Understanding enzyme evolution paves the way for green chemistry

How evolution makes designer enzymes more powerful, paving the way to tailor-made catalysts

26-Aug-2021 - Researchers at the University of Bristol have shown how laboratory evolution can give rise to highly efficient enzymes for new-to-nature reactions, opening the door for novel and more environmentally friendly ways to make drugs and other chemicals. Scientists have previously designed protein ...

Surrey builds AI to find anti-ageing chemical compounds

27-Jul-2021 - The University of Surrey has built an artificial intelligence (AI) model that identifies chemical compounds that promote healthy ageing - paving the way towards pharmaceutical innovations that extend a person's lifespan. In a paper published by Nature Communication's Scientific Reports, a team of ...

As hard as a diamond and as deformable as metal

Scientists develop new material for tomorrow's technology

15-Jan-2021 - Smartphones with large glass housings and displays are impressive, but they are also very prone to get cracked and scratched. To prevent these kinds of damages, a material combining the hardness of diamond and the deformability of metals would be ideal – and is indeed considered the holy grail of ...

A new tool to create chemical complexity from fatty acids

A new catalyst design enables unprecedented control over the modification of fatty acid derivatives that opens the door to creating useful substances in a green and efficient manner

25-Aug-2020 - Hokkaido University WPI-ICReDD researchers developed a modular catalyst that can accurately modify fatty acid derivatives in a hitherto inaccessible position. This enables the efficient production of valuable compounds from a renewable bioresource, whereas before we had to either rely on ...

Nano-sponges of solid acid transform carbon dioxide to fuel and plastic waste to chemicals

Solve two problems at one stroke

03-Aug-2020 - Solid acids are amongst the most essential heterogeneous catalysts, which have the potential to replace environmentally harmful liquid acids, in some of the most important processes, such as hydrocarbon cracking, alkylation, as well as plastic waste degradation and carbon dioxide to fuel ...

Chemists find way to create "the building blocks of life"

Turning alcohol into key ingredients for new medicines

30-Jun-2020 - Chemists have found a way to turn alcohol into amino acids, the building blocks of life. In a study published in the journal Nature Chemistry, researchers explained the transformation, which involves selectively identifying and replacing molecular bonds with unprecedented precision. The finding ...

Novel computer-assisted chemical synthesis method cuts research time and cost

A computer predicts the feasibility of synthesizing target compounds and their chemical yields

11-Jun-2020 - Hokkaido University scientists have succeeded in synthesizing an α,α-difluoroglycine derivative, a type of α-amino acid, based on a reaction path predicted by quantum chemical calculations. This novel method, combining experimental chemistry and computational chemistry, could innovate the ...

Scientists use light to convert fatty acids into alkanes

Green and environmentally friendly process

24-Feb-2020 - Researchers led by Prof. WANG Feng at the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (DICP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have reported that photocatalytic decarboxylation is an efficient alternate pathway for converting biomass-derived fatty acids into alkanes under mild conditions of ambient ...

Oxea Integrates into Newly Formed Energy Company

Focus on Oxo Derivatives

27-Jan-2020 - The chemical company Oxea, part of the Oman Oil Company & Orpic Group, joins eight other companies in a process to create a new, integrated energy company which will trade under the brand name ‘OQ’. OQ aims to become a global leading energy company, capturing and capitalising on greater ...

Stora Enso invests in pilot plant for bio-based plastic packaging material

12-Dec-2019 - Stora Enso is investing EUR 9 million to build a pilot facility for enabling the production of bio-based plastics as barrier in transparent packaging. The pilot plant will convert plant-based sugars into the renewable building block required to make PEF, a bio-based plastic, mainly targeting the ...