Bio-tar, once seen as a toxic waste, can be transformed into bio-carbon with applications in clean energy and environmental protection. This innovation could reduce emissions, create profits, and solve a major bioenergy industry problem.
Read moreToxic metals are pushing infrared detector makers into a corner, but NYU Tandon researchers have developed a cleaner solution using colloidal quantum dots. These detectors are made like “inks,” allowing scalable, low-cost production while showing impressive infrared sensitivity. Combined with transparent electrodes, the innovation tackles major barriers in imaging systems and could bring infrared technology to cars, medicine, and consumer devices.
Read moreDiamonds hitch a ride to the surface through explosive kimberlite eruptions, powered by volatile-rich magmas. New simulations show that carbon dioxide and water are the secret ingredients that make these eruptions possible.
Read moreResearchers found that ice can trigger stronger chemical reactions than liquid water, dissolving iron minerals in extreme cold. Freeze-thaw cycles amplify the effect, releasing iron into rivers and soils. With climate change accelerating these cycles, Arctic waterways may face major transformations.
Read moreWater, though familiar, still hides astonishing secrets. When squeezed into nanosized channels, it can enter a bizarre “premelting state” that is both solid and liquid at once. Using advanced NMR techniques, Japanese researchers directly observed this strange new phase, revealing that confined water molecules move like a liquid while maintaining solid-like order.
Read moreScientists at Harvard have discovered how salts like lithium bromide break down tough proteins such as keratin—not by attacking the proteins directly, but by altering the surrounding water structure. This breakthrough opens the door to a cleaner, more sustainable way to recycle wool, feathers, and hair into valuable materials, potentially replacing plastics and fueling new industries.
Read moreResearchers are working to better control how the chemicals respond to treatment, as well as how to reverse the chemicals back to their original state with little to no interference. A team of researchers has achieved such results with a specific compound that can emit light and has potential applications in the next generation of smart devices such as wearable devices and anti-counterfeiting paintings.
Read moreA new study describes a novel approach for purifying rare earth metals, crucial components of technology that require environmentally-damaging mining procedures. By relying on the metal's magnetic fields during the crystallization process, researchers were able to efficiently and selectively separate mixtures of rare earth metals.
Read moreMany medicines are twisted molecules with two mirror image versions, but the body uses only one. Inspired by photosynthetic bacteria, a team built a catalyst that guides chemical reactions toward the right version of twisted molecules. It could lead to more efficient production of some medicines.
Read moreResearchers have built a self-assembled nanocage with a very unusual nanospace: Its walls are made of antiaromatic molecules, which are generally considered too unstable to work with. By overturning assumptions about the limits of nano-chemical engineering, the study creates an entirely new nanospace for scientists to explore. Nanometer-sized cavities are already finding a range of useful applications in chemistry, medicine and environmental science.
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