Chinese researchers have recently challenged the long-held belief that “all life depends on sunlight.” In a study published in Science Advances, the researchers identified how microbes in deep subsurface areas can derive energy from chemical reactions driven by crustal faulting, offering critical insights into life deep below Earth’s surface.
A resonance effect can significantly affect how a three-atom molecule cools down when excited, RIKEN physicists have found. The study, published in Physical Review A, highlights the complexity of the relaxation dynamics of even simple molecules.
Small, energetic molecules in a vacuum—such as those in the upper atmosphere or interstellar space —can either break apart or cool down by releasing their energy through emitting light.
“The energy-dissipation mechanism of molecules via radiative cooling is crucial to understanding the stability of hot, excited molecules,” says Toshiyuki Azuma of the RIKEN Atomic, Molecular & Optical Physics Laboratory. “It’s essential in chemical reactions in dilute environments such as Earth’s upper atmosphere.”
Centuries ago, alchemists worked furiously to convert the common metal lead to valuable gold. Today, chemists are repurposing discarded solar panels to create valuable organic compounds from carbon dioxide (CO2), a common greenhouse gas.
Significantly reducing greenhouse gases in the atmosphere to mitigate the most devastating effects of climate change will require a large reduction in emissions as well as strategies designed to sequester emitted CO2 and other offending gases. While simply sequestering greenhouse gases would fulfill this goal, creating useful organic chemicals from waste CO2 is akin to generating valuable materials from trash.
A team of chemists from Yokohama National University, Electric Power Development Co., Ltd. and the Renewable Energy Research Center at the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) recently decided to tackle two waste problems—excess CO2 emissions and decommissioned solar panels —in the pursuit of creating value-added organic chemicals. The team designed a study to determine if recycled components of discarded solar panels could be used to efficiently convert CO2 into useful, carbon-based compounds.
IN A NUTSHELL 🌐 The SynHG project aims to synthesize a complete human genome, opening new horizons in biotechnology. ⚖️ Ethical considerations are central to the project, with a focus on responsible innovation and diverse cultural perspectives. 🧬 Initial steps involve creating a fully synthetic human chromosome, leveraging advances in synthetic biology and DNA chemistry.
The chemical reaction to produce hydrogen from water is several times more effective when using a combination of new materials in three layers, according to researchers at Linköping University in Sweden. Hydrogen produced from water is a promising renewable energy source—especially if the hydrogen is produced using sunlight.