Chemistry
We summarize the week's science breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Earth
Catastrophic solar storms may not explain shadows of radiation in trees
Tree rings record six known Miyake events — spikes in global radiation levels in the past. The sun, as long presumed, might not be the sole culprit.
- Chemistry
Mixing gold ions into whiskey can reveal its flavor
By changing the spirit’s color, the formation of gold nanoparticles can reveal how much flavor a whiskey has absorbed from its wood cask.
- Chemistry
A way to snap molecules together like Lego wins 2022 chemistry Nobel
Click chemistry and bioorthogonal chemistry allow scientists to build complex molecules in the lab and in living cells.
- Chemistry
Josep Cornella breaks boundaries to make new and better catalysts
Josep Cornella reinvents chemical reactions essential for agriculture and the pharmaceutical industry.
- Chemistry
Why once-gold ceilings in Spain’s Alhambra palace have purple stains
Moisture infiltrated flawed gilding at the iconic palace, leading to corrosion that deposited gold nanoparticles of the right size to appear purple.
- Climate
How to make recyclable plastics out of CO2 to slow climate change
Companies are turning atmospheric CO2 from smokestacks and landfills into plastics to shrink their carbon footprint.
- Climate
A carbon footprint life cycle assessment can cut down on greenwashing
As companies try to reduce their carbon footprint, many are doing life cycle assessments to quantify the full carbon cost of their products.
- Environment
Common, cheap ingredients can break down some ‘forever chemicals’
Forever chemicals, or PFAS, are harmful compounds that are very difficult to degrade. But some are no match for lye and dimethyl sulfoxide.
- Chemistry
These researchers are unlocking Renaissance beauty secrets
An art historian has teamed up with chemists to uncover the science behind cosmetics used around 500 years ago.
- Chemistry
Cats chewing on catnip boosts the plant’s insect-repelling powers
When cats tear up catnip, it increases the amount of insect-repelling chemicals released by the plants.
- Chemistry
A pigment’s shift in chemistry robbed a painted yellow rose of its brilliance
The degradation of an arsenic-based paint stripped shadows and light from a still life flower in a 17th century work by painter Abraham Mignon.
- Ecosystems
Just 3 ingredients can quickly destroy widely used PFAS ‘forever chemicals’
Ultraviolet light, sulfite and iodide break down enduring PFAS molecules faster and more thoroughly than other UV-based methods.
