Phys.org Chemistry

• Old tires find new life: Rubber particles strengthen superhydrophobic coatings against corrosion

  Superhydrophobic materials offer a strategy for developing marine anti-corrosion materials due to their low solid-liquid contact area and low surface energy. However, existing superhydrophobic anti-corrosion materials often suffer from poor mechanical stability and inadequate long-term protection, limiting their practical application in real-world environments.

• High-pressure electrolysis sustainably converts captured CO₂ into industrial-grade ethylene

  Researchers at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology have unveiled a breakthrough system that could change the way we think about carbon emissions. Published in Nature Catalysis the researchers outline a system for converting captured carbon dioxide (CO₂) into industrial-grade ethylene, a commodity chemical essential to plastics, textiles, and construction. The work shows a direct path to transforming greenhouse gas emissions into valuable chemical products.

• Scientists transform plastic waste into efficient CO₂ capture materials

  Chemists at the University of Copenhagen have developed a method to convert plastic waste into a climate solution for efficient and sustainable CO2 capture. This is killing two birds with one stone as they address two of the world's biggest challenges: plastic pollution and the climate crisis.

• Cost-effective catalyst uses abundant metals to convert CO₂ emissions to useful products

  In the battle against climate change, researchers are looking for ways to convert carbon dioxide (CO2) into useful products. They're studying nano-sized materials called catalysts that can accelerate the conversion process or make it more efficient. Nanomaterials are magnitudes smaller than the width of a human hair.

• Charged microdroplets enable mineralization of persistent PFAS pollutants

  Anthropogenic perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are widespread and persistent pollutants that are increasingly subject to stringent regulatory thresholds in water resources. Current nonthermal defluorination strategies have limitations including incomplete mineralization, leaving behind short-chain PFAS byproducts and residual fluoride ions, thereby posing challenges to meeting water quality standards.

• Polymer ink fine-tunes water flow, boosting ethylene yield and cutting energy costs

  Maintaining American energy independence requires minimizing reliance on foreign countries to produce commodity chemicals and fuels. Using carbon dioxide electrolyzers to produce valuable chemical precursors such as ethylene provides one way to diversify domestic feedstocks. But, so far, these devices have been limited by their low efficiency, which makes them energy-intensive and costly.

• Sustainable process breaks down keratin, turning leftover wool and feathers into useful products

  The textile and meat-processing industries produce billions of tons of waste annually in the form of feathers, wool and hair, all of which are rich in keratin—the strong, fibrous protein found in hair, skin and nails.

• Giving food waste fermentation a 'jolt' increases chemical production

  Adding an electrical jolt to fermentation of industrial food waste speeds up the process and increases the yield of platform chemicals that are valuable components in a wide range of products, new research shows.

• Research findings offer new insight into blood thinners and bone builders

  If biomolecules were people, heparin would be a celebrity. Best known as a powerful blood thinner with a global market of more than $7 billion, heparin is used during and after surgery and is essential to kidney dialysis. Most of today's heparin comes from pigs, but the Food and Drug Administration is encouraging the use of alternative sources, including cows and synthetic forms of heparin, to diversify the supply chain.

• Forever chemicals are more acidic than we thought, study finds

  One of the ways that per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) earn their "forever chemical" nickname and persist in the environment is their acidity.

• Making diamonds with electron radiation

  There are various ways to create artificial diamonds, but a new method developed by researchers, including those at the University of Tokyo, yields some extra benefits.

• Researchers achieve light-induced heterolytic hydrogen dissociation at ambient temperature

  In a study published in Science, a research team led by Prof. Wang Feng from the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (DICP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, along with Prof. Paolo Fornasiero from the University of Trieste in Italy, has developed a photochemical strategy for heterolytic hydrogen (H2) dissociation at ambient temperature, a long-standing challenge in H2 activation chemistry.

• Spin-state tuning in perovskite boosts high-temperature oxygen evolution reaction

  Solid oxide electrolysis cells (SOECs) offer a route for efficient energy conversion and storage by converting renewable electricity into storable chemical fuels through high-temperature carbon dioxide electrolysis. However, sluggish oxygen evolution reaction (OER) at the anode poses a challenge due to its complex four-electron transfer process.

• Gold-enhanced TiO₂ catalyst enables efficient and selective flow synthesis of propane from methane

  Methane (CH₄), the colorless and odorless gas that makes up most natural gas on Earth, has so far been converted into useful fuels and chemicals via energy-intensive processes that need to be carried out at high temperatures. Some energy researchers, however, have been exploring the possibility of transforming this gas into useful hydrocarbons and chemicals via photocatalysis.

• Sugar-based stabilizer keeps sweat sensors working under acidic conditions

  The composition of sweat makes it a valuable diagnostic fluid. While it is mostly water, the small fraction containing electrolytes, metabolic byproducts, and chemical traces can reveal important information about a person's health. Today, commercial sweat-based sensors can already track dehydration, electrolyte loss, and more. One emerging application is the measurement of lactic acid in sweat.

• A molecule that enables microbes to eat methane

  Because of its potent greenhouse properties, methane gas is a significant contributor to climate change. It also feeds microbes known as methanotrophs that convert the gas into carbon dioxide and biomass, but scientists have been unsure how these microbes get all the nutrients they need to accomplish this task.

• Milk ingredient helps produce a new bioplastic—and more can be done

  With rising risk to the environment and human health, the race for biodegradable plastics is gaining pace—with several projects under way at Flinders University in South Australia.

• Key transition point in catalyst kinetics could boost green hydrogen production

  Researchers from the Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society have unveiled new insights into the activity of catalysts used in green hydrogen production.

• A new generative AI approach to predicting chemical reactions improves accuracy and reliability

  Many attempts have been made to harness the power of new artificial intelligence and large language models (LLMs) to try to predict the outcomes of new chemical reactions. These have had limited success, in part because until now they have not been grounded in an understanding of fundamental physical principles, such as the laws of conservation of mass.

• New biocatalytic method can generate a library of novel molecules for drug discovery

  Using reprogrammed biocatalysts, researchers are pushing the boundaries of enzymatic synthesis with a method that opens the door to a diverse array of valuable compounds. Reporting in the journal Science, UC Santa Barbara chemistry professor Yang Yang and collaborators detail an enzymatic multicomponent reaction, resulting in six distinct molecular scaffolds, many of which were not previously accessible by other chemical or biological methods.

• From longevity to cancer: Understanding the dual nature of polyamines

  Polyamines, a group of naturally occurring molecules found in all living organisms, are essential for fundamental cellular processes, such as growth and differentiation. In recent years, these compounds (particularly spermidine) have gained attention as promising "geroprotectors" that promote healthy aging and extend lifespan.

• Hidden step in hemoglobin's carbon monoxide release challenges long-held assumption

  Researchers have made a groundbreaking discovery about hemoglobin, the protein responsible for carrying oxygen throughout the body. The findings challenge decades of scientific assumptions and provide new insights into fundamental biological processes.

• Experimental method successfully resolves five molecules in the same condensate without using fluorescence

  Biological condensates are small, membraneless organelles typically consisting of multiple proteins and nucleic acids within cells. They are involved in a diverse array of cellular processes but, despite their importance, methods to quantify their molecular makeup are lacking.

• Researchers explore new strategies to develop environmentally safe polymer materials

  Traditional polymers such as plastics are widely utilized for their chemical inertness and durability. However, these very properties make them non-degradable in nature and cause long-term environmental damage due to their persistence.

• Explainable AI supports improved nickel catalyst design for converting carbon dioxide into methane

  The conversion of carbon dioxide into clean fuels is regarded as an important route toward carbon neutrality. CO2 methanation, in particular, has drawn increasing interest due to its favorable thermodynamic properties and environmental benefits. Yet, large-scale deployment continues to face challenges such as insufficient catalyst activity at low temperatures and vulnerability to carbon deposition.