Top 10 Emerging Trends in Chemical and Materials Science Research for 2025 Announced

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On December 3, the report \"Research Frontiers 2025\", jointly released by the Institute of Science and Technology Strategy Consulting of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Document Information Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Clarivate, identified 128 research frontiers that are active or developing rapidly globally in 2025, and provided analyses on the development trends of related disciplines. 　　The 128 research frontiers selected this time include 110 emerging frontiers and 18 new frontiers, covering 11 highly integrated major fields such as agricultural science, botany and zoology, ecology and environmental science, earth sciences, clinical medicine, biological sciences, chemistry and materials science, physics, astronomy and astrophysics, mathematics, information science, economics, psychology, and other social sciences. 　　The top 10 emerging trends in the fields of chemistry and materials science are mainly found in research areas such as synthetic chemistry, material recycling and reuse, lithium batteries, and energy materials. 　　There are four areas in synthetic chemistry: the bioelectronic isostere synthesis of benzene rings, the photocatalytic synthesis of hydrogen peroxide using COFs, the electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide to form polycarbonate products, and the directed evolution and design of ET hydrolases. 　　There are two approaches in material recycling and reuse: the recycling of used lithium-ion battery cathode materials, and the chemical recycling of used polyolefin plastics. 　　There are two areas in the field of lithium batteries: single-crystal high-nickel cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries, and halide solid electrolytes for all-solid-state batteries. 　　There are two areas in the field of energy materials: high-performance thermoelectric materials and high-temperature energy storage polymer dielectrics. 　　“\"Chemical recycling of waste polyolefin plastics\" and \"Halide solid electrolytes for all-solid-state batteries\" have been selected as key emerging topics for 2025. 　　Chemical recycling of waste polyolefin plastics: Chemical recycling is a complex but promising recycling method that includes two approaches: circular recycling and upgrading recycling. Circular recycling involves depolymerizing waste plastics into basic monomers, which can then be reused in polymerization to form the original plastics or new materials. Upgraded recycling involves using waste plastics as raw materials to synthesize more valuable polymers, molecules, or materials. These 42 key papers at the forefront focus on the chemical recycling of polyolefins, developing various methods such as catalytic pyrolysis, catalytic hydrogenolysis, tandem hydrogenolysis/aromatization, and tandem cracking/alkylation, along with the corresponding catalysts. The four most cited papers are all reviews that summarize various chemical recycling routes. 　　Halide solid electrolytes for all-solid-state batteries: Solid electrolytes are the core components of all-solid-state batteries, and the progress in their development directly influences the advancement of such batteries. Solid-state electrolytes mainly include three types: polymer solid-state electrolytes, inorganic solid-state electrolytes, and composite solid-state electrolytes (polymer + inorganic material). Among them, inorganic solid-state electrolytes can be further divided into oxides, sulfides, halides, borohydrides, and other types. The most promising types at present include oxides, sulfides, and polymers; breakthroughs have also been made in the borohydrides and halides categories in recent years. Halide-based solid electrolytes have advantages such as high ionic conductivity at room temperature and good stability at the interface with oxide cathodes. The solid electrolytes developed in these 26 key cutting-edge papers are mainly of the chloride type, with some also being of the chlorooxide and bromide types. 　　One study from the emerging frontiers in the fields of chemistry and materials science was selected, namely “Strategies for improving the stability and conversion efficiency of inverted perovskite solar cells”. Perovskite solar cells boast excellent photoelectric conversion efficiency and the advantage of being processable using low-temperature solutions, and are regarded as the key development direction for next-generation photovoltaic technologies. Inverted perovskite solar cells adopt a vertical stack structure with a p-i-n configuration, and compared to normal perovskite solar cells, they offer significant advantages in terms of interface stability, process compatibility, and suitability for industrial application, thereby providing strong support for their large-scale production and commercial use. Currently, this research area focuses primarily on improving its stability and conversion efficiency. 　　The \"2025 Research Frontiers Popularity Index\" report released on the same day showed that, across all 11 academic fields, the United States remains the most active country**, with China continuing to rank second, and the gap between China and the United States continuing to narrow. Among them, China ranks first in 6 fields: agricultural science, botany and zoology, ecology and environmental science, chemistry and materials science, physics, and information science. 　　It is worth noting that China has a significant advantage in the fields of chemistry and materials science, with 9 top-ranked areas, far exceeding the United States (2).