Chemical and Biological Sciences News

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Rethinking the science of plastic recycling

In a recently published study in the journal ACS Central Science, the multi-institutional team, including Ames Laboratory scientists, reported a catalytic method for selectively converting discarded plastics into higher quality products, such as lubricant oils or waxes. In turn, the waxes can be processed into everyday products like detergents and cosmetics.

Advanced NMR at Ames Lab captures new details in nanoparticle structures

Advanced nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) techniques at Ames Laboratory have revealed surprising details about the structure of a key group of materials in nanotechology, mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs), and the placement of their active chemical sites.

Getting to the root of the mystery: New research project could tell us how plants “talk” to microbes in soil

To better understand the rhizosphere -- a narrow zone around roots of intense microbial activity -- Ames Laboratory researchers are working to develop a model instrument that will enable scientists to look at the biological interactions in the rhizosphere in real time, in the field, a capability that doesn’t currently exist.

What should we do about single-use plastics? Tackling the growing problem of trash we can’t recycle

Researchers are looking at ways to upcycle plastics -- breaking down long polymer chains into shorter segments that can then be reused for a variety of chemicals and materials.

Seeing the future of new energy materials

Ames Laboratory has recently received new funding to study such materials by developing and applying new techniques in solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Researchers hope to use those techniques to find out how new energy materials function in order to optimize them.