Currently, semiconductor gas sensors are being actively studied and used in various fields, including ecology, industry, and medical diagnostics. One of the major challenges is to reduce their operating temperature to room temperature. To address this issue, sensor layers based on WO/WS nanostructures synthesized by the hydrothermal method have been proposed. In this paper, the morphology of the material's surface and its elemental composition were investigated, as well as the optical band gap. Additionally, changes in the resistance of the WO/WS sensor layers under the influence of alcohol vapors at room temperature were analyzed. The results showed that the layers exhibited a significant response, with short response and recovery times. The achieved response value to 1000 ppm of isopropanol was 1.25, with a response time of 13 s and a recovery time of 12 s. The response to 1000 ppm of ethanol was 1.35, and the response and recovery times were 20 s. This indicates that these sensor layers have promising potential for various applications.

Edible films based on biopolymers are used to protect food from adverse environmental factors. However, their ample use may be hindered by some challenges to their mechanical and antimicrobial properties. Despite this, in most cases, increasing their mechanical properties and antibacterial activity remains a relevant challenge. To solve this problem, a possible option is to fill the biopolymer matrix of films with a functional filler that combines high reinforcing and antibacterial properties. In this work, biocomposite films based on a mixture of chitosan and cassava starch were filled with a hybrid filler in the form of bentonite clay particles loaded with ginger essential oil (GEO) in their structure with varied concentrations. For this purpose, GEO components were intercalated into bentonite clay interlayer space using a mechanical capture approach without using surface-active and toxic agents. The structure and loading efficiency of the essential oil in the obtained hybrid filler were analyzed by lyophilization and laser analysis of dispersions, ATR-FTIR spectroscopy, thermogravimetry, and X-ray diffraction analysis. The filled biocomposite films were analyzed using ATR-FTIR spectroscopy, optical and scanning electron spectroscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy, mechanical analysis under tension, and the disk diffusion method for antibacterial activity. The results demonstrated that the tensile strength, Young's modulus, elongation at the break, and the antibacterial effect of the films increased by 40%, 19%, 44%, and 23%, respectively, compared to unfilled film when the filler concentration was 0.5-1 wt.%.

To enhance the ecological properties of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) products, the fabrication of PVC-based composites using biofillers with acceptable performance characteristics could be considered. In this work, plant-filled PVC-based composite materials were fabricated and their optical, structural, thermal, and mechanical properties, depending on the nature of the filler, were studied. Spruce flour, birch flour, and rice husk were used as fillers. Optical measurements showed the selected technological parameters, allowing films with a uniform distribution of dispersed plant filler in the polymer matrix to be obtained. Using the plant fillers in PVC films leads to a reduction in strength characteristics; for instance, the tensile strength changed from 18.0 MPa (for pure PVC film) to ~7 MPa (for composites with 20 wt.% of fillers), and to ~5-6.2 MPa (for composites with 40 wt.% of fillers). Thermal investigations showed that the samples with plant fillers could be used at low temperatures without changing their operating characteristics. Thus, plant-filled PVC-based composite materials have a wide operating temperature range, from-65 °C to 150 °C. TGA analysis has demonstrated that the rice husk affected the thermal stability of the composites by increasing their thermal decomposition resistance. The ability to absorb water was observed during the investigation of water absorption of the samples. And the highest degree of water absorption (up to 160 mg/g) was detected for the sample with 40 wt.% of rice husk. In general, plant-filled polymer composites based on PVC can be used on an equal basis with unfilled PVC plastic compounds for some applications such as in construction (for example, for design tasks).

Soft robotics is closely related to embodied intelligence in the joint exploration of the means to achieve more natural and effective robotic behaviors via physical forms and intelligent interactions. Embodied intelligence emphasizes that intelligence is affected by the synergy of the brain, body, and environment, focusing on the interaction between agents and the environment. Under this framework, the design and control strategies of soft robotics depend on their physical forms and material properties, as well as algorithms and data processing, which enable them to interact with the environment in a natural and adaptable manner. At present, embodied intelligence has comprehensively integrated related research results on the evolution, learning, perception, decision making in the field of intelligent algorithms, as well as on the behaviors and controls in the field of robotics. From this perspective, the relevant branches of the embodied intelligence in the context of soft robotics were studied, covering the computation of embodied morphology; the evolution of embodied AI; and the perception, control, and decision making of soft robotics. Moreover, on this basis, important research progress was summarized, and related scientific problems were discussed. This study can provide a reference for the research of embodied intelligence in the context of soft robotics.

In order to increase the compatibility between underwater robots and the underwater environment and inspired by the coconut octopus's underwater bipedal walking, a method was proposed for bipedal walking for an underwater soft robot based on a spring-loaded inverted pendulum (SLIP) model. Using the characteristics of octopus tentacles rolling on the ground, a wrist arm was designed using the cable-driven method, and an underwater SLIP bipedal walking model was established, which makes an underwater soft robot more suitable for moving on uneven ground. An underwater bipedal walking soft robot based on coconut octopus was then designed, and a machine vision algorithm was used to extract the motion information for analysis. Experimental analysis shows that the underwater bipedal walking robot can achieve an average speed of 6.48 cm s, and the maximum instantaneous speed can reach 8.14 cm s.