Using light to reduce carbon dioxide into a fuel such as formic acid (HCOOH) could offer an advantageous route to removing the gas from the atmosphere. Systems to reduce CO2 typically consist of a light-absorbing substrate, such as a redox photosensitiser or semiconductor, and a catalyst. The reduction of CO2 into valuable chemicals, however, requires the transfer of at least two electrons.
Niacinamide – a natural form of vitamin B3 – promises to help keep skin healthy by discouraging colonisation by microbial pathogens, UK researchers have found, so protecting us against infections.
For paints and coatings manufacturers, surface area is an important parameter – directly linked to profitability. It’s this fact that explains why the trend to put more electric vehicles on the roads is causing so much buzz, says William Brunat, PPG’s Global Director of product development Automotive Coatings and Mobility.
A new liquid-solid phase separation system captures CO2 from the atmosphere with 99% efficiency. Researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University, Japan, say their system exhibits ‘unprecedented performance’ for so-called direct air capture (DAC) of CO2.
T cells are crucial combatants in the immune system’s cancer defenses and granzyme B is an important enzyme that T cells insert into cancer cells to kill them. Now, chemists in Edinburgh, UK, have created a probe that fluoresces in the presence of active granzyme B – alerting them to the presence of cancer.
An algal species has been harnessed to produce a renewable power source in a device around the size of an AA battery. Its developers say it has potential to power small devices such as smart watches and sensors.
Triterpene compound QS-21 is an increasingly important adjuvant or immune booster used alongside vaccines, including for Covid-19, shingles and malaria. Traditionally extracted from the bark of Quillaja saponaria, a tree native to Chile, prices of QS-21 have recently skyrocketed due to laws protecting against deforestation and other factors, says Gaston Salinas, CEO of US-based Botanical Solution (BSI) - to ‘around $200,000 to $400,000/g’.