Used masks and plastic packaging turned into high-octane fuel at low temperatures

A new process can convert waste polyolefins into high-value liquid iso-alkenes at temperatures below 100°C. The method couples the endothermic breakage of the carbon–carbon polymer chain with the exothermic branching reaction, meaning little heat is needed to break down the polymer. What’s more the researchers were able to convert almost all of a variety of […]

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Plant biomarkers provide evidence of nerve agent attacks

Researchers in the Netherlands have shown how plant biomarkers can be used to track the use of nerve agents. Chemical weapons remain a problem despite their prohibition under the Chemical Weapons Convention, with incidents confirmed in Syria, Russia and the UK in recent years. Because these agents are often volatile and reactive, they don’t persist […]

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Sweetener erythritol linked to heart problems

The sweetener erythritol has been linked to a dramatically increased risk of cardiovascular problems. Erythritol is a four-carbon sugar alcohol naturally present in small amounts in fruits and vegetables, but at levels 1000 times higher in some processed foods such as pastries and ice creams. It is around two-thirds as sweet as sucrose and is […]

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Rooting out drug contamination

Drug contamination is a persistent problem, and one where it seems like the harder we look, the more we will find. In the last month, Chemistry World has reported on cases that run the gamut from deadly chemical contamination in cough syrups to bacterial contamination in eye drops and nitrosamine contamination resulting from degradation in […]

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Dataset with millions of entries set to help AI find new drugs

Researchers in Russia have put together the world’s largest dataset to date for training deep neural network models. The dataset contains around six million conformations of about one million drug-like molecules. From a computational point of view, one must know details such as conformation energies and the Hamiltonian matrix parameters to forecast the biological activity […]

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A safer, coral-friendly sunscreen is on the horizon

A strategy for making innovative new sunscreens that can block UV radiation but whose molecules are too big to penetrate skin, coral or algae, has been developed by researchers in China. Animal tests have demonstrated that this polymeric UV filter is more effective than existing sunscreens at preventing sunburn in mice. In contrast, the more […]

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Japan launches new visa routes for graduates and highly skilled professionals

The Japanese government is launching two new visa schemes targeting highly skilled foreign workers. The schemes will open in April and are designed to attract professionals including researchers and engineers, as well as graduates of highly ranked universities. According to local media reports, Japan’s Ministry of Justice cited the ‘global competition for talent’ as it […]

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Renaissance Science – LI

One of the most ubiquitous figures in the history of science in the first half of the seventeenth century was Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Alban (1561–1626), jurist, and politician, who rose to become Lord High Chancellor of England. Portrait of Francis Bacon by Paul van Somer 1617 Source: Wikimedia Commons A prolific author of polemical […]

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Elusive pyridine-based chloronium structures revealed

For the first time, researchers have reported the solid-state structure of pyridine-based chloronium ions. Previously reported to be intermediates in the oxidation of secondary alcohols, these nitrogen-ligated chloronium ions had proven challenging to isolate. Full screen in popup Synthetic route and solid-state structure of [bis(pyridine)Cl][BF4] Source: © Sebastian Riedel/FU Berlin Synthetic route and solid-state structure of […]

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India should become the talent incubator for the global south

India has the potential to be a leading ‘science hub’ for the next generation of researchers, says Srivari Chandrasekhar, India’s secretary to the science and technology department, which oversees an annual budget of around INR70 billion (£700 million). He now wants scientists from African nations and other countries in the global south to start exploiting […]

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