news 2024

Physicists are getting closer to controlling single-molecule chemical reactions - could this shape the future of pharmaceutical research? Controlling matter at the atomic level has taken a major step forward, thanks to groundbreaking nanotechnology research by an international team of scientists led by physicists at the University of Bath.

Scientists are calling for changes to chemistry textbooks after discovering a fundamental aspect of structural organic chemistry has been incorrectly described for almost 100 years. The team from Cardiff University's School of Chemistry, dispute the long-held belief that alkyl groups - a chemical group consisting of carbon and hydrogen atoms arranged in a chain - donate electrons to other parts of a molecule.

An international team of researchers have developed a promising new drug which could help combat the spread of treatment-resistant malaria. The breakthrough development is the first to adapt an approach from cancer treatments to tackle malaria. It works by permanently disabling a protein that Plasmodium falciparum , one of the mosquito-borne parasites which spreads malaria, uses to duplicate itself inside the human body.

A breakthrough in material science could help deliver a new generation of affordable batteries, scientists say. An international team of researchers led by chemists from the University of Glasgow and battery testing experts at Helmholtz Institute Ulm have implemented a material made from chromium and selenium in a potassium-ion battery.

Manchester scientists unveil advanced materials that capture benzene in our atmosphere, tackling major health risk Scientists have developed a new material capable of capturing the harmful chemical benzene from the polluted air, offering a potential solution for tackling a major health and environment risk.

A breakthrough in quantum technology research could help realise a new generation of precise quantum sensors that can operate at room temperature. The research-carried out by an international team of researchers from the University of Glasgow, Imperial College London, and UNSW Sydney-shows how the quantum states of molecules can be controlled and sensitively detected under ambient conditions.

Scientists from The University of Manchester and the University of Warwick have developed a cutting-edge computational framework that enhances the safe freezing of medicines and vaccines. Treatments such as vaccines, fertility materials, blood donations, and cancer therapies often require rapid freezing to maintain their effectiveness.

A team from Imperial and BASF has won the Computers & Chemical Engineering Best Paper Award 2023 for AI techniques that could boost chemical R&D. The prestigious journal in process systems engineering rated the paper as the best of over 280 published that year. The process of trial and error in chemical R&D is costly, with some experiments taking weeks.

New research using neural networks, a form of brain-inspired AI, proposes a solution to the tough challenge of modelling the states of molecules. The research shows how the technique can help solve fundamental equations in complex molecular systems. This could lead to practical uses in the future, helping researchers to prototype new materials and chemical syntheses using computer simulation before trying to make them in the lab.

The largest "bluestone" at the heart of Stonehenge came from northern Scotland, not Wales, according to new research. Published in the journal Nature , the study analysed the age and chemistry of minerals from fragments of the Altar Stone. The findings show a remarkable similarity between the Old Red Sandstone of the Orcadian Basin in northeast Scotland and the Stonehenge Altar Stone.

Scientists have recovered the first long section of rocks that originated in the Earth's mantle, the layer below the crust and the planet's largest component. The rocks will help unravel the mantle's role in the origins of life on Earth, the volcanic activity generated when it melts, and how it drives the global cycles of important elements such as carbon and hydrogen, according to the team which includes researchers from Cardiff University.

3D printing offers effective, scalable way to remove harmful chemicals Engineers have invented a new way to remove health-harming 'forever chemicals' from water - using 3D printing. Researchers at the University of Bath say their method, using ceramic-infused lattices (or 'monoliths'), removes at least 75% of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), one of the most common perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS), from water, and could become an important tool in future efforts to eliminate the chemicals from water supplies.

A team led by scientists at the University of Bath discovers how light particles can be used to reveal the 'hidden' energy states of molecules. A new optical phenomenon has been demonstrated by an international team of scientists led by physicists at the University of Bath, with significant potential impact in pharmaceutical science, security, forensics, environmental science, art conservation and medicine.

The mystery of how complex molecules essential to life first formed may have been solved by a new study involving UCL's Dr Paola Pinilla. Planetary scientists believe that organic macromolecules that make Earth suitable for life, including elements such as carbon, nitrogen and oxygen, initially came from a type of meteorite known as a chondrite - but how chondrites acquired these molecules in the first place was unknown.

Researchers have developed soft, stretchable 'jelly batteries' that could be used for wearable devices or soft robotics, or even implanted in the brain to deliver drugs or treat conditions such as epilepsy. The researchers, from the University of Cambridge, took their inspiration from electric eels, which stun their prey with modified muscle cells called electrocytes.

A study of 17 commonly used synthetic -forever chemicalshas shown that these toxic substances can readily be absorbed through human skin. New research, published in Environment International, proves for the first time that a wide range of PFAS (perfluoroalkyl substances) - chemicals which do not break down in nature - can permeate the skin barrier and reach the body's bloodstream.

Researchers at the National Graphene Institute have made a groundbreaking discovery that could revolutionise energy harnessing and information computing. Their study, published in Nature , reveals how electric field effects can selectively accelerate coupled electrochemical processes in graphene. Electrochemical processes are essential in renewable energy technologies like batteries, fuel cells, and electrolysers.

New research by Cardiff University's Otter Project has found that PFAS, also known as 'forever chemicals', present in English otters, raising concerns about potential health impacts in the future. The Cardiff scientists tested otters from across the UK to monitor levels of PFAS in the environment, to gain an understanding of the concentration of these chemicals in the UK's freshwaters, their persistence in the environment and any ecological and health risks.

Physicists at the University of Bath lead on the discovery of a new optical property that measures the twist in tiny helices. A new nonlinear optical property of tiny particles has been discovered by an international team of scientists led by physicists at the University of Bath, with important implications for researchers working in fields as diverse as display technology, chemical catalysis and medicine.

Study says 'biodegradable' teabags don't readily degrade in the environment and can harm earthworms Researchers say labelling should be improved to make clear teabags shouldn't be thrown away in domestic compost heaps. Some teabags manufactured using plastic alternatives do not degrade in soil and have the potential to harm terrestrial species, a new study has shown.