During the last decade, inorganic nanoparticles have shown their therapeutic potential against infectious diseases, particularly in the fight against antimicrobial resistance. Inorganic nanomaterials may effectively address the drawbacks of conventional therapies since they possess optimized physicochemical properties in comparison to their bulk counterparts, such as large surface-to-volume ratio, heat resistance, and long-term stability. However, there are still manufacturing challenges that should be overcome for their successful clinical translation. Here, we review the current state-of-the-art on antimicrobial formulations based on inorganic nanoparticles and present (i) promising examples of particles with intrinsic antimicrobial behavior and (ii) an overview of the combination of inorganic nanoparticles with drugs, both small molecules such as antibiotics and larger biological drugs such as antimicrobial peptides that may lead to synergistic or improved antimicrobial therapies. The versatile properties of inorganic nanoparticles may be tuned to address efficacy challenges, highlighting the potential of such therapies.

The number of potential applications of two-dimensional (2D) materials for energy-related applications has grown in recent years. Since the discovery of graphene nanosheets, feasible fabrication processes of nanosheet membranes such as graphene derivatives at commercial scales have been proposed for gas separation and water treatment, along with development of novel nanosheet materials. 2D nanosheet electrocatalysts as a cluster of oriented nanosheets have also attracted attention with their advantages such as high electron mobility over the bulk counterparts for fuel cells, energy-storage devices, or electrolyzers. The ultrathin thickness and large specific surface areas of such materials can enhance the functionality of nanosheets with respect to catalytic activity, ion exchange, and surface energy. In this review, we explore recent progress in research on the latest 2D materials and their utilizations in membrane separation and electrocatalytic reactions.

Two-dimensional (2D) materials are receiving increasing attention in the field of gas separation as they promise to deliver the step change in performance that has been sought for decades. Research has focussed on the exploration of novel 2D structures, improvement in their fabrication technique and understanding their unique features. Their exploitation is still hindered by more limited efforts in terms of scale up, not only of the 2D building blocks but also of membrane productions, and in the investigation of the stability under real conditions. The recent reports on scaling-up attempt are summarised in this review. A joint effort between academia and manufacturer seems now crucial to unlock the potential of this technology.

The deployment of CCUS plants does not match the enormous requirements to meet the CO2 emission reductions fixed during the Paris agreement, and we must ask ourselves what is refraining the technology deployment, especially in light of the recent high CO2 prices. Owing to the higher costs than their fossil counterparts, Carbon Capture & Utilization represents a long-term solution. In addition to a gigantic scale-up effort even for the most mature Carbon Capture & Storage (CCS) technologies, various factors are responsible for the slow roll-out of CCS projects. Luckily, the financial sector and governments are playing their role. Support from the public is however key, and an open communication is required to convert social tolerance into social acceptance.

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The consensus of removing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from the environment is widely recognized and enlightened by the near-zero standards released from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 2023. The only way to achieve the goal of zero fluoro-pollution is to fully defluorinate or mineralize PFAS, but current technologies only partially defluorinate a limited number of PFAS, which can lead to the creation of potentially more toxic short-chain intermediates. Therefore, we discuss herein the need to broaden the scope of tested PFAS, summarize the state-of-the-art degradation technologies, and provide perspectives to achieve complete defluorination. Besides fundamental knowledge gaps in defluorination reactions, technological gaps in the aspects of water matrix effects, pilot tests, and cost analysis also limit the application and comparison of different treatment technologies. This work would shed light on further research to find solutions in the complete defluorination of PFAS.

Graphene oxide (GO) membranes have exhibited great potential as emerging platforms for separation applications. The subnanometer-scale two-dimensional channels inside GO membranes make them ideal candidates of ionic separation membranes for both water–ion and ion–ion selectivity. Based on the fundamental understanding of water and ion transport behavior, we discuss the strategies, including d-spacing modulation, surface functionalization, and heterostructure creation for rationally regulating the microstructure of GO membranes for enhanced ion sieving properties. Furthermore, we highlight the existing challenges and prospects of GO membranes for ionic separation toward practical applications.

As an emerging area, single-atom catalysts (SACs), in the past decade, have sparked tremendous research interests in various fields due to maximum atom utilization and excellent catalytic activity. Recently, SACs have been extended to peroxymonosulfate (PMS)-mediated advanced oxidation processes for organic wastewater remediation. In the current perspective, we first briefly overviewed typical synthetic methods and characterization techniques for metal–organic framework (MOF)-derived SACs. Then, we highlighted the degradation applications of various refractory organic pollutants via SAC/PMS systems. Subsequently, the catalytic mechanisms as well as the variety of reactive species were discussed. Finally, we proposed several future development directions for MOF-based SACs in environmental remediation.

Anthropogenic accumulation of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) rises many environmental issues, including global warming, ocean acidification, and glacial ablation. Electrocatalytic carbon dioxide reduction reaction (CO2RR) is an efficient approach to reducing atmospheric CO2 concentration as well as producing value-added chemicals. Single-atom electrocatalysts (SAECs) have attracted much attention due to their remarkable electrocatalytic performance. The synthetic methods of SAECs can significantly affect the structure and, thus the catalytic performance of energy conversion reactions like CO2RR. However, the underlying mechanism of the impacts has been largely overlooked. The focus of this short review is to reveal the correlation of synthetic methods with the catalytic performance of SAECs for CO2RR and provide insights for future research in this field.

Two-dimensional (2D) materials have shown great potential as novel membrane materials to enable next-generation separation membranes, attracting growing interest in recent years. 2D material membranes’ separation performance is governed by their microstructures, such as interlayer spacing between 2D nanosheets, nanosheet alignment, and membrane thickness, which are closely related to their fabrication methods. This mini-review article provides an overview of the most commonly used membrane fabrication methods for different 2D materials, including graphene-based materials, covalent–organic frameworks, metal–organic frameworks, MXenes, and others. The discussion focuses on the advantages and shortcomings of different fabrication methods and the correlation between fabrication methods and membrane separation performance with the latest representative examples. We highlight several critical issues: mass production, processability, structural stability, and cost. We propose that addressing these issues in the chemical engineering domain is the key to realizing practical applications of 2D material membranes and moving the field forward.

Plasma processing can be one of the drivers of low-carbon footprint chemical manufacturing using renewable electricity. Several established commercial processes already rely on this technology in different production sectors, such as metallurgy, waste-to-energy, olefin production, and ozone production. Emerging plasma applications such as activation of stable small molecules (e.g. CO2, CH4, and N2) can greatly outperform their thermo(catalytic) counterparts at mild operating conditions and low CO2 emissions. Nonetheless, a series of scientific and technical hurdles must be overcome to scale-up plasma processes without compromising energy efficiency and economics, thus enabling widespread implementation of plasma technology at industrial level.

Redox flow battery (RFB) has been widely considered to be one of the most promising grid-scale energy-storage technology. The membrane, namely separator, serves as preventing the crossover of the positive and negative active species, while facilitating the transport of the supporting electrolyte ions, is crucial to achieve a high performance and a long-term stability for an RFB. Advances in RFBs require high-performance and low-cost membranes with high ion-selective transport for the application of large-scale energy storage. Two-dimensional (2D) materials have emerged as promising functional materials owing to their atomic-scale thickness and unique physical/chemical properties, which have great potential in the application of RFB membrane. Focusing on the recent state-of-the-art of 2D materials, in this mini review, various 2D materials applied in the membrane for RFB are briefly introduced. A perspective on the near-future developments of 2D materials in RFB membranes is presented.

The application of newly electrified microwave heating to traditional processes of vapor-liquid mass transfer has given rise to many emerging process intensification technologies, such as microwave-induced evaporation separation and microwave-induced reactive (flash) distillation. Many researchers are eager to find suitable application scenarios for microwave technology by deeply understanding the role of microwaves in the separation process of vapor-liquid mass transfer. In this paper, we summarize the role of microwaves in the above processes from prespectives of the driving energy and microwave special effects, and briefly outline the bottlenecks in the current development to point out the research direction for subsequent fundamental investigations and industrial applications.

Electrification is a key factor for achieving carbon neutrality of the chemical industry. There are multiple approaches in the current discussion, which differ greatly in terms of technical readiness levels and fields of application. None of those individual approaches alone will reach the great aim, therefore one needs to look at all of them, and define a strategy for when and how they can be brought into play. Also, the contexts of raw material feedstocks and energy sourcing need to be considered. This paper proposes such a stagewise strategy, with immediate, mid-term, and long-term fields of action. It also provides an overview and evaluation of all process technology options for electrification currently in discussion in the technical community.

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Single-atom catalysts (SACs) have been extensively employed for peroxymonosulfate-based advanced oxidation processes (PMS-AOPs), because of the maximum atomic efficiency offered by homogeneous-dispersed metal atoms and facile recyclability attained by the heterogeneous substrate. Intriguingly, though SACs with atomically isolated metal–nitrogen moieties have shown exceptional activities in PMS-AOP-based water treatment, their catalytic performances and mechanisms varied with the structures. In this review, the catalytic mechanisms of SACs/PMS systems were summarized. Specifically, nonradical reactive oxygen species are involved in the majority of the reactions, while singlet oxygenation, electron-transfer, and high-valent metal-oxo species are identified as dominant nonradical pathways. We also discussed the effects of metal center, metal loading, and substrate on the overall catalytic activities and mechanisms in PMS-AOPs. The pivotal roles of coordination environment in modulating the activity of SACs and reaction pathways were highlighted. Furthermore, an outlook on future challenges and prospective for SACs in water purification is presented.

Electrification of ethylene production via methane coupling could represent a considerable step toward decarbonization of the chemical industry. Several promising electrified technologies can drive the reaction via different energy delivery modes (e.g. Joule and dielectric heating, mechanical/rotational energy, and plasma discharge). However, only few systems have been experimentally tested with this process. Microwave-heated reactors are employed at pilot scale, whereas large (MW)-scale plasma reactors are ready to be launched on the market. Herein, we present a preliminary benchmarking of the most promising electrified technologies for methane-to-ethylene conversion based on collected experimental and simulation performance data and their scalability potential.

A perspective is given on the status and outlook of enabling technologies for process intensification in pharmaceutical research and manufacturing. We focus on three areas: photochemical, ultrasound, and microwave technologies that are, to date, underutilized in the pharmaceutical industry. Herein, we present a review of recent scientific and technological advances in each area with the objective to provide insight and highlight potential applications in the pharmaceutical industry. A perspective is also provided on barriers that must still be overcome to achieve the potential real-world application of these technologies.

Carbon dioxide capture, utilization, and storage technology is a global topic for carbon neutralization, and the emerging gas–liquid microreaction technology provides a promising way for enhancing CO2 capture and utilization in terms of absorption and reactions. This review mainly summarizes the recent developments of the gas–liquid microdispersion device and microflow regulation technology for mass transfer enhancement. Besides, the progress of CO2 absorbent with low-energy consumption and the utilization of CO2 source in microreactors are introduced. Finally, the bottlenecks and opportunities for gas–liquid microreaction technology are also pointed out, which indicates further research directions.