Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Turning waste into gold      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have recovered gold from electronic waste. Their highly sustainable new method is based on a protein fibril sponge, which the scientists derive from whey, a food industry byproduct.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Physics: General Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

When the music changes, so does the dance: Controlling cooperative electronic states in Kagome metals      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Playing a different sound track is, physically speaking, only a minute change of the vibration spectrum, yet its impact on a dance floor is dramatic. People long for this tiny trigger, and as a salsa changes to a tango completely different collective patterns emerge. For such a tiny stimulus to have an effect, the crowd needs to know more than just one dance. Electrons in metals tend to show only one behavior at zero temperature, when all kinetic energy is quenched.

Archaeology: General Biology: Marine Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Sea Life Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Slimming down a colossal fossil whale      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A 30 million year-old fossil whale may not be the heaviest animal of all time after all, according to a new analysis by paleontologists. The new analysis puts Perucetus colossus back in the same weight range as modern whales and smaller than the largest blue whales ever recorded.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Physics: Optics
Published

A bright idea for recycling rare-earth phosphors from used fluorescent bulbs      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Recycling facilities collect glass and mercury from thrown away fluorescent bulbs, but discarded lighting could also supply rare-earth metals for reuse. The 17 metals referred to as rare earths aren't all widely available and aren't easily extracted with existing recycling methods. Now, researchers have found a simpler way to collect slightly magnetic particles that contain rare-earth metals from spent fluorescent bulbs.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Physics: General Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

Under pressure: New tool for precise measurement of superconductors      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers think they have a foundational tool for the thorny problem of how to measure and image the behavior of hydride superconductors at high pressure. They report creatively integrating quantum sensors into a diamond anvil cell, enabling direct readouts of the pressurized material's electrical and magnetic properties.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Developmental Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Radio waves can tune up bacteria to become life-saving medicines      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have found a new way to alter the DNA of bacterial cells -- a process used to make many vital medicines including insulin -- much more efficiently than standard industry techniques.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry Physics: General Physics: Optics
Published

Researchers develop novel method to photosynthesize hydrogen peroxide using water and air      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have developed a microporous covalent organic framework with dense donor-acceptor lattices and engineered linkages for the efficient and clean production of hydrogen peroxide through the photosynthesis process with water and air.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Physics: General Physics: Optics
Published

Light stimulates a new twist for synthetic chemistry      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Molecules that are induced by light to rotate bulky groups around central bonds could be developed into photo-activated bioactive systems, molecular switches, and more.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Physics: General Physics: Optics
Published

Diamonds are a chip's best friend      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

New technologies aim to produce high-purity synthetic crystals that become excellent semiconductors when doped with impurities as electron donors or acceptors of other elements. Researchers have now determined the magnitude of the spin-orbit interaction in acceptor-bound excitons in a semiconductor. They broke through the energy resolution limit of conventional luminescence measurements by directly observing the fine structure of bound excitons in boron-doped blue diamond, using optical absorption.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Technology Environmental: General Physics: General
Published

Researchers use Hawk supercomputer and lean into imperfection to improve solar cell efficiency      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Solar energy is one of the most promising, widely adopted renewable energy sources, but the solar cells that convert light into electricity remains a challenge. Scientists have turned to the High-Performance Computing Center Stuttgart to understand how strategically designing imperfections in the system could lead to more efficient energy conversion.

Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Energy: Batteries
Published

Imaging grain boundaries that impede lithium-ion migration in solid-state batteries      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A research team has developed a new technique to image grain boundaries obstructing lithium-ion migration in solid-state batteries -- a promising type of next-generation battery.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry
Published

AI-driven lab speeds catalysis research      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have developed a 'self-driving' lab that uses artificial intelligence (AI) and automated systems to provide in-depth analyses of catalytic reactions used in chemical research and manufacturing. The new tool, called Fast-Cat, can provide more information in five days than is possible in six months of conventional testing.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Physics: General Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

A new theoretical development clarifies water's electronic structure      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have decoded the electronic structure of water, opening up new perspectives for technological and environmental applications.

Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Physics: General
Published

The mutual neutralization of hydronium and hydroxide      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have been able to directly visualize the neutral products of the mutual neutralization of hydronium and hydroxide, and report three different product channels: two channels were attributed to a predominant electron-transfer mechanism, and a smaller channel was associated with proton transfer. The two-beam collision experiment is an important step toward understanding the quantum dynamics of this fundamental reaction.