ADVANCED MATERIALS & PROCESSES | JULY 2026 6 METALS | POLYMERS | CERAMICS electrolyte and electrode are usually considered harmful because they degrade battery performance over time, the researchers found that in solid-state magnesium batteries, they are essential for improving battery efficiency—if the reactions are carefully controlled. In their study, the team developed a new strategy for magnesium alloy anodes that balances these interfacial reactions. By engineering the surface and internal structure of the anode, they enabled magnesium ions to move more efficiently through the battery while improving overall stability and creating a more uniform magnesium deposition layer. The team focused on adding tin to magnesium. To identify the most effective composition, they tested several magnesium-based alloys containing different secondary phases and evaluated the electrochemical performance under battery operating conditions. Among the tested materials, the optimized magnesium-tin alloy demonstrated the best balance between interfacial stability, magnesium-ion transport, and long-term cycling performance. The optimized magnesium-tin alloy demonstrated significantly improved electrochemical performance, including more stable cycling behavior and enhanced magnesium-ion transport at the electrode-electrolyte interface. In solid-state battery tests, the Mg-Sn alloy remained stable for over 1300 hours and achieved more than 400 times longer cycling performance than pure magnesium. www.tohoku.ac.jp. IRON SUBSTITUTES NOBLE METALS IN CATALYSIS Researchers at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Germany, produced the first air-stable iron compound, which enables the direct use of iron(I) for catalysis. Unlike previous methods, the new process does not require strong reducing agents and the first test yielded active iron catalysts. Catalysts typically used in industry include rhodium, iridium, and palladium, which are expensive and rare. Until now, a comparably stable precursor compound that makes iron(I) directly available for catalytic applications had been lacking. As a result, scientists often had to synthesize this form of iron during the reaction process itself using additional substances. While such reductants change iron into the desired form, they can alter other components of the reaction. In preparation for the catalytic process, the team first synthesized a separate iron(I) compound: The iron was positioned between two durene molecules, which stabilize the reactive metal. This ensures sufficient stability of the sensitive iron(I) against atmospheric oxygen and moisture when used in subsequent reactions. Next, the researchers selectively replaced durene with other molecules to derive various iron(I) compounds. These were analyzed using x-ray crystallography, spectroscopic methods, and magnetic measurements. In the first catalytic test, the team demonstrated that an active iron catalyst can be generated from the new compound. The new iron(I) compound provides a foundation for further applications. kit.edu. NEW MAGNESIUM ALLOY FOR SOLID-STATE BATTERIES Scientists from Tohoku University, Japan, developed a new way to improve solid-state magnesium batteries. While interfacial reactions between the solid U. S. Steel, Pittsburgh, will invest up to $2.5 billion to modernize its Mon Valley Works operations near Pittsburgh to improve steel yields and quality, and reduce energy consumption. The steelmaker will also build a state-of-the-art hot strip mill at its Edgar Thomson plant in Braddock, Pa., and improve related Mon Valley Works facilities over the next three years. ussteel.com. BRIEF Researchers at KIT developed this molecular model of the first air-stable iron(I) compound as the source for novel catalysts. Courtesy of Oliver Townrow/KIT. Schematic illustration of the plating/stripping behavior of bare Mg (a) and Mg alloys (b). Courtesy of ACS Energy Letters, 2026, doi.org/10.1021/acsenergylett.6c00909. (a) (b)
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