Chemistry

Catalysts are everywhere—from fertilizer production to clean energy—but making them more active without sacrificing stability has remained a major challenge. Researchers have now engineered a gold-platinum nanocluster catalyst that can be activated at lower temperatures while maintaining its precise atomic structure, boosting low-temperature carbon monoxide oxidation performance. Yet a clever ligand design could pave the way for more efficient and durable catalysts.

This work reveals how lithium migrates in solid-state batteries and shows that fast charging can cause irreversible lithium migration.

An AI assistant for high-entropy alloy (HEA) electrocatalysis named ChatHEA provided a helping hand not just to extract data from the literature, but provide suggestions for promising catalysts, design experiments, and analyze data.

Researchers at the Nano Life Science Institute (WPI-NanoLSI) at Kanazawa University, Institute for Molecular Science and SOKENDAI have uncovered the hidden mechanism behind a molecular switch—a molecule that can change between different structural states in response to a chemical signal. Their study, published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, reveals how molecules can gradually switch between alternative states, a process that could help scientists design future molecular machines, smart materials, and molecular information technologies. To make the discovery, Shigehisa Akine and colleagues created a specially designed molecular cage that changes shape unusually slowly. This allowed them to observe, for the first time, the sequence of molecular events that occurs after the molecule receives a chemical input. The study provides one of the clearest views yet of how molecular recognition triggers structural change and demonstrates that the response speed of a molecular system can itself be engineered through molecular design.

Researchers at the University of Osaka developed a light-driven method for synthesizing Davis reagents that generates the hazardous oxidant mCPBA only on demand and consumes it immediately. Kinetic analysis showed no detectable accumulation of the oxidant, improving process safety. The reaction proceeds at room temperature in non-halogenated solvents and can use sunlight or LEDs, offering a safer, greener, and scalable alternative for pharmaceutical-related synthesis.

Researchers at the University of Osaka have used machine learning to develop a systematic framework for structural descriptors in supercooled water. A neural network model was used to quantitatively assess the performance of 16 structural descriptors in differentiating between two states of water, a high-density liquid and a low-density liquid. The framework could be used to further our understanding of the anomalous behavior of water.

Researchers at Tohoku University have discovered a promising strategy that converts harmful carbon dioxide into valuable fuels and chemicals by precisely altering nanoclusters made of copper.

Oxidative addition is often carried out using transition metals and is challenging to perform at centers of more abundant main-group elements, particularly group 13 elements. Researchers at The University of Osaka, led by Takuya Kodama, achieved oxidative addition of an aryl iodide to a group 13 (gallium) center. The reaction is initiated by visible light. The reaction proceeds via a novel mechanism, photoinduced disproportionation, whereby photoexcited gallium exchanges electrons with ground-state gallium.

The end of colored plastic downgrading could be near with new approach

Base-mediated degradation of carbon−Carbon main chain polymers bearing alkoxycarbonylmethylene repeating units

Researchers at the University of Osaka have synergistically combined three strategies for energy dissipation to enhance the toughness of elastomers. Rotaxane molecules with sacrificial bonds are incorporated into an elastomer. Under increasing external force, three mechanisms become sequentially activated: sliding of the rotaxane molecules, force-induced bond scission in the rings to form linear chains, and entanglement of the resulting chains. A polyurethane elastomer synthesized using this strategy was five times tougher than a conventional polyurethane.

Catalysts play a vital role in the chemical reactions used to produce fertilizers, fuels, pharmaceuticals, and hydrogen, to name a few. AI-driven catalyst discovery is revolutionizing the field of materials science. But AI is only as reliable as the data it learns from. Therefore, researchers from Tohoku University have introduced an AI-powered digital catalysis platform that serves as a one-stop source for experimental data, theoretical calculations, and scientific literature.

Rice grown on the Moon? No, this is not something out of science fiction, but a future possibility thanks to a plasma technology developed by Tohoku University and JAXA. The plasma technology synthesizes gas from atmospheric air and turns it into a nitrogen-based fertilizer. Researchers also tested the fertilizer on rice seedlings planted in a lunar soil simulant, finding that the fertilizer released critical minerals from the Moon's soil while suppressing harmful ones. The technology is portable and energy-efficient, meaning it can even be used here on Earth for a more sustainable form of rice farming.

Study suggests PM2.5 source apportionment may be significantly biased

A new electrochemical system simultaneously converts plant-derived materials and nitrate pollutants into valuable industrial chemicals. Developed by Tohoku University researchers, the system provides a more sustainable way to manufacture chemicals while helping address wastewater pollution.

Hydrogen can store renewable energy, but then what stores the hydrogen? A new AI-powered, logic-based method provides probable materials for the job – and explains the reasoning behind its decision.

Janus 2D materials, named after the two-faced Roman god, boast bottom surfaces composing two different elements. This asymmetry gives them unique properties, and Janus two-dimensional semiconductors are becoming more common. While scientists have long known how to produce Janus 2D materials, they have yet to grasp the underlying physics behind the process. Now, researchers from Tohoku University have solved the mystery.

Researchers at the Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo, carry out computer experiments to track how water nanodroplets wet surfaces

An international research team has discovered a method to precisely synthesize extremely small Iridium Nanoclusters that outperform conventional, commercially available iridium catalysts by 1.5 times in mass activity. This breakthrough could result in improved production of green hydrogen.

Using the color of light to strengthen or weaken an artificial synapse's memory

Kanazawa University-led researchers developed a one-step recycling method that recovers toxic lead (Pb) and valuable metals including gold (Au) and indium (In) from flexible perovskite solar cells, supporting sustainable solar energy technologies.

Cells have surface receptors that couple to proteins and other molecules to initiate or inhibit certain behaviors. Researchers have found that one of these receptors helps set developing cells on the path to becoming neurons much earlier than previously thought.

Researchers demonstrate a systematic screening method that can help find promising catalyst candidates without the tedious trial-and-error of every single possible combination.

Researchers at the University of Osaka have developed a quantum mechanical model for concentrated organic radical solutions considering stochastic collisions between molecules. The first-order contribution to intermolecular interactions is averaged to zero by collisional fluctuations, but the second-order term survives and enhances the magnetic susceptibility. These results explain experimental observations of an anomalous increase in the magnetic susceptibility at the solid-to-fluid transition that cannot be predicted by conventional theories.

Discovering new catalysts to power hydrogen production often involves a time-consuming trial-and-error process. Not only that, but materials scientists often have to comb through troves of scientific data and experimental data. Yet these days may be over thanks to a new AI-powered platform that enables researchers to identify new catalysts for methane pyrolysis— a promising technology for producing hydrogen with lower carbon emissions.

An exciting new strategy involving a specially designed iron-based catalyst can speed up the reaction that powers next-gen zinc-air batteries. This means cleaner, more efficient energy for everyone.

An international research collaboration, including OMU, IJS, NIST and AUT, has unveiled a robust metallic state in the molecular material ytterbium cesium fulleride (Yb₂CsC₆₀) that directly tests conventional theories of electron behavior. Normally, strong interactions between electrons are expected to suppress their movement and turn materials into insulators through a process called a Mott transition. However, Yb₂CsC₆₀ represents a case where metallicity survived, suggesting that the material’s electrons were continuing to move collectively, stabilized by a different mechanism. The discovery is of relevance to future research in fields such as superconductivity, quantum matter, and next-generation electronic technologies.

Self-assembled nanostructures in the electrolyte control ion flow… achieving world-record performance in both cycle life and capacity simultaneously

Researchers innovated artificial photosynthesis technology by optimizing the electrolyzer part of the system. This tweak enables the continuous production of solar fuel, even with fluctuations in sunlight intensity.

Exciting new research at Tohoku University’s Advanced Institute for Materials Research (WPI-AIMR) explains how to transform decades of scattered literature data into design rules for catalysts.