Chemistry News Archives Page 13

Catalyst-free chemistry makes self-healing materials more practical (11/28/2007)

A new catalyst-free, self-healing material system offers a far less expensive and far more practical way to repair composite materials used in structural applications ranging from airplane fuselages to wind-farm propeller blades. ...> Full Article

Researchers fuelling the 'hydrogen economy' (11/27/2007)

Scientists are turning low-grade sludge into high-value gas in a process which could make eco-friendly biodiesel even greener and more economical to produce. ...> Full Article

Bacteria shed light on an important group of human proteins (11/26/2007)

Researchers have found the solution of the first crystal structure of a member of the Rhesus protein family and thereby shed new light on a group of proteins of great importance in human transfusion medicine. ...> Full Article

Researchers set new chemical world record (11/25/2007)

Chemists have set a new world record for the shortest chemical bond ever recorded between two metals, in this case, two atoms of chromium. ...> Full Article

New technique captures chemical reactions in a single living cell for the first time (11/22/2007)

Bioengineers at have discovered a technique that for the first time enables the detection of biomolecules' dynamic reactions in a single living cell. ...> Full Article

Researcher making biofuel from rotten peaches (11/21/2007)

What's brewing in Caye Drapcho's bioreactor may well be a fuel of the future. Drapcho, a biosystems engineer at Clemson University, is investigating a bacterium that produces hydrogen. The microbe is called Thermotoga neapolitana. And it has a taste for peaches, especially rotten ones. ...> Full Article

Reclaiming Plastics From Junkyard Cars Feasible With New Technique (11/17/2007)

Once plastics have been built into a car, they are rarely recycled. Compressed into granulate material, the shredded plastic parts are usually too indiscriminately mixed to permit any further use. Researchers have now found a way of separating the different types of plastic. ...> Full Article

'Mini-rivers' may detect explosives, toxins better than other types of sensors (11/16/2007)

Researchers developing new type of sensor that may be markedly better at sniffing out explosives, cocaine or environmental toxins than sensors now on the market ...> Full Article

Unraveling cell communications is goal for mathematical biologist (11/15/2007)

Trillions of living cells in the human body are constantly communicating with each other through an exchange of chemical signals. Peter Thomas, assistant professor of mathematics, biology and cognitive science at Case Western Reserve University, is on a quest to find out how "cells make sense of the barrages of signaling molecules they encounter every day." ...> Full Article

Clean, carbon-neutral hydrogen on the horizon (11/14/2007)

Hydrogen as an everyday, environmentally friendly fuel source may be closer than we think. ...> Full Article

Scientists Discover Record-Breaking Hydrogen Storage Materials (11/13/2007)

Scientists at the University of Virginia have discovered a new class of hydrogen storage materials that could make the storage and transportation of energy much more efficient - and affordable - through higher-performing hydrogen fuel cells. ...> Full Article

'Electronic nose' could detect hazards (11/3/2007)

A tiny 'electronic nose' that MIT researchers have engineered with a novel inkjet printing method could be used to detect hazards including carbon monoxide, harmful industrial solvents and explosives. ...> Full Article

Scientists Discover New Way To Make Water (11/2/2007)

In a familiar high-school chemistry demonstration, an instructor first uses electricity to split liquid water into its constituent gases, hydrogen and oxygen. Then, by combining the two gases and igniting them with a spark, the instructor changes the gases back into water with a loud pop. ...> Full Article

Fuel Cells Gearing Up To Power Auto Industry (11/1/2007)

The average price for all types of gasoline is holding steady around $2.95 per gallon nationwide, but the pain at the pump might be short-lived as research may eliminate one of the biggest hurdles to the wide-scale production of fuel cell-powered vehicles. ...> Full Article

Engineers develop new cements to heal spinal fractures (10/31/2007)

New research could offer hope for victims of the most devastating spinal injuries - typically those caused in car crashes. ...> Full Article

Going Live With Click Chemistry: Researchers Create a Copper-free Version of the Technique (10/30/2007)

Click chemistry, one of the most exciting and proficient new techniques for labeling biomolecules in vitro, has now been extended to studies in the context of live cells as well. This breakthrough opens the door for applications to live cell imaging of numerous biomolecules, including glycans, proteins and lipids. ...> Full Article

Exactly how sensitive is our climate? It may not matter... (10/29/2007)

Scientists have suggested that climate researchers and policy makers ought to worry less about working out exactly how sensitive Earth's climate will be to a doubling of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. ...> Full Article

High-tech textiles pave the way for glowing garments (10/28/2007)

As clocks go back university unveils textile technology that could improve safety of cyclists, joggers and pedestrians on dark winter days ...> Full Article

University licenses new polymer (10/28/2007)

If you looked up No. 6,172,181 in the U.S. Patent Office, you'd find a product named 2,3,4,5,6-pentafluorobenzoyl diphenyl ether compound and fluorine-containing aryl ether ketone polymer. ...> Full Article

Fescue grass secretes herbicide (10/27/2007)

Certain varieties of common fescue lawn grass come equipped with their own natural broad-spectrum herbicide that inhibits the growth of weeds and other plants around them. ...> Full Article

Persistence pays off (10/26/2007)

Chemists have come remarkably close to mimicking a type of protein previously thought impossible to imitate. The long-term application of this work could be in the development of new types of glucose sensors for diabetics, or in the production of new biofuels. ...> Full Article

Researchers unlock hydrogen's secrets to spot polymorphism in pharmaceuticals (10/25/2007)

Researchers have found a new way to use solid-state NMR equipment to crack the secrets of hydrogen atoms and thus spot unwanted polymorphs in pharmaceuticals. ...> Full Article

Photonic Gel Films Hold Promise (10/24/2007)

By alternating layers of two different polymers - one rigid and glassy, the other soft and easily swollen with liquid or vapor. Researchers report they've created photonic gel crystals that can be tuned to reflect light of many different colors across the visible and near-infrared spectrum. ...> Full Article

Hungry microbes share out the carbon in the roots of plants (10/23/2007)

Sugars made by plants are rapidly used by microbes living in their roots, according to new research at the University of York, creating a short cut in the carbon cycle that is vital to life on earth. ...> Full Article

New Approach Builds Better Proteins Inside a Computer (10/22/2007)

With the aid of more than 150,000 home computer users throughout the world researchers have, for the first time, accurately predicted the three-dimensional structure of a small, naturally occurring globular protein using only its amino acid sequence. The accomplishment was achieved with a newly refined computational method for predicting protein structure, which the researchers say can also improve the detail and accuracy of protein structures generated with experimental techniques. ...> Full Article

Scientists Estimate Mercury Emissions from U.S. Forest Fires (10/21/2007)

Forest fires and other blazes in the United States release about 30 percent as much mercury as the nation's industrial sources. ...> Full Article

Solution to a seven-decade mystery is crystal clear to chemist (10/20/2007)

A researcher has helped solve a scientific mystery that stumped chemists for nearly seven decades. In so doing, his team's findings may lead to the development of more-powerful computer memories and lasers. ...> Full Article

Chemistry Turns Killer Gas Into Potential Cure (10/20/2007)

Researchers are harnessing carbon monoxide for beneficial use. ...> Full Article

Newly solved structure reveals how cells resist oxygen damage (10/19/2007)

Singlet oxygen, a byproduct of the photosynthetic process by which certain cells convert sunlight into energy, is a highly toxic and reactive substance that tears cells apart. Now scientists have become the first to solve the structure of a protein complex that protects these cells from singlet oxygen. The findings not only advance knowledge of how cells sense the presence of singlet oxygen, but also how they turn on critical genes to defend themselves from its effects. ...> Full Article

Experimental Technique Sorts DNA, Cells, Molecules in a Split Second (10/18/2007)

A simple device just a few millimeters across can separate microscopic objects such as DNA or cells in a fraction of a second—thousands of times faster than conventional methods. ...> Full Article