Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) are promising materials for advanced molecular-separation membranes, but their wide nanometer-sized pores prevent selective gas separation through molecular sieving. Herein, we propose a MOF-in-COF concept for the confined growth of metal-organic framework (MOFs) inside a supported COF layer to prepare MOF-in-COF membranes. These membranes feature a unique MOF-in-COF micro/nanopore network, presumably due to the formation of MOFs as a pearl string-like chain of unit cells in the 1D channel of 2D COFs. The MOF-in-COF membranes exhibit an excellent hydrogen permeance (>3000 GPU) together with a significant enhancement of separation selectivity of hydrogen over other gases. The superior separation performance for H2/CO2 and H2/CH4 surpasses the Robeson upper bounds, benefiting from the synergy combining precise size sieving and fast molecular transport through the MOF-in-COF channels. The synthesis of different combinations of MOFs and COFs in robust MOF-in-COF membranes demonstrates the versatility of our design strategy.

In this study, we propose a new concept of vertically aligned 2D covalent organic framework (COF) layers forming a membrane for efficient gas separation on the basis of precise size exclusion. Gas transport takes place through the COF interlayer space (typically 0.3–0.4 nm) rather than through the nanometer-sized pore apertures. Construction of such a unique membrane architecture was implemented via in situ oriented growth of 2D COFs inside a skeleton of vertically aligned CoAl-layered double hydroxide (LDH) nanosheets. The resultant vertical COF-LZU1 membrane exhibits a high H2 permeance of ∼3600 GPU together with a desirable separation selectivity for gas mixtures such as H2/CO2 (31.6) and H2/CH4 (29.5), thus surpassing the 2008 Robeson upper bounds. The universality of this approach was demonstrated by successfully producing two types of high-quality vertical COF membranes with superior performance as well as outstanding running stability.

Ordered intermetallic nanomaterials are of considerable interest for fuel cell applications because of their unique electronic and structural properties. The synthesis of intermetallic compounds generally requires the use of high temperatures and multiple-step processes. The development of techniques for rapid phase- and size-controlled synthesis remains a formidable challenge. The intermetallic compound Pt1Bi2 is a promising candidate catalyst for direct methanol fuel cells because of its high catalytic activity and excellent methanol tolerance. In this work, we explored a one-step, facile and ultrafast phase- and size-controlled process for synthesizing ordered Pt-Bi intermetallic nanoparticles (NPs) within seconds in microfluidic reactors. Single-phase Pt1Bi1 and Pt1Bi2 intermetallic NPs were prepared by tuning the reaction temperature, and size control was achieved by modifying the solvents and the length of the reaction channel. The as-prepared Pt-Bi intermetallic NPs exhibited excellent methanol tolerance capacity and high electrocatalytic activity. Other intermetallic nanomaterials, such as Pt3Fe intermetallic nanowires with a diameter of 8.6 nm and Pt1Sn1 intermetallic nanowires with a diameter of 6.3 nm, were also successfully synthesized using this method, thus demonstrating its feasibility and generality.

Sodium-ion batteries are a very promising alternative to lithium-ion batteries because of their reliance on an abundant supply of sodium salts, environmental benignity, and low cost. However, the low rate capability and poor long-term stability still hinder their practical application. A cathode material, formed of RuO2 -coated Na3 V2 O2 (PO4 )2 F nanowires, has a 50 nm diameter with the space group of I4/mmm. When used as a cathode material for Na-ion batteries, a reversible capacity of 120 mAh g(-1) at 1 C and 95 mAh g(-1) at 20 C can be achieved after 1000 charge-discharge cycles. The ultrahigh rate capability and enhanced cycling stability are comparable with high performance lithium cathodes. Combining first principles computational investigation with experimental observations, the excellent performance can be attributed to the uniform and highly conductive RuO2 coating and the preferred growth of the (002) plane in the Na3 V2 O2 (PO4 )2 F nanowires.

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