Safe Potassium-Ion Batteries

03-Feb-2020

Australian scientists have developed a nonflammable electrolyte for potassium and potassium-ion batteries, for applications in next-generation energy-storage systems beyond lithium technology. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, scientists write that the novel electrolyte based on an organic ...

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Azopolymer material allows light-assisted imprinting of nanostructures for structurally colored surfaces

17-Jan-2020

Structural colors appear because the imprinted pattern on a surface changes the wavelengths of light. Chinese scientists have introduced an azopolymer that allows the imprinting of nanopatterns in a novel room-temperature lithographic process. A key aspect of the technique is the light-induced ...

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Electroreduction of carbon monoxide for the highly selective production of ethylene

13-Dec-2019

Ethylene, or ethene, is a primary feedstock for the chemical industry, including as a starting material for the production of a wide variety of plastics. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, scientists have now introduced a new electrochemical technique for selective and energy-efficient production ...

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Providing Safe, Clean Water

03-Dec-2019

In many parts of the world, access to clean drinking water is far from certain. Filtration of large volumes of water, however, is slow and impractical. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, scientists have introduced a new water purification method based on magnetic nanoparticles coated with a ...

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High-energy-density polymeric cathode for fast-charge sodium- and multivalent-ion batteries

06-Nov-2019

Next-generation batteries will probably see the replacement of lithium ions by more abundant and environmentally benign alkali metal or multivalent ions. A major challenge, however, is the development of stable electrodes that combine high energy densities with fast charge and discharge rates. In ...

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22-Oct-2019

Evening gowns with interwoven LEDs may look extravagant, but the light sources need a constant power supply from devices that are as well wearable, durable, and lightweight. Chinese scientists have manufactured fibrous electrodes for wearable devices that are flexible and excel by their high ...

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Strained, Symmetric, and New

02-Oct-2019

Many natural compounds used in medicine have complex molecular architectures that are difficult to recreate in the lab. Help could come from a small hydrocarbon molecule, called tetravinylallene, which has been synthesized for the first time by Australian scientists. As detailed in the journal ...

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Determination of the crystal structure of a DNA-stabilized silver nanocluster

13-Sep-2019

Nanoclusters are little “heaps” of a few atoms that often have interesting optical properties and could become useful probes for imaging processes in areas such as biomedicine and diagnostics. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, researchers have introduced a nanocluster of 16 silver atoms ...

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Organic dye in zinc oxide interlayer stabilizes and boosts the performance of organic solar cells

20-Aug-2019

Organic solar cells are made of cheap and abundant materials, but their efficiency and stability still lag behind those of silicon-based solar cells. A Chinese-German team of scientists has found a way to enhance the electric conductivity of organic solar cells, which increases their ...

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A smart chemoenzymatic method detects and removes hazardous phenols

13-Aug-2019

Many industrial and agriculture processes use chemicals that can be harmful for workers and the ecosystems where they accumulate. Researchers from Thailand have now developed a bioinspired method to detect and detoxify these chemicals in only one step. As they report in the journal Angewandte ...

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