Chemistry News Archive September 2011

Chemistry:

Polymerization Reaction Drives Nanomotors

Researchers describe a new type of micromotor that is powered by a polymerization reaction and deposits tiny threads along its trail like a microspider.

[Credit: Angewandte Chemie International Edition]

Rare Earth Boryl Complexes

Solar Energy: Lessons from Nature

Lessons to be learned from nature in photosynthesis - International panel of scientists point the way forward.

Image: Through the miracle of photosynthesis, plants absorb sunlight in their leaves and convert the photonic energy into chemical energy that is stored as sugars in the plants' biomass [Photo by Roy Kaltschmidt, Berkeley Lab].

Hydrogen from Bioethanol

Mild but very efficient: new catalytic process extracts hydrogen from bioalcohols.

Image: Run out of gas? A protocol for the title transformation under mild reaction conditions has been developed. Highest activities are found with an in situ catalyst system consisting of a 1:1 mixture of an HPNP^iPr-Liganden nnd [RuH₂(PPh₃)₃CO]. A turnover frequency of up to 14145 h^-1 and turnover number of more than 40000 have been achieved for production of hydrogen gas from isopropyl alcohol.

Magnesium Borohydride as Hydrogen Storage

Chemophobia

Biochemistry:

Iron Translocation by a Dps Protein

Insect gut microbe with a molecular iron reservoir - Max Planck researchers analyze the structure of an iron storage protein.

Image: Molecular structure of the enzyme N-acyl amino acid hydrolase (AAH) from Microbacterium arborescens [Credit: Kornelius Zeth, MPI Tuebingen].

Analysis of Modified tRNA Bases

Chemistry and Nanotechnology:

Single-Molecule Electric Motor

World's smallest electric motor made from a single molecule.

Image: Chemists at Tufts University have developed the world's first single molecule electric motor, which may potentially create a new class of devices that could be used in applications ranging from medicine to engineering [Credit: Heather L. Tierney et al.].

Chemistry and Materials:

A New Tool for Radiation Detection Materials

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