http://www.physorg.com/chemistry-news/materials-science/ en-us PhysOrg.com provides the latest news on chemistry and materials science Catalytic materials, which lower the energy barriers for chemical reactions, are used in everything from the commercial production of chemicals to catalytic converters in car engines. However, with current catalytic materials becoming increasingly expensive, scientists are exploring viable alternatives. http://www.physorg.com/news248091637.html Chemistry - Materials Science Fri, 10 Feb 2012 10:20:43 EST news248091637 (PhysOrg.com) -- These inexpensive robots can stretch, bend and twist under control, and lift objects up to 120 times their own weight. Being soft, they can apply gentle and even pressure, and adapt to varied surfaces. http://www.physorg.com/news248026369.html Chemistry - Materials Science Thu, 09 Feb 2012 16:50:01 EST news248026369 One common reason that people with fillings experience toothache is that their fillings expand at a different rate to the original tooth when, for example, drinking a hot drink. Contrary to intuition, however, not all materials expand when heated - some actually contract. Recent research on these so-called negative thermal expansion (NTE) materials has led to the discovery of alloys exhibiting unexpectedly large thermal contraction. http://www.physorg.com/news248025212.html Chemistry - Materials Science Thu, 09 Feb 2012 15:53:46 EST news248025212 A technique for creating a new molecule that structurally and chemically replicates the active part of the widely used industrial catalyst molybdenite has been developed by researchers with the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab). This technique holds promise for the creation of catalytic materials that can serve as effective low-cost alternatives to platinum for generating hydrogen gas from water that is acidic. http://www.physorg.com/news248022028.html Chemistry - Materials Science Thu, 09 Feb 2012 15:01:00 EST news248022028 Recent studies at the ISIS neutron source, the Science and Technology Facilities Council’s (STFC) world leading research centre, have given a new insight into the mysterious ‘anti-freeze’ capabilities of glycerol – a property successfully used in nature, by animals such as lizards, for survival at sub-zero temperatures.  http://www.physorg.com/news247997258.html Chemistry - Materials Science Thu, 09 Feb 2012 08:30:02 EST news247997258 (PhysOrg.com) -- It’s a matchup worthy of a late-night cable movie: put a school of starving piranha and a 300-pound fish together, and who comes out the winner? http://www.physorg.com/news247997076.html Chemistry - Materials Science Thu, 09 Feb 2012 08:05:05 EST news247997076 For coffee lovers, the first cup of the morning is one of life's best aromas. But did you know that the leftover grounds could eliminate one of the worst smells around – sewer gas? http://www.physorg.com/news247915839.html Chemistry - Materials Science Wed, 08 Feb 2012 09:31:05 EST news247915839 (PhysOrg.com) -- Filtering carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, from factory smokestacks is a necessary, but expensive part of many manufacturing processes. However, a collaborative research team from the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the University of Delaware has gathered new insight into the performance of a material called a zeolite that may stop carbon dioxide in its tracks far more efficiently than current scrubbers do. http://www.physorg.com/news247913242.html Chemistry - Materials Science Wed, 08 Feb 2012 08:47:36 EST news247913242 (PhysOrg.com) -- Packaging, insulation, and impact protection are examples of commercial uses of polymer foams. Depending on the intended application, the properties required of these foams can differ greatly. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, a team of German, Irish, and French researchers led by Cosima Stubenrauch at the University of Stuttgart has now introduced a new method for the controlled production of structured foams. Their technique is based on the polymerization of foamed emulsions of oil in water. http://www.physorg.com/news247843186.html Chemistry - Materials Science Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:20:00 EST news247843186 Whether it protects space satellites or sequesters nuclear waste, scientists want to understand tiny features that could significantly alter how a material behaves. Locating microscopic defects can be done with powerful microscopes, but scientists want more. They want to use the microscopes to locate and understand the very molecules involved in the defects. Describing the location of the molecules and atoms in images often relies on statistics that can be inaccurate and expensive. The trick is to pick the statistical approach that accurately and economically describes the situation. Pick the wrong one, and the mathematical description won't match the microscope's image. http://www.physorg.com/news247824498.html Chemistry - Materials Science Tue, 07 Feb 2012 08:30:01 EST news247824498 (PhysOrg.com) -- A novel material developed by researchers at the University of Cambridge is opening up new possibilities for next generation electronic and optoelectronic devices, and paving the way for further component miniaturisation. http://www.physorg.com/news247824360.html Chemistry - Materials Science Tue, 07 Feb 2012 08:06:12 EST news247824360 Nanodiamonds designed to toughen artificial joints also might prevent the inflammation caused when hardworking metal joints shed debris into the body, according to an early study published this week in the journal Acta Biomaterialia. http://www.physorg.com/news247684983.html Chemistry - Materials Science Sun, 05 Feb 2012 17:23:23 EST news247684983 In chemistry, downsizing can have positive attributes. Reducing the number of steps and reagents in synthetic reactions, for example, enables chemists to boost their productivity while reducing their environmental footprint. This type of ‘atom economy’ could soon improve, thanks to a new rare-earth metal catalyst developed by Zhaomin Hou and colleagues at the RIKEN Advanced Science Institute, Wako. Their catalyst makes it simpler to modify aromatic carbon–hydrogen (C–H) bonds with silicon-bearing silyl ligands—a reaction step critical to pharmaceutical and materials science manufacturers alike.  http://www.physorg.com/news247480431.html Chemistry - Materials Science Fri, 03 Feb 2012 08:34:00 EST news247480431 Harvard researchers at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering have come up with a tough, low-cost, biodegradable material inspired by insects’ hard outer shells. The material’s inventors say it has a host of possible applications and someday could provide a more environmentally friendly alternative to plastic. http://www.physorg.com/news247478374.html Chemistry - Materials Science Fri, 03 Feb 2012 08:20:02 EST news247478374 World fuel consumption is shifting more and more to diesel at the expense of gasoline. A recently published article in Nature Chemistry by a research team at Stockholm University and the Polytechnic University of Valencia in Spain presents a new porous material that evinces unique properties for converting gasoline directly into diesel. The material has a tremendously complex atomic structure that could only be determined with the aid of transmission electron microscopy. http://www.physorg.com/news247322412.html Chemistry - Materials Science Wed, 01 Feb 2012 12:40:19 EST news247322412 (PhysOrg.com) -- While retaining their speed, catalysts have lost some of their secrets, thanks to a new probe built by scientists at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory to help clarify the steps catalysts take in promoting reactions. The new device is called a large-sample-volume constant-flow magic angle spinning probe for use in a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometer.  With it, scientists can flow a gaseous reaction mixture through a solid catalyst and collect NMR data on the intermediates and products generated during the reaction.  In addition, using NMR can provide structural information about the catalyst itself during the reaction. http://www.physorg.com/news247132895.html Chemistry - Materials Science Mon, 30 Jan 2012 08:02:35 EST news247132895 On a typical day, Rizia Bardhan walks through the doors of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory’s Molecular Foundry and immerses herself in the tricky business of tweaking optical spectroscopy equipment to study phase transitions in metal hydrides. http://www.physorg.com/news247131836.html Chemistry - Materials Science Mon, 30 Jan 2012 07:44:06 EST news247131836 (PhysOrg.com) -- Delicate and translucent as a puff of air, yet mechanically stable, flexible, and possessing amazing heat-insulation properties—these are the properties of a new aerogel made of cellulose and silica gel. Researchers led by Jie Cai have introduced this novel material, which consists almost completely of air, in the journal Angewandte Chemie. http://www.physorg.com/news246882319.html Chemistry - Materials Science Fri, 27 Jan 2012 12:30:01 EST news246882319 Swiss researchers have given pinewood the hardness and smooth touch of precious wood. L’EPFL+ECAL Lab presents the first objects made of this new material in Helsinki today. http://www.physorg.com/news246876910.html Chemistry - Materials Science Fri, 27 Jan 2012 09:20:01 EST news246876910 (PhysOrg.com) -- The biggest challenge with hydrogen-powered fuel cells lies in the storage of hydrogen: how to store enough of it, in a safe and cost-effective manner, to power a vehicle for 300 miles?  Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) is aiming to solve this problem by synthesizing novel materials with high hydrogen adsorption capacities. http://www.physorg.com/news246876391.html Chemistry - Materials Science Fri, 27 Jan 2012 09:00:02 EST news246876391 Japan used seawater to cool nuclear fuel at the stricken Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear plant after the tsunami in March 2011 -- and that was probably the best action to take at the time, says Professor Alexandra Navrotsky of the University of California, Davis. http://www.physorg.com/news246812720.html Chemistry - Materials Science Thu, 26 Jan 2012 15:05:43 EST news246812720 (PhysOrg.com) -- A new catalytic process discovered by the Cardiff Catalysis Institute could unleash a range of useful new by-products from diesel fuel production. http://www.physorg.com/news246713381.html Chemistry - Materials Science Wed, 25 Jan 2012 11:29:51 EST news246713381 Taking inspiration from the yellow fattail scorpion, which uses a bionic shield to protect itself against scratches from desert sandstorms, scientists have developed a new way to protect the moving parts of machinery from wear and tear. A report on the research appears in ACS' journal Langmuir. http://www.physorg.com/news246708861.html Chemistry - Materials Science Wed, 25 Jan 2012 10:14:43 EST news246708861 Cyano-bridged bimetal assemblies attract attention because of their magnetic properties such as photomagnetization, humidity-induced magnetization, and nonlinear magneto-optical effect, which make them suitable for many applications. A high Curie temperature is an asset for the use of such magnetic compounds in functional materials. Hexa-, hepta-, and octacyanometalates have been shown to have high Curie temperatures as a result of the high coordination number of their metal centers and the large superexchange interactions due to their diffuse 4d or 5d orbitals. Shin-ichi Ohkoshi and his co-workers at the University of Tokyo report the compound with the highest Curie temperature among octacyano-bridged bimetal assemblies in the Short Communication published in the European Journal of Inorganic Chemistry. http://www.physorg.com/news246633274.html Chemistry - Materials Science Tue, 24 Jan 2012 14:50:01 EST news246633274 (PhysOrg.com) -- Storage and containment of the "nuclear legacy", the highly radiotoxic residues from spent nuclear reactors is a pressing problem for the nuclear power industry that must be solved if nuclear power is to have a genuine contribution to providing carbon footprint minimised power. The search for new ways to lessen the environmental impact of such events is therefore of utmost importance. An EU-funded team led by Laurence Harwood has now developed a new ligand that may selectively remove radiotoxic materials from aqueous radioactive waste. As the scientists report in the European Journal of Organic Chemistry, their ligand is based on the current benchmark ligand system used in the SANEX process. http://www.physorg.com/news246632882.html Chemistry - Materials Science Tue, 24 Jan 2012 13:08:38 EST news246632882 (PhysOrg.com) -- Research by a team of Sandia chemists could impact worldwide efforts to produce clean, safe nuclear energy and reduce radioactive waste. http://www.physorg.com/news246606493.html Chemistry - Materials Science Tue, 24 Jan 2012 05:48:20 EST news246606493 By using a novel technique to better understand mineral growth and dissolution, researchers at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory are improving predictions of mineral reactions and laying the groundwork for applications ranging from keeping oil pipes clear to sequestering radium. http://www.physorg.com/news246561950.html Chemistry - Materials Science Mon, 23 Jan 2012 17:26:02 EST news246561950 Scientists from the University of Bristol have developed a soap, composed of iron rich salts dissolved in water, that responds to a magnetic field when placed in solution. The soap's magnetic properties were proved with neutrons at the Institut Laue-Langevin to result from tiny iron-rich clumps that sit within the watery solution. The generation of this property in a fully functional soap could calm concerns over the use of soaps in oil-spill clean ups and revolutionise industrial cleaning products. http://www.physorg.com/news246555354.html Chemistry - Materials Science Mon, 23 Jan 2012 17:00:05 EST news246555354 The invention being developed by EPFL’s Group of Catalytic Reaction Engineering (GGRC) will soon make it possible to manufacture drugs, cosmetics and household products in a safer and more efficient manner. The scientists have come up with a new kind of microreactor for industry that reinvents how chemical reactions are designed to be done on a large scale. http://www.physorg.com/news246525973.html Chemistry - Materials Science Mon, 23 Jan 2012 07:26:30 EST news246525973 (PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have combined two properties on a single piece of graphene oxide that don’t usually go together: iridescence (resulting in a rainbow-hued appearance) and superhydrophobicity (causing low-contact water droplets to strongly adhere to the surface). The engineered surface could have applications in liquid transportation and analysis, and due to graphene’s good electronic properties, possibly even in future electronic devices. http://www.physorg.com/news246305063.html Chemistry - Materials Science Sat, 21 Jan 2012 06:06:25 EST news246305063