Efficient and inexpensive catalysts will be required for production of hydrogen from sunlight. Molybdenum sulfides are considered good candidates. A team at HZB has now explained what processes take place in molybdenum sulfides during catalysis and why amorphous molybdenum...
The average American drinks more than three cups of coffee a day, contributing to a $40 billion industry in the U.S. alone, according to the National Coffee Association. But not all coffee is created equal; flavor profiles vary. Focusing...
Scientists at the University of Würzburg have chemically modified the enzyme levansucrase using a new method. The enzyme can now produce sugar polymers that are exciting for applications in the food industry and medicine.
Enzymes are tools of nature that...
Electrically conductive films that are optically transparent have a central role in a wide range of electronics applications, from touch screens and video displays to photovoltaics. These conductors function as invisible electrodes for circuit wiring, touch sensing, or electrical...
Securing enough energy to meet human needs is one of the greatest challenges society has ever faced. Previously reliable sources—oil, gas and coal—are degrading air quality, devastating land and ocean and altering the fragile balance of the global climate,...
Caffeine is well-known for its ability to help people stay alert, but a team of researchers at MIT and Brigham and Women's Hospital has now come up with a novel use for this chemical stimulant—catalyzing the formation of polymer...
A diagram showing cholesterol's (red) predominance in the outer layer of the cell membrane. Cholesterol transport proteins (blue) can alter its distribution between the inner and outer layers. Credit: UIC
Scientists have long puzzled over cholesterol. It's biologically necessary; it's...
The discovery of a novel enzyme that releases a valuable chemical from agricultural waste could provide an important breakthrough in the upscaling of renewable fuels and chemicals, a new study shows.
Researchers -- led by the University of York --...
There are many ways to generate electricity—batteries, solar panels, wind turbines, and hydroelectric dams, to name a few examples… and now, there's rust.
New research conducted by scientists at Caltech and Northwestern University shows that thin films of rust—iron oxide—can...
Light microscopes have revolutionized our understanding of the microcosmos, but their resolution is limited to about 100 nanometers. To see how molecules bond, break, or change their structure, we need at least 1000 times better resolution.
Laser induced electron diffraction (LIED) is...
A superhydrophilic filter produced at Rice University can remove more than 90 percent of contaminants from water used in hydraulic fracturing operations. In this image, 'produced' water from a Marcellus shale fracturing site is at left, the retentate (carbon...
