Tag: chemistry
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Math Methods Devised to Design Chemical Catalysts
Research chemists at University of Utah in Salt Lake City have developed a process based on mathematics to design chemical catalysts, including those for making drugs. Professor Matt Sigman (pictured right) and doctoral student Kaid Harper report their findings in this week’s issue of the journal Science; paid subscription required. Catalysts are substances that encourage…
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USDA Funding Forest, Grasses Biofuel Research
The National Institute of Food and Agriculture, a division of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, announced $137 million in grants for research on biofuels from tall grasses, crop residues, and forest resources. The five-year awards will go to 22 universities and companies, through the lead institutions in Washington, Louisiana, Tennessee, and Iowa. The grants will…
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Commercial Production Begins for New Lithium Process
Simbol Materials, a three year-old company in Pleasanton, California, says it will begin today commercial production of a pure form of lithium carbonate for electric vehicle batteries and other energy storage devices. The company’s process, developed out of research conducted at and licensed from Lawrence Livermore National Lab, also produces manganese and zinc. The production…
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Copper Nanofilm Can Replace Rare Earth in Digital Displays
Research chemists at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina have developed a film made of copper nanowires that could replace expensive rare earths now used in digital displays. The discovery by Duke chemistry professor Ben Wiley and grad student Aaron Rathmell appears online in the journal Advanced Materials (paid subscription required). Wiley has also started…
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Semiconductor Foundation, NSF Fund Nanoelectronics Research
Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC) in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina and National Science Foundation (NSF) are funding $20 million in grants on nanoelectronics research. Some 12 research teams at 24 participating U.S. universities will conduct research over a four-year period on a new switching mechanism using nanoscale electronics as a replacement for current transistors, the…
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Microwave Technology Adapted to Cut Energy Waste
Researchers at Oregon State University in Corvallis have adapted technology similar to the familiar microwave oven to improve methods for capturing wasted heat and turn it into electric power. A team led by materials scientist Mas Subramanian published its findings online in the journal Materials Research Bulletin (paid subscription required). Subramanian and colleagues used a…
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Toxicity to Human Cells of Nanotubes, Nanowires Investigated
A research team at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island has found some nanoscale materials interact with human cells much like asbestos fibers, making the materials toxic. Their research on carbon nanotubes and gold nanowires appears online in the journal Nature Nanotechnology (paid subscription required). The team led by Huajian Gao, professor of engineering found…
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Laser Technology Developed to Detect Improvised Explosives
Scientists at Michigan State University in East Lansing have developed a laser that in lab tests has shown the potential to detect roadside bombs, a destructive weapon encountered by American and allied forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. The team led by MSU chemistry professor Marcos Dantus published its findings in the current issue of the…
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Magnetic Fields Help Purify Hybrid Nanoparticles
Chemistry, physics, and materials scientists at Pennsylvania State University have invented a new system using magnetism to purify hybrid nanoparticles, a development with implications for drug delivery, medical imaging, and related fields. The findings of Mary Elizabeth Williams, Raymond E. Schaak, and their colleagues at Penn State appear online in the journal Agewandte Chemie (paid…
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Microbes Found to Clean Nuclear Waste, Generate Electricity
Researchers at Michigan State University in East Lansing have shown the ability of certain microbes to generate an electric current while cleaning up uranium in wastewater. The team’s findings, for which patents have been filed, appear online in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (paid subscription required). Microbiologist Gemma Reguera (pictured right)…