http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. By adding carbon nanotubes to a glass-like metal compound, researchers have devised a new breed of field emission electrodes. This technology, which produces a stream of electrons, may have promising applications in the consumer electronics industry. http://phys.org/news241094837.html Nanotechnology Mon, 21 Nov 2011 11:40:01 EST news241094837 A new generation of lighter, stronger plastics could be produced using an intricate chemical process devised by scientists. http://phys.org/news239878403.html Nanotechnology Mon, 07 Nov 2011 08:53:34 EST news239878403 Poly-3-hydroxybutyrate (PHB) is a thermoplastic polyester which occurs naturally in bacteria as Ralstonia eutropha and Bacillus megaterium. Even though PHB is biodegradable and is not dependent on fossil resources, this bioplastic has been traditionally too expensive to produce to replace petroleum-based plastics. New research reported in BioMed Central's open access journal Microbial Cell Factories describes an alternative method of producing PHB in microalgae. http://phys.org/news238043993.html Biology Mon, 17 Oct 2011 04:20:00 EST news238043993 A University of Minnesota team of researchers has overcome a major hurdle in the quest to design a specialized type of molecular sieve that could make the production of gasoline, plastics and various chemicals more cost effective and energy efficient. The breakthrough research, led by chemical engineering and materials science professor Michael Tsapatsis in the university's College of Science and Engineering, is published in the most recent issue of the journal Science. http://phys.org/news237643446.html Nanotechnology Wed, 12 Oct 2011 13:04:55 EST news237643446 (PhysOrg.com) -- When people think of uses for petroleum, they generally think of oil and gasoline, but doing so means ignoring the production of ethylene, a compound used to make many of the products most people use every day, such as plastics. Unfortunately though, as the price of petroleum goes up, so too does the cost of producing ethylene and all the products that come from it. This is why chemical researchers have been searching for years for a way to produce ethylene via anther process. Now, startup company San Francisco based Siluria, believes it has found a pathway there using methane instead of petroleum, and has received some $20 million in investment capital from various groups that are confident that Siluria is on the right track. http://phys.org/news236934376.html Technology Tue, 04 Oct 2011 08:06:54 EST news236934376 (PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at the University of Leeds and Durham University have solved a long-standing problem that could revolutionize the way new plastics are developed. http://phys.org/news236521440.html Chemistry Thu, 29 Sep 2011 14:00:06 EST news236521440 (PhysOrg.com) -- Despite efforts to encourage the recycling of plastic water bottles, milk jugs and similar containers, a majority of the plastic packaging produced each year in the United States ends up in landfills, where it can take thousands of years to degrade.  To address that problem with traditional polyethylene, polypropylene, Styrofoam and PET products, researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology are working with the Plastics Environmental Council (PEC) to expand the use of chemical additives that cause such items to biodegrade in landfills. http://phys.org/news236423798.html Chemistry Wed, 28 Sep 2011 10:17:18 EST news236423798 The National Physical Laboratory (NPL) has developed a world-leading pvT (pressure-volume-temperature) and thermal conductivity test kit. http://phys.org/news236250397.html Chemistry Mon, 26 Sep 2011 10:06:45 EST news236250397 With most of the plastics that define modern life dating to the1930s-1960s, a new breed of these ubiquitous materials are starting to gain a foothold in products ranging from teapots to potato chip bags to plastic plant pots that biodegrade right in the soil. That's the topic of the covers story in the current edition of Chemical & Engineering News, ACS' weekly newsmagazine. http://phys.org/news235833022.html Chemistry Wed, 21 Sep 2011 14:20:01 EST news235833022 National Physical Laboratory, after over nine years of extensive research, has developed a world-leading pvT (pressure-volume-temperature) and thermal conductivity test kit that can be used to help improve the design and processing of plastics. http://phys.org/news229610644.html Chemistry Mon, 11 Jul 2011 13:44:13 EST news229610644 Many plastic products contain hazardous chemicals that can leach to the surroundings. In studies conducted at the University of Gothenburg, a third of the tested plastic products released toxic substances, including 5 out of 13 products intended for children. http://phys.org/news224784100.html Chemistry Mon, 16 May 2011 17:01:52 EST news224784100 Flame retardants are chemical compounds added to fabrics and plastics to keep them from burning easily, but these can be toxic. Now a team of researchers from Spain and Canada has detected some of these emerging pollutants for the first time in peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus) eggs in both countries. http://phys.org/news222338864.html Space & Earth Mon, 18 Apr 2011 09:48:02 EST news222338864 (PhysOrg.com) -- Plastic is often used in vehicles, when the designs demand a lower weight on the vehicle, in order to increase vehicle speed or fuel efficiency. Current plastics only meet those goals to a limited degree. While plastic is lighter than metal, it is not as light as some designers would like. That is why car companies are working on lighter plastics, by making them with very small holes. http://phys.org/news221487901.html Technology Fri, 08 Apr 2011 13:25:23 EST news221487901 Nearly 3 billion pounds of chicken feathers are plucked each year in the United States -- and most end up in the trash. Now, a new method of processing those feathers could create better types of environmentally-friendly plastics. http://phys.org/news221231785.html Chemistry Tue, 05 Apr 2011 14:17:09 EST news221231785 Indestructible things are a figment of the imagination of advertising. Even plastic components that have to stand up to major mechanical loads can break. The reason for this are microcracks that may be found in any component part. Researchers have now come up with elastic polymers that heal themselves to put an end to the growth of cracks. http://phys.org/news221224943.html Technology Tue, 05 Apr 2011 12:22:56 EST news221224943 Containers made from plastics are used in most traditional greenhouse operations. While plastic containers are practical, strong, and can be formed to any size, shape, or color, the extensive use of these petroleum-based containers creates significant waste disposal problems for the greenhouse industry and consumers. One example: a 2008 report found that a typical greenhouse operation in California discards over 3560 pounds of plastic trays, flats, and containers annually. http://phys.org/news221131746.html Biology Mon, 04 Apr 2011 10:29:19 EST news221131746 In a scientific advance literally plucked from the waste heap, scientists today described a key step toward using the billions of pounds of waste chicken feathers produced each year to make one of the more important kinds of plastic. They described the new method at the 241st National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society, being held here this week. http://phys.org/news220797904.html Chemistry Thu, 31 Mar 2011 13:45:24 EST news220797904 Your next new car hopefully won't be a lemon. But it could be a pineapple or a banana. That's because scientists in Brazil have developed a more effective way to use fibers from these and other plants in a new generation of automotive plastics that are stronger, lighter, and more eco-friendly than plastics now in use. They described the work, which could lead to stronger, lighter, and more sustainable materials for cars and other products, here today at the 241st National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS). http://phys.org/news220502237.html Chemistry Mon, 28 Mar 2011 04:10:01 EST news220502237 (PhysOrg.com) -- Imagine a material that's stronger than steel, but just as versatile as plastic, able to take on a seemingly endless variety of forms. For decades, materials scientists have been trying to come up with just such an ideal substance, one that could be molded into complex shapes with the same ease and low expense as plastic but without sacrificing the strength and durability of metal. http://phys.org/news218187639.html Chemistry Tue, 01 Mar 2011 07:40:52 EST news218187639 (PhysOrg.com) -- A newly discovered technique makes it possible to create a whole new array of plastics with metallic or even superconducting properties. http://phys.org/news217580130.html Chemistry Tue, 22 Feb 2011 06:55:50 EST news217580130 Spanish legislation stipulates that at least 60% of waste paper and cardboard collected must be recycled, along with 60% of glass, 50% of metals and 22.5% of plastics. However, a study by researchers at the Jaume I (UJI) University in Castellón shows that this minimum requirement is only exceeded in the case of glass. http://phys.org/news216643771.html Space & Earth Fri, 11 Feb 2011 10:49:48 EST news216643771 Some medications are so prevalent, people jokingly suggest they should be added to the water supply. OK, consider it done. Detectable levels of common pharmaceutical medications have been found in drinking water in the United States and Canada. http://phys.org/news214829532.html Medicine & Health Fri, 21 Jan 2011 10:52:21 EST news214829532 Packaging that alerts consumers to food which is starting to go off is being developed by researchers at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, Scotland. http://phys.org/news213535950.html Chemistry Thu, 06 Jan 2011 11:34:27 EST news213535950 (PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at the Universities of Queensland and New South Wales in Australia have discovered that the ability of a plastic to conduct electricity can be tuned by exposure to an ion beam. Usually plastics conduct electricity so poorly that they are used as the insulation around electrical cables. http://phys.org/news211613426.html Chemistry Wed, 15 Dec 2010 05:31:41 EST news211613426 Environmentalists around the world agree ― plastic bags are choking our landfills and polluting our seas. Now a Tel Aviv University researcher is developing new laboratory methods using corn starch and sugar to help sustainable plastics -- those that biodegrade and are even tougher than those made from petrochemicals -- compete in the industry. http://phys.org/news211555291.html Chemistry Tue, 14 Dec 2010 13:40:04 EST news211555291 (PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists from The Australian National University have used supercomputers to reveal how plastic items like the humble clothes peg can be designed to withstand the sun for longer. http://phys.org/news209725770.html Chemistry Tue, 23 Nov 2010 09:09:54 EST news209725770 (PhysOrg.com) -- With the goal to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels, scientists are looking for alternative methods to produce plastics that are based on renewable oils. In a new study, scientists have developed a method to produce a bioplastic by engineering a strain of the Candida tropicalis yeast. Their results demonstrate the possibility of producing low-cost, commercially viable yields of omega-hydroxyfatty acids, a new family of monomers that can be converted to bioplastics which could eventually be used for a variety of applications. http://phys.org/news208160808.html Chemistry Fri, 05 Nov 2010 08:40:02 EST news208160808 Bisphenol A, or BPA, is a chemical found in the thermal paper widely used in receipts from cash registers and in some plastics and resins, and has now been shown to pass through human skin. http://phys.org/news208160507.html Medicine & Health Fri, 05 Nov 2010 08:00:01 EST news208160507 (PhysOrg.com) -- Plastic, heated in a simple microwave oven, is the technique researchers at the University of Alberta and the National Institute for Nanotechnology believe could help to re-invent the manufacture of computer chips. http://phys.org/news208087531.html Nanotechnology Thu, 04 Nov 2010 11:06:27 EST news208087531 An analysis of plant and petroleum-derived plastics by University of Pittsburgh researchers suggests that biopolymers are not necessarily better for the environment than their petroleum-based relatives, according to a report in Environmental Science & Technology. The Pitt team found that while biopolymers are the more eco-friendly material, traditional plastics can be less environmentally taxing to produce. http://phys.org/news206887222.html Space & Earth Thu, 21 Oct 2010 13:40:33 EST news206887222