Advances in Materials Design and Application

This article is part of the Advances in Materials Design and Application special issue. The Mid-East forum on “Advances in Materials Design and Application” serves as a vital platform for exploring groundbreaking innovations in materials science within the Mid-East region. This forum shines a spotlight on research that addresses some of the most pressing challenges facing our scientific community today, particularly in the realms of environmental sustainability and energy efficiency. Nine of the 20 papers in the forum are mentioned below, along with the links of the other papers in the forum. A significant focus of the forum is the development of hyper-cross-linked conjugated porous organic polymers. These materials have shown exceptional promise in carbon dioxide capture and efficient iodine adsorption through cyclopentannulation reactions (Das and Alameddine et al., 10.1021/acsami.4c02948). They not only provide potential solutions for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions, but they also illustrate the remarkable versatility of organic polymers in fulfilling multiple functions. In a related area, the exploration of rare earth metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) has paved the way for applications in sensing and detection, particularly in aqueous media. The deployment of rare earth-based MOFs for amine sensing underscores the significance of MOFs in both industrial applications and environmental monitoring (Eddaoudi and Alezi, et al., 10.1021/acsami.3c16302). Furthermore, the forum highlights innovative strategies for water treatment, exemplified by anion exchange electrospun mixed-matrix fiber technologies. The use of colesevelam for water remediation represents a promising direction toward sustainable water treatment solutions (Alkordi et al., 10.1021/acsami.3c13473). This method directly addresses the critical global concerns surrounding access to clean water in various regions. Energy storage technologies also feature prominently in this forum. The development of asymmetric quasi-solid-state supercapacitor devices leveraging electrochromic heterostructured nickel–cobalt phosphate stands as a testament to the advances being made in high-performance energy storage systems (Allam et al., 10.1021/acsami.3c11494). These devices promise not only enhanced efficiency but also greater applicability in renewable energy systems. Sustainable agriculture and plant health receive equal attention through research involving calcium l-malate and d-tartarate frameworks designed for the controlled delivery of fungicides (Cordova and Rahman et al., 10.1021/acsami.3c11697). These frameworks reflect a growing trend toward the utilization of innovative materials in enhancing agricultural practices sustainably. It is important to note that the advancements in ruthenium–picolylamine-incorporated mixed-linker metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) as catalysts for hydrogenation reactions, discussed in this forum, open new avenues for efficient chemical transformations (Garzon-Tovar and Gascon et al., 10.1021/acsami.3c14808). These heterogeneous catalysts underscore the vital role of MOFs in advancing green chemistry initiatives, showcasing their potential to facilitate sustainable practices in chemical processes. In the context of environmental remediation, controlled growth of defective zirconium-MOFs (Hmadeh et al., 10.1021/acsami.3c16327) and nickel–iron-modified 2D MOFs (Hod et al., 10.1021/acsami.4c00185) is leading the charge on new approaches to water decontamination and electrochemical processes. Furthermore, molecular modeling and machine learning techniques to predict CH₄/N₂ separation performances across numerous MOFs exemplify the application of computational strategies to enhance material discovery (Keskin et al., 10.1021/acsami.3c13533). Other papers in the forum are as follows: Akbulut et al. (10.1021/acsami.4c13479), Peterson and Farha et al. (10.1021/acsami.4c09745), Halaoui et al. (10.1021/acsami.4c13670), Al-Babili and Khashab et al. (10.1021/acsami.3c19571), Zhou and Madrahimov et al. (10.1021/acsami.4c02143), Safavi and Maleki et al. (10.1021/acsami.3c14363), Mohammed et al. (10.1021/acsami.4c01156), Morsali et al. (10.1021/acsami.3c15863), Shetty et al. (10.1021/acsami.4c07706), Trabolsi et al. (10.1021/acsami.4c03685), and Nguyen and Yavuz et al. (10.1021/acsami.4c01187). In conclusion, the Advances in Materials Design and Application forum stands as a pivotal milestone in the ongoing quest for knowledge that drives the advancement of materials which are both innovative and sustainable. Spanning a diverse array of topics, from electrochemical applications to biotechnology, the discussions and presentations offered at the forum pave the way for holistic solutions that contribute to a cleaner, more energy-efficient future. The insights shared here emphasize the transformative potential of materials science in tackling the urgent environmental challenges we face today. This underscores the critical importance of sustained research and collaboration in this vital field to achieve meaningful progress. This article has not yet been cited by other publications.