Passive radiative cooling is widely recognized as an environmentally sustainable method for achieving significant cooling effects. However, the mechanical properties and environmental adaptability of current radiative cooling materials are not sufficient to maintain high cooling performance in external environments. Here we reported an environment-adaptive phase-separation-porous fluorofilm for high-performance passive radiation cooling. Compared to the homogenous fluoro-porous network with limited scattering efficiencies, we modulated the porous structure of the fluorofilm to achieve a strong emissivity of 95.2% (8–13 μm) and a high reflectivity of 97.1% (0.3–2.5 μm). The fluorofilm demonstrates a temperature drop of 10.5 °C and an average cooling power of 81 W·m⁻² under a sunlight power of 770 W·m⁻². The high mechanical performance and environmental adaptability of fluorofilms are also exhibited. Considering its significant radiative cooling capability and robust environmental adaptability, the fluorofilm is expected to have a promising future in radiative temperature regulation.

Motile plant tissues can control their configurations and regulate their motion speed according to their specific requirements, which offer various protypes for biomimetic actuators with controlled motion speed. In this perspective, we focus on the speed control of plant tissues and the bioinspired strategies for speed regulation of artificial actuators. We begin with a summary to the strategies and mechanisms of motile plant tissues for controlling motion speed, ranging from ultrafast to ultraslow. We then exemplify the models for fabricating bioinspired artificial actuators and briefly discuss current application scenarios of actuators with varying speeds from ultrafast to ultraslow. Finally, we propose potential strategies for the speed regulation of actuators.

Solar-driven evaporators are promising for tackling freshwater scarcity but still challenged in simultaneously realizing comprehensive performances at one platform for sustainable and efficient application in real-world environments, such as stable-floating, scalability, salt-resistance, efficient vaporization, and anti-oil-fouling property. Herein, we design a hybrid organohydrogel evaporator to achieve the enduring oil contamination repulsion with maintaining accelerated evaporation process, and integrate capacities of ultra-stable floating, hindered salt-crystallization, large-scale fabrication for practical purification of seawater and polluted solutions. The raised water surface surrounding evaporators, induced by low density of organogel-phase, results in oil contamination resistance through the lateral capillary repulsion effect. Meanwhile, the organogel-phase containing photo-thermal carbon-nanotubes with low thermal capacity and conduction can form locally confined hot dots under solar irradiation and reduce heat dissipation on heating excessive water. Therefore, based on this approach, accelerated long-term practical purification of oil-contaminated solutions without any extra disposal is realized. Considering other properties of ultra-stable floating, large-scale fabrication, and anti-salt crystallization, these innovative organohydrogel evaporators open pathways for purifying oil-slick-polluted water via interfacial evaporation and are anticipated accelerating industrialization of efficient and sustainable solar-driven water purification.

Studying the wetting behaviors of multicellular spheroids is crucial in the fields of embryo implantation, cancer propagation, and tissue repair. Existing strategies for controlling the wetting of multicellular spheroids mainly focus on surface chemistry and substrate rigidity. Although topography is another important feature in the biological micro-environment, its effect on multicellular spheroid wetting has seldom been explored. In this study, the influence of topography on the surface wetting of multicellular spheroids was investigated using subcellular- patterned opal films with controllable colloidal particle diameters (from 200 to 1, 500 nm). The wetting of hepatoma carcinoma cellular (Hep G2) spheroids was impaired on opal films compared with that on flat substrates, and the wetting rate decreased as colloidal particle diameter increased. The decrement reached 48.5% when the colloidal particle diameter was 1, 500 nm. The subcellular-patterned topography in opal films drastically reduced the cellular mobility in precursor films, especially the frontier cells in the leading edge. The frontier cells failed to form mature focal adhesions and stress fibers on micro-patterned opal films. This was due to gaps between colloidal particles leaving adhesion vacancies, causing weak cell–substrate adhesion and consequent retarded migration of Hep G2 spheroids. Our study manifests the inhibiting effects of subcellular-patterned topography on the wetting behaviors of multicellular spheroids, providing new insight into tissue wetting-associated treatments and biomaterial design.

Light-activated dynamic variations have promoted the development of smart interfaces, especially nano-biointerfaces. In this article, the near-infrared (NIR)- responsive surface for controlling cell adhesion was designed by grafting a thermal responsive polymer (poly(N-isopropylacrylamide), PNIPAM) onto silicon nanowires (SiNWs) instead of the traditional photosensitive moieties. NIR induced the photothermal effect of the SiNWs, and the local heat induced thermodynamic phase transformation of PNIPAM. With the application of NIR radiation, the surface turned to a hydrophobic state, and restored to the hydrophilic state when NIR was switched off, leading to reversible cell adhesion and release. The switchable wettability of the surface and cell adhesion/release occurred efficiently even after 20 cycles. Proteins were anchored on the surface via hydrophobic interactions using NIR; further connection of a cell-capture agent helped in achieving specific cell capture. This dynamic control of cell adhesion via NIR may provide new clues for designing functional nano-biointerfaces.