强韧轻质无机多级结构功能材料的设计与定向构筑是具有科学意义和社会价值的重要命题，将推动能源存储和转化、环境治理、生物医学及航空等战略领域的发展。目前，该领域的研究工作在国际上仍处在初级阶段。本项目在前期工作基础上，以仿生为指导思想，以建立强韧轻质多级结构的普适性框架模板构筑策略为核心创新点。选择高性能无机质（TiO2, SnO等）为靶向体系，围绕目标性能（强韧、轻质、功能性、多级结构），深入系统探索构筑中的化学问题，包括框架模板的设计与目标性能之间的关系及调控规律，自组装与共组装的协同效应，以及多级结构特征的调控方法与规律等。建立框架模板的设计规则，实现多级结构的强韧性和密度的调控。将获得的方法推广到其它无机体系，拓展框架模板策略的普适性。开发系列新型强韧轻质无机多级结构功能材料，为能源存储和转化等战略领域提供优异的材料选择。为实现定向构筑强韧轻质无机多级结构功能材料提供科学依据。

Developing a general strategy to lightweight hierarchical materials with combined strength and toughness complemented by distinctive qualities is a challenging issue facing today’s inorganic community. Biominerals such as bones are known for their toughness and strength yet lightweight in addition to a fascinating set of structure-enabled functionalities. Bone derives its resistance to fracture with a multitude of dissipative deformation and toughening mechanisms from crosslinked networks based on both weak interactions and chemical bonding while the lightweight is attributed to the high porosity of the sophiscated architecture. Inspired by the principle found in biominerals like bones, the current project is intended to develop a synthetic pathway to lightweight hierarchical materials with combined strength and toughness by the rational organization of different building blocks through corporative assembly and mineralization (Scaffolding strategy). Considerable attention will be given to the design of scaffolding templates where the choice of building blocks allowing energy dissipation while retaining the structural integrity in face of shock is the key, and to the modulation of porosity and the degree of mineralization. Sacrificial bondings and confined mineralization are essential parameters determining the strength and toughness, and the porosity of the materials, which will be studied systematically in-depth. The research will be carried out using functional inorganics including TiO2 and SnO, and the strategy will be extended to other inorganic systems to examine the feasibility so as to deliver a versatile scaffolding strategy for the rational organization of lightweight, strong and tough hierarchical materials for advanced appliations.