Strong interaction between positively charged Mn²⁺ ions and solvent molecules impedes manganese plating process, enabling previous manganese metal batteries non-rechargeable. Now, an innovative halogen-mediated strategy is revealed effective to make manganese metal batteries highly reversible.

Developing facile and economical strategies to fabricate nitrogen-doped porous carbon anode is desirable for dual-carbon potassium ion hybrid capacitors (PIHCs). Here, a high-concentration edge-nitrogen-doped porous carbon (NPC) anode is synthesized by a template-free strategy, in which the total content of pyrrolic nitrogen and pyridinic nitrogen accounts for more than 80% of the nitrogen atoms. As a result, the NPC anode displays a capacity of 315.4 mA h g⁻¹ at a current rate of 0.1 A g⁻¹ and 189.1 mA h g⁻¹ at 5 A g⁻¹. Ex situ characterizations and density functional theory calculations demonstrate the high-concentration edge-nitrogen doping enhances K⁺ adsorption and electronic conductivity of carbon materials, resulting in good electrochemical performance. The assembled NPC//CMK-3 PIHC delivers an energy density of 71.1 W h kg⁻¹ at a power density of 771.9 W kg⁻¹ over 8,000 cycles.

The zinc (Zn) batteries have challenges include uncontrollable dendritic growth, unreasonable negative to positive ratio and limited areal capacity. This highlight presents the latest development to resolve the uncontrollable Zn dendrite formation at high areal capacities of 200 mAh·cm^–2 through a two-dimensional metal/metal-Zn alloy heterostructured interface. The anode-free Zn batteries with an attractive and practical pouch cell energy density of 62 Wh·kg^–1 enlighten an arena towards their commercialization.

With the disruptive carbon cycle being blamed for global warming, the plausible electrocatalytic CO₂ reduction reaction (CO₂RR) to form valuable C₂₊ hydrocarbons and feedstock is becoming a hot topic. Cu-based electrocatalysts have been proven to be excellent CO₂RR alternatives for high energy value-added products in this regard. However, the selectivity of CO₂RR to form C₂₊ products via Cu-based catalysts suffers from a high overpotential, slow reaction kinetics, and low selectivity. This review attempts to discuss various cutting-edge strategies for understanding catalytic design such as Cu-based catalyst surface engineering, tuning Cu bandgap via alloying, nanocatalysis, and the effect of the electrolyte and pH on catalyst morphology. The most recent advances in in situ spectroscopy and computational techniques are summarized to fully comprehend reaction mechanisms, structural transformation/degradation mechanisms, and crystal facet loss with subsequent effects on catalyst activity. Furthermore, approaches for tuning Cu interactions are discussed from four key perspectives: single-atom catalysts, interfacial engineering, metal-organic frameworks, and polymer-incorporated materials, which provide new insights into the selectivity of C₂₊ products. Finally, major challenges are outlined, and potential prospects for the rational design of catalysts for robust CO₂RR are proposed. The integration of catalytic design with mechanistic understanding is a step forward in the promising advancement of CO₂RR technology for industrial applications.