Chemistry news, research and opinions | Chemistry World
WEBFrom tipsy worms to pigeon missiles: the quirky triumphs of the 2024 Ig Nobel awards. Water-splitting reaction reversal could extract lithium more sustainably and cheaply. Teaching enzymes new reactions through genetic code expansion and directed evolution. Peptide bond interactions explain collagen’s ‘impossible’ longevity in dinosaur bones.
Explainer: Why is mixing cleaning chemicals such a bad idea?
WEBApr 23, 2020 · Chlorine gas is toxic, forms acids on contact with wet surfaces, such as home plumbing but also living tissue, such as the lungs. Heating or contact with metals can also cause bleach to decompose via a different route. 2NaOCl → O 2 + 2NaCl. Mixing hypochlorite with ammonia would see the breakdown of the hypochlorite to generate hypochlorous ...
Explainer: The science of alkyl nitrites aka poppers
WEBSep 16, 2021 · Inhaling alkyl nitrites feels like becoming instantly drunk according to some users, although the effect lasts for only a few minutes. Also known as poppers, these chemicals have been taken recreationally since the 1960s. Although they are sold openly, usually in small brown bottles with enticing brand names such as ‘liquid gold’, their ...
Why are there 20 amino acids? | Feature | Chemistry World
WEBSep 17, 2018 · But the selection of the 20 amino acids used in biology is clearly linked to the development of proteins. By polymerising amino acids in long polypeptide chains, proteins could fold into soluble structures with close-packed cores and ordered binding pockets. The arrival of proteins and the eventual adoption of …
Hydrothermal vents and the origins of life - Chemistry World
WEBApr 16, 2017 · In 1977, the first deep sea hydrothermal vent was discovered in the East Pacific Rise mid-oceanic ridge. Named ‘black smokers’, the vents emit geothermally heated water up to 400°C, with high levels of sulfides that precipitate on contact with the cold ocean to form the black smoke. This was followed in 2000 by the discovery of a new type ...
Spanish fly | Podcast | Chemistry World
WEBOct 9, 2013 · Spanish fly is one of the oldest, most legendary aphrodisiacs. It’s made from the crushed bodies of insects, which oddly enough aren’t flies and don’t come from Spain but are beetles in the family Meloidae, called blister beetles that live worldwide.The French soldiers denied using Spanish fly but did admit to supplementing their military rations eating frogs from a local stream.
Explainer: The chemistry that keeps swimming pools clean and safe
WEBAug 4, 2022 · Chloramines can form in various ways in swimming pools. One of the simplest is the reaction of ammonia-like compounds, such as urea from swimmers, with hypochlorous acid. This leads to the formation of mono-, di- and trichloramines. Chloramine formation: R 2 NH + HOCl → R 2 NCl + H 2 O. These toxic chloramines then evaporate, producing the ...
Acetone peroxide – ordinary ingredients for an extraordinary …
WEBJul 20, 2005 · Common household ingredients - paint thinners (acetone), bleach or antiseptic (hydrogen peroxide), and a powerful drain unblocker (>85 per cent sulphuric acid) - can be obtained from hardware stores and pharmacies. Mixed in the right proportions, these ingredients produce white crystals of acetone peroxide. The explosive power of …
What is an element? | Feature | Chemistry World
WEBJan 10, 2019 · Iupac currently gives a double definition of ‘element’ in its ‘Gold Book’ of chemical terminology, which says that the word can refer either to a ‘species of atom’ (which Ghibaudi sees as akin to Paneth’s ‘basic substance’) or, rather tautologically, to a ‘pure elementary substance’. This double meaning is uncomfortable.
The father of the periodic table | Feature | Chemistry World
WEBJan 2, 2019 · A century and a half ago, Dmitri Mendeleev took a crucial step in this search for order among the elements, by publishing the first draft of his periodic table. In 2019 the world-wide community of chemists is celebrating this anniversary, and rightly so. Like Stonehenge, the table reflects regularities in nature which were due to causes that ...