Last update:

Five-minute test spots PFAS down to parts-per-trillion

When Sandia scientists Ryan Davis and Nathan Bays set out to find a better way to absorb and degrade PFAS in water sources, they kept running into the same issue: Detecting the chemicals in samples took too long. So, they ...

Upconversion materials: A new frontier in solar water-splitting

Solar water splitting is one of the most direct ways to produce green hydrogen using sunlight. However, most photocatalysts and photoelectrodes absorb only a limited portion of solar radiation, mainly ultraviolet and part ...

Researchers advance solvent-based recycling for flexible plastics

Polypropylene and polyethylene are two durable and affordable plastics commonly used as packaging materials, snack wrappers, microwave containers, and other, usually flexible, plastic films. Their flexibility, however, makes ...

How to train your catalyst, one atom at a time

How do you keep a copper catalyst from losing its oomph? Just add a dusting of platinum, says a new study published in Nature Materials. A team of researchers, including scientists at the Department of Energy's SLAC National ...

More news

Materials Science
Raincoat no longer waterproof? A textile scientist explains why—and how to fix it
Analytical Chemistry
Carbon-based catalyst can use sunlight to degrade PFAS
Analytical Chemistry
Using high-energy sparks to degrade pollutants without generating waste
Analytical Chemistry
Atomic precision unlocks smarter oxygen reduction catalysts
Analytical Chemistry
Nano-cage removes up to 98% of PFAS in tap water tests
Analytical Chemistry
Iron and blue LEDs synthesize natural molecules, cutting the need for expensive chiral components
Analytical Chemistry
Chemists thought phosphorus had shown all its cards—until it surprised them with a new move
Analytical Chemistry
With the flip of a switch, scientists harness light to program how particles interact and assemble
Analytical Chemistry
Automated catalyst testing uses two coordinated robots, cutting 32 days of work to 17 hours
Polymers
Sunlight-powered process turns plastic waste into acetic acid without added emissions
Analytical Chemistry
A new form of aluminum unlocks sustainable and cheaper catalysts
Biochemistry
Turning high-emissions waste into fertilizer: Catalyst boosts urea production by coupling CO₂ with nitrogen pollutants
Analytical Chemistry
Breadcrumbs offer fossil fuel–free production of everyday goods
Analytical Chemistry
Prussian blue goes from pigment to purification
Analytical Chemistry
Chemists synthesize first stable copper metallocene complex, closing a 70-year gap
Analytical Chemistry
'All-in-one,' single-atom could power both sides of water splitting
Analytical Chemistry
Americium, curium and californium—crystallizing the rarest elements
Analytical Chemistry
Cheaper green hydrogen? New catalyst design cuts energy losses in AEM electrolyzers
Biochemistry
What 'housane' rings are and why a light-powered route may matter for drugs
Analytical Chemistry
A 'magic blueprint' for converting CO₂ into resources through atom-level catalyst design

Other news

Plants & Animals
Gnaw-y by nature: Researchers discover neural circuit that rewards gnawing behavior in rodents
Plants & Animals
Electron microscopy maps protein landscapes that drive photosynthesis
Condensed Matter
Unexpected magnetic response in gold and silver atomic contacts contradicts previous theoretical predictions
Plants & Animals
Europe's buzzards are losing their color diversity, citizen science reveals
Astronomy
NASA finds extreme star collision in unlikely spot
Environment
Where wells run deep, biodiversity runs thin
Optics & Photonics
3D-printed photonic lanterns combine up to 37 multimode lasers into one fiber
Planetary Sciences
New exoplanet survey method finds high rates of closely orbiting planets
Earth Sciences
Soil health index finds restored mangroves can near full function
Plants & Animals
Japanese scientists discover how falling cats almost always make perfect landings
Condensed Matter
Scientists control 'free-flowing' electric currents with light
Planetary Sciences
A new model defines an upper limit to planetary radiation belt intensity
Cell & Microbiology
Telomere breaks provide new insights into chaotic chromosome mutations
Biotechnology
One gene makes the difference: Breeding winter-hardy faba beans
Biotechnology
AI-enabled quantum refinement cracks the code of difficult-to-map proteins
Cell & Microbiology
Bacteria have a secret engineering trick to keep themselves in shape
Mathematics
Student serves up fresh solutions to the pancake problem
Archaeology
First absolute dating of Paleolithic paintings in the Dordogne
Earth Sciences
Glacial lakes in Alaska are expanding rapidly and could quadruple in size
Evolution
Why lethal mutations persist: Fruit fly study points to newly transferred jumping genes, not small DNA errors

Prussian blue goes from pigment to purification

The deep, murky pigment known as Prussian blue put the "blue" in traditional blueprints, colored Hokusai's "Great Wave off Kanagawa" and today is used for industrial purposes, from laundry to battery components to poison ...

Breadcrumbs offer fossil fuel–free production of everyday goods

The humble breadcrumb could hold the key to cutting out fossil fuels from one of the chemical industry's most widely used reactions, according to a new study. Scientists have found a one-pot microbial formula that uses waste ...

'All-in-one,' single-atom could power both sides of water splitting

Green hydrogen production technology, which utilizes renewable energy to produce eco-friendly hydrogen without carbon emissions, is gaining attention as a core technology for addressing global warming. Green hydrogen is produced ...