Milestone for novel atomic clock

X-ray laser shows possible route to substantially increased precision time measurement

29-Sep-2023 - An international research team has taken a decisive step toward a new generation of atomic clocks. At the European XFEL X-ray laser, the researchers have created a much more precise pulse generator based on the element scandium, which enables an accuracy of one second in 300 billion years – that ...

Hazardous ingredients in batteries

Trust, but verify! A long and winding road to an innovative method

29-Sep-2023 - Although strict limits exist, old types of batteries can still contain too many hazardous ingredients such as mercury, cadmium and lead. The Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) has therefore launched a control campaign. Empa has laid the foundations for this with a novel tailor-made method ...

Imaging the smallest atoms provides insights into an enzyme's unusual biochemistry

This could help in the design of enzymes for the chemical industry

29-Sep-2023 - When your wounds heal and your liver detoxifies a poison such as histamine you ingested, you can thank the class of enzymes known as copper amine oxidases for their assistance. Identifying the exact positions of the smallest hydrogen atoms in these enzymes is challenging with commonly used ...

How organic solar cells could become significantly more efficient

Turbocharger dyes: Organic dyes accelerate transport of buffered solar energy

28-Sep-2023 - The sun sends enormous amounts of energy to the earth. Nevertheless, some of it is lost in solar cells. This is an obstacle in the use of organic solar cells, especially for those viable in innovative applications. A key factor in increasing their performance: Improved transport of the solar ...

Intelligent Textiles as Protection against PAH Toxins

High Market Potential for Intelligent Textiles Expected

28-Sep-2023 - Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAHs) are considered harmful to health, especially as potential carcinogens. For example, the molecular compounds of carbon and hydrogen atoms can arise in house fires when mattresses, curtains, wooden beams, plastic, or other objects made of organic materials ...

Stefanie Dehnen becomes the new President of the GDCh

“We are on the way to a new time”

28-Sep-2023 - Professor Dr. Stefanie Dehnen from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) will become President of the German Chemical Society (GDCh) on January 1, 2024. During her two-year term in office, she would like to further open up the GDCh and advance it on its path to becoming a modern, diverse ...

Lego discards plan to build bricks from recycled plastic bottles

28-Sep-2023 - (dpa) Lego is saying goodbye to its plan to manufacture building blocks from recycled PET bottles. After several years of testing, the toy company from Billund, Denmark, has decided not to pursue this project any further. This was announced by a spokesman for the Lego Group in Scandinavia on ...

Laying of the foundation stone: Vulcan builds lithium electrolysis plant in Frankfurt Höchst

Start-up company builds a central lithium electrolysis optimisation plant in Frankfurt's Industriepark Höchst

27-Sep-2023 - On Wednesday 20 September, Vulcan, headquartered in Karlsruhe, Germany, solemnly performed the groundbreaking ceremony for the Central Lithium Electrolysis Optimisation Plant (CLEOP) at Frankfurt's Höchst Industrial Park. The plant will convert lithium chloride into lithium hydroxide monohydrate ...

A taste for plastic

Discovered for the first time: New deep-sea enzyme breaks down PET plastic

27-Sep-2023 - Plastic pollution is increasingly affecting the health of coasts and oceans. One well-known problem is plastic bottles made from polyethylene terephthalate, or PET. A new study involving scientists from Professor Ruth Schmitz-Streit's research group at Kiel University has shown for the first ...

WACKER Expands Specialty Silicone Production in China

27-Sep-2023 - Wacker Chemie AG is expanding its specialty silicone manufacturing capacities in China. A kick-off event at the Zhangjiagang site in Jiangsu Province marks the start of construction of several new production lines, where the globally operating chemical group will manufacture functional silicone ...