the most significant single negative effect on both hatching rates and embryonic development (-80 % in brown trout, -50 % in nase, -60 % in Danube salmon). When fine sediment was combined with one or both of the other stressors, we observed strongly synergistic stressor responses, being distinctly stronger in the two salmonid species than in the cyprinid nase. Danube salmon was most susceptible to synergistic effects due to warmer spring water temperatures exacerbating the fine sediment-induced hypoxia, hence leading to complete mortality of fish eggs. This study highlights that individual and multiple-stressor effects depend strongly on life-history traits of respective species and that climate change stressors have to be assessed in combination to obtain representative results due to the high level of synergisms and antagonisms detected in this study.

Hydrogen-Bonded Organic Framework as Superior Separator with High Lithium Affinity C═N Bond for Low N/P Ratio Lithium Metal Batteries.

Lithium dendrite and side reactions are two major challenges for lithium metal anode. Here, the highly lithophilic triazine ring in the hydrogen-bonded organic framework is recommended to accelerate the desolvation process of lithium ions. Among them, the formation of Li-N bonds between lithium ions and the triazine ring in CAM reduces the diffusion energy barrier of Li+ crossing the SEI interface and the desolvation energy barrier of Li+ exiting from the solvent sheath so that the rapid and homogeneous deposition of lithium-ion can be achieved. Meanwhile, the lithium-ion migration coefficient can be as high as 0.70. CAM separator is used to assemble lithium metal batteries with nickel-rich cathodes (NCM 622). When N/P = 8 and 5, the capacity retention rates of Li-NCM 622 full cell are 78.2% and 80.5% after 200 and 110 cycles, respectively, and the Coulomb efficiency can be maintained at 99.5%, showing excellent cycle stability.

Interfacial Anchored Sesame Ball-like Ag/C To Guide Lithium Even Plating and Stripping Behavior.

Lithium (Li) metal is a candidate anode for the next generation of high-energy density secondary batteries. Unfortunately, Li metal anodes (LMAs) are extremely reactive with electrolytes to accumulate uncontrolled dendrites and to generate unwanted parasitic electrochemical reactions. Much attention has been focused on carbon materials to address these issues. Ulteriorly, the failure mechanism investigation of lithiophilic sites on carbon materials has been not taken seriously. Herein, we design a new type of sesame ball-like carbon sphere (AgNPs@CS, an average diameter of ∼700 nm) with uniformly interfacial anchored silver nanoparticles (AgNPs), which is used as the dendrite-free Li metal anode host. This anchored structure significantly enhances reversible and chemical affinity of Li, effectively inhibiting "dead Li". In addition, the protective effect of the carbon layer can avoid the damage of lithiophilic AgNPs in the carbon matrix. With a plating/striping capacity of 2 mA h cm-2, the AgNPs@CS electrode can be cycled over 2400 h at 0.5 mA cm-2. When the stripping voltage increases to 1 V, the AgNPs@CS electrode also enables excellent cycling stability to achieve over 260 cycles (1 mA cm-2, 1 mA h cm-2) and 130 cycles (2 mA cm-2, 1 mA h cm-2). This material by electrochemical characterization highlights the efficacy of this facile method for developing dendrite-free LMAs.

Genome and transcriptome reveal lithophilic adaptation of Cladophialophora brunneola, a new rock-inhabiting fungus.

Rock-inhabiting fungi (RIF) are slow-growing microorganisms that inhabit rocks and exhibit exceptional stress tolerance owing to their thick melanised cell walls. This study reports the identification of a novel rock-inhabiting fungus, Cladophialophora brunneola sp. nov. which was isolated from a karst landform in Guizhou, China, using a combination of morphological and phylogenetic analyses. The genome of C. brunneola was sequenced and assembled, with a total size of approximately 33.8 Mb, encoding 14,168 proteins and yielding an N50 length of 1.88 Mb. C. brunneola possessed a larger proportion of species-specific genes, and phylogenomic analysis positioned it in an early diverged lineage within Chaetothyriales. In comparison to non-RIF, C. brunneola displayed reduction in carbohydrate-active enzyme families (CAZymes) and secondary metabolite biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs). Transcriptome analysis conducted under PEG-induced drought stress revealed elevated expression levels of genes associated with melanin synthesis pathways, cell wall biosynthesis, and lipid metabolism. This study contributes to our understanding of the genomic evolution and polyextremotolerance exhibited by rock-inhabiting fungi.

Rock-inhabiting fungi: terminology, diversity, evolution and adaptation mechanisms.

Rock-inhabiting fungi (RIF) constitute an ecological group associated with terrestrial rocks. This association is generally restricted to the persistent colonisation of rocks and peculiar morphological features based on melanisation and slow growth, which endow RIF with significance in eukaryotic biology, special status in ecology, and exotic potential in biotechnology. There is a need to achieve a better understanding of the hidden biodiversity, antistress biology, origin and convergent evolution of RIF, which will facilitate cultural relic preservation, exploitation of the biogeochemical cycle of rock elements and biotechnology applications. This review focuses on summarising the current knowledge of rock-inhabiting fungi, with particular reference to terminology, biodiversity and geographic distribution, origin and evolution, and stress adaptation mechanisms. We especially teased out the definition through summing up the terms related to rock-inhabting fungi, and also provided a checklist of rock-inhabiting fungal taxa recorded following updated classification schemes.

Five new species of the genus Primulina (Gesneriaceae) from Limestone Areas of Guangxi Zhuangzu Autonomous Region, China.

Five new species of Primulina (Gesneriaceae) are described and illustrated here, namely P.purpureokylin F. Wen, Yi Huang & W. Chuen Chou, P.persica F. Wen, Yi Huang & W. Chuen Chou, P.cerina F. Wen, Yi Huang & W. Chuen Chou, P.niveolanosa F. Wen, S. Li & W. Chuen Chou and P.leiyyi F. Wen, Z.B. Xin & W. Chuen Chou. The characteristic traits of these species, together with photographs, detailed descriptions, notes on etymology, distribution, and habitat, as well as comparisons with morphologically similar species, are provided.