Environmental science
The latest chemistry news and research on environmental science, including atmosphere, climate, water and space, from the Royal Society of Chemistry's magazine, Chemistry World
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FeatureThe JWST reveals the molecular origins of planetary systems
The world’s most expensive infrared spectrometer – the James Webb Space Telescope – is unearthing extraordinary exoplanet chemistry. James Mitchell Crow looks to the skies
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OpinionAn analytical gold mine
How forensic techniques can help trace the origin of illegally sourced gold
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FeatureThe Antarctic manganese mystery
RRS Sir David Attenborough scientists are trying to measure the potentially crucial role of ocean manganese, finds Andy Extance. But how do you do cutting-edge science in the inhospitable Southern Ocean?
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BusinessTaking aerogel insulation from spacecraft to living space
Nanoplume’s bio-based materials are super-insulating but also cheap and scalable
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ResearchThe chemist using curry to understand indoor air pollution
Ashish Kumar’s research reveals how cooking shapes the air we breathe indoors
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OpinionWe’ll always have Paris… won’t we?
A decade on from Cop21, the Paris agreement has delivered change, but keeping it on track is getting harder
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OpinionDon’t blame patients for the emissions of their inhalers
Alternatives with lower global warming potential are out there, but the onus can’t be on those suffering
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FeatureOne medical inhaler can have the impact of 30kg of carbon dioxide
Propellants in asthma inhalers produce greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to driving 200 miles, yet most healthcare systems overlook this climate impact. New low-carbon alternatives are in development, Andy Extance reports, but barriers remain
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FeatureNitrous oxide emissions accelerate as agriculture drives climate threat
With N2O emissions up 40% in four decades, scientists are searching for answers. Anthony King looks at potential solutions to keep fertiliser nitrogen in the soil
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NewsGlobal cooperation essential to cut carbon emissions in lithium-ion battery supply chain
Emissions could be cut a third by 2060
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ResearchTransforming toxic arsenic sludge into a valuable commodity for green technologies, electronics
A simple process extracts valuable pure arsenic metal from groundwater treatment waste
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BusinessAlgenesis cracks diisocyanate problem to make fully bio-based polyurethane
Process combines algal fermentation with flow chemistry and avoids hazardous phosgene
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OpinionGoing round in circles over skills
Closing skills gaps in key professional groups requires collaboration between government, industry and educators
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NewsNasa’s Jet Propulsion Lab and home of Mars rovers loses 10% of its staff
The dismissal of 550 JPL workers is the fourth round of recent layoffs at the lab, prompting fears of a brain drain
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ResearchFloating photocatalyst turns sunlight into radicals that disinfect water in minutes
Smartphone torchlight powerful enough to generate bactericidal oxygen-centred organic radicals to purify water
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BusinessSailing towards recycling composite textiles
Sustainable Extricko is using superheated steam and pressure to recycle intractable materials used in sailing
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ResearchChemical reaction almost as old as the universe was faster than thought
New modelling and experimental work solves mystery of primordial chemistry
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ResearchHydroxylamine discovery complicates water purification efforts
New insight into nitrate and nitrite reduction process reveals toxic intermediate
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ResearchTransforming plastic waste into an efficient CO2 capturing material
Upcycled amide can efficiently capture carbon dioxide from flue gases, as well as air
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NewsPFAS spring new surprise as some are far more acidic than thought
The acid dissociation constants for some PFAS are significantly lower than past metrics have indicated, with implications for their persistence and spread