Controllable designing of well-defined heterojunction nanostructures provides an insightful strategy for accelerating the kinetics of the hydrogen and oxygen evolution reactions (HER/OER), but such task is still challenging. Herein, we proposed a protocol of heterojunction interface editing (HIE) strategy by oxygen atoms decoration for synergistic boosting electrocatalytic HER and OER performances. A novel Co/NiCoP nanospheres (NSs) heterojunction was synthesized by crystal seed template transformation method with Ni₅P₄ microspheres as seeds. The effective oxygen atoms interface editing increased the oxidation state of Co atoms and prolonged the Co–P bond length of Co/NiCoP NSs heterojunction, thus the electron localization on P sites was enhanced, leading to the dramatically elevated HER and OER performances simultaneously. The as-constructed O-Co/NiCoP NSs show excellent electrocatalytic activity with 361 and 430 mV vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) to arrive high current density of 300 mA·cm⁻² for HER and OER in 1 M KOH as well as good stability. The proposed HIE concept could provide a new perspective on the catalyst design for energy conversion systems.

The catalytic oxidation of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is considered a feasible method for VOCs treatment by virtue of its low technical cost, high economic efficiency, and low additionally produced pollutants, which is of important social value. Single-atom catalysts (SACs) with 100% atom utilization and uniform active sites usually have high activity and high product selectivity, and promise a broad range of applications. Precise regulation of the microstructures of SACs by means of defect engineering, interface engineering, and electronic effects can further improve the catalytic performance of VOCs oxidation. In this review, we introduce the mechanisms of VOCs oxidation, and systematically summarize the recent research progress of SACs in catalytic VOCs total oxidation into CO₂ and H₂O, and then discuss the effects of various structural regulation strategies on the catalytic performance. Finally, we summarize the current problems yet to be solved and challenges currently faced in this field, and propose future design and research ideas for SACs in catalytic oxidation of VOCs.

The construction of robust coupling catalysts for accelerating electrocatalytic oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) through the modulation of the electronic structure and local atomic configuration is critical but remains challenging. Herein, we report a facile and effective isolation-polymerization-pyrolysis (IPP) strategy for high-precision synthesis of single-atomic Mn sites coupled with Fe₃C nanoparticles encapsulated in N-doped porous carbon matrixes (Mn SAs/Fe₃C NPs@NPC) catalyst derived from predesigned bimetallic Fe/Mn polyphthalocyanine (FeMn-BPPc) conjugated polymer networks by solid-phase reaction approach. Benefiting from the synergistic effects between the single-atomic Mn-N₄ sites and Fe₃C NPs as well as the confinement effect of NPC, the Mn SAs/Fe₃C NPs@NPC catalyst exhibited excellent electrocatalytic activity and stability for ORR. The assembled Zn-air battery displayed larger power density of 186 mW·cm⁻² than that of Pt/C + Ir/C-based battery. It also exhibits excellent stability without obvious voltage change after 106 cycles with 36 h. Combingin-situ Raman spectra with in-situ attenuated total reflectance surface-enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy (ATR-SEIRAS) characterization results indicated that the Mn-N₄ site as an active site for the O₂ adsorption–activation process, which effectively facilitates the generation of key *OOH intermediates and *OH desorption to promote the multielectron reaction kinetics. Theoretical calculation reveals that the excellent electrocatalytic performance originates from the charge redistribution and the d orbital shift resulting from Mn–Fe bond, which buffers the activity of ORR through the electron reservoir capable of electron donation or releasing. This work paves a novel IPP strategy for constructing high-performance coupling electrocatalyst towards the ORR for energy conversion devices.

Electrocatalytic CO₂ reduction reaction (CO₂RR) is considered an efficient way to convert CO₂ into high-value-added chemicals, and thus is of significant social and economic value. Metal single-atomic site catalysts (SASCs) generally have excellent selectivity because of their 100% atomic utilization and uniform structure of active sites, and thus promise a broad range of applications. However, SASCs still face challenges such as low intrinsic activity and low density of active sites. Precise regulation of the microstructures of SASCs is an effective method to improve their CO₂RR performance and to obtain deep reduction products. In this article, we systematically summarize the current research status of SASCs developed for highly efficient catalysis of CO₂RR, discuss the various structural regulation methods for enhanced activity and selectivity of SASCs for CO₂RR, and review the application of in-situ characterization technologies in the SASC-catalyzed CO₂RR. We then discuss the problems yet to be solved in this area, and propose the future directions of the research on the design and application of SASCs for CO₂RR.

Large scale synthesis of high-efficiency bifunctional electrocatalyst based on cost-effective and earth-abundant transition metal for overall water splitting in the alkaline environment is indispensable for renewable energy conversion. In this regard, meticulous design of active sites and probing their catalytic mechanism on both cathode and anode with different reaction environment at molecular- scale are vitally necessary. Herein, a coordination environment inheriting strategy is presented for designing low-coordination Ni²⁺ octahedra (L-Ni-8) atomic interface at a high concentration (4.6 at.%). Advanced spectroscopic techniques and theoretical calculations reveal that the self-matching electron delocalization and localization state at L-Ni-8 atomic interface enable an ideal reaction environment at both cathode and anode. To improve the efficiency of using the self-modification reaction environment at L-Ni-8, all of the structural features, including high atom economy, mass transfer, and electron transfer, are integrated together from atomic-scale to macro-scale. At high current density of 500 mA/cm², the samples synthesized at gram-scale can deliver low hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) overpotentials of 262 and 348 mV, respectively.