In a paper published in Science China Chemistry, a research team led by Professors Atsuhiro Osuka and Jianxin Song at Hunan Normal University developed a concise synthetic method for the single, double, triple, and quadruple installations of directly fused hemiporphycenes at the periphery of Ni(II) porphyrin. They subjected the Ni(II) complexes to demetallation under acidic conditions, which furnished the corresponding free-base compounds, and efficiently converted these to the corresponding Zn(II) congeners. The resulting hemiporphycene-fused porphyrins displayed nonplanar distorted structures, panchromatic absorptions with red-shifted and enhanced Q bands, and multiple reversible redox waves.

In shale reservoirs, total oil content does not necessarily show where oil is stored or how mobile it may be. Researchers led by Bo Liu at Northeast Petroleum University developed a multiscale workflow that combines swelling-extraction experiments, SEM/AFM pore characterization and molecular dynamics simulations. The study separates shale oil into five occurrence types: kerogen-swelling oil, adsorbed oil in organic pores, free oil in organic pores, adsorbed oil in inorganic pores and free oil in inorganic pores. The framework offers a tool with strong applicability across study areas for understanding oil-rock interactions and evaluating shale-oil mobility in continental shale systems.

A new study published in Science China Earth Sciences presents a comprehensive plan for scientific ocean drilling in the Huatung Basin, a key region in the western Pacific. Researchers propose a four-site drilling strategy for China’s new drilling vessel, Mengxiang, to resolve long-standing debates about the basin's age and the origin of the adjacent Gagua Ridge. The plan aims to determine if the Huatung Basin is a remnant of Mesozoic oceanic crust and to clarify the region's tectonic evolution, marking a potential shift for China’s role in leading international ocean drilling.

Researchers embedded isolated iron atoms in the sub-nanometer channels of an MFI zeolite, creating a stable catalyst in which iron sites activated hydrogen peroxide while nearby Brønsted acid sites attracted the target molecule. The catalyst showed rapid peroxidation and exerted effective cytotoxicity against tumor cells.

It is widely recognized that the southern part of the southeastern Tibetan Plateau has experienced significant southeastward extrusion since the Late Eocene. However, recent paleomagnetic studies indicate that the northern part may have undergone northward motion, although the magnitude and timing of this motion remain debated. Paleomagnetic investigations of the Eocene Dongwang Formation red beds in the Deqin area, located in the central part of the southeastern Tibetan Plateau, suggest that this region was situated at 34.4°N during the Eocene and experienced no significant latitudinal displacement relative to Eurasia. Integrating regional structural geology and paleomagnetic data, differential north–south motion has occurred along the southeastern Tibetan Plateau since the Late Eocene: the southern part experienced significant southeastward extrusion, the northern part underwent only limited northward displacement, and the central Deqin area constitutes the northernmost boundary of Southeastward Extrusion. The overall motion was likely accomplished by clockwise rotation centered on the Deqin area.