https://phys.org/chemistry-news/analytical-chemistry/ en-us The latest science news on analytical chemistry Researchers have developed a technique for detecting and measuring the concentration of many rare-earth elements in plants, without destroying the plant. The technique can be used to optimize "plant mining" efforts, in which plants take up and concentrate these critical materials so that they can be harvested for practical use. The paper is published in the journal Plant Direct. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-technique-rare-earth-metals.html Biochemistry Thu, 16 Apr 2026 18:50:01 EDT news695575922 Rising carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from human activities are the largest contributor to global warming. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), global CO2 emissions reached an all-time high of 37.8 gigatons in 2024. While some of this CO2 is absorbed by soil, forests, and the oceans, a large fraction remains in the atmosphere, where it can persist for hundreds to thousands of years, leading to long-term impacts on the global climate. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-carbon-unraveling-roles-photocatalysis.html Analytical Chemistry Thu, 16 Apr 2026 17:00:04 EDT news695568301 Hydrogen is at the heart of the transition to carbon neutrality, as both an energy carrier and a reagent for green chemistry. However, large-scale production of hydrogen via electrolysis, as well as the production of many other chemical products, requires significantly cheaper and more efficient catalysts. A precise understanding of the electrochemical processes that take place at the interface between the solid catalyst and the liquid medium is highly useful for developing better electrocatalysts. In the journal Nature Communications, a European team has now presented a powerful model that determines charge separation at the interface, the formation of the electric double layer and local electric potential variations, and the resulting influence on the catalytic activity. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-electric-layer-emerges-electrocatalyst-interface.html Analytical Chemistry Thu, 16 Apr 2026 14:20:03 EDT news695561761 Advances in artificial intelligence promise to help chemical engineers discover complex new materials. These materials could be used for reactions such as turning carbon dioxide into fuel, but technical barriers have limited catalysis adoption so far. Researchers at the University of Rochester are now harnessing the benefits of large language models (LLMs) similar to ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini to empower more researchers to use AI to discover new materials and accelerate experiment workflows. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-ai-plain-language-prompts-lab.html Analytical Chemistry Thu, 16 Apr 2026 09:20:05 EDT news695549103 The molecular structure of an enzyme from a marine bacterium with potential industrial uses has been determined by RIKEN researchers. The insights they have gained could help make a range of useful compounds through genetic modification. The research is published in the journal Chemical Science. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-marine-sponge-bacterium-enzyme-reveals.html Biochemistry Wed, 15 Apr 2026 19:10:02 EDT news695490542 A research team at Leipzig University has identified a mechanism in adhesion G protein-coupled receptors (adhesion GPCRs), a specific group of membrane receptors. This mechanism is essential for the activity of many of these receptors. The study, published in Nature Communications, shows that a specific interaction between two amino acids is indispensable for the self-cleavage of these receptors. This insight could pave the way for new therapies for cancer, neurological disorders and inflammatory diseases associated with malfunctioning adhesion GPCRs. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-hidden-receptor-paths-cancer-neurological.html Biochemistry Wed, 15 Apr 2026 17:40:04 EDT news695482322 Every time you drive, board a plane or water your lawn, you're relying on a material that has quietly powered modern life for nearly a century—reinforced rubber. It's in car and aircraft tires, industrial seals, medical devices and countless everyday products. Yet despite its ubiquity and its central role in the $260 billion global tire industry, scientists have never fully understood why it works so well. Until now. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-scientists-year-mystery-rubber-powers.html Analytical Chemistry Wed, 15 Apr 2026 16:30:01 EDT news695486101 Northwestern University chemists have discovered a new way to turn natural gas into liquid fuel—and it's lightning in a bottle. By harnessing tiny bursts of plasma—or mini "lightning bolts"—in glass tubes submerged in water, the team has successfully converted methane directly into methanol in a single step. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-bottled-lightning-cleaner-fuel.html Analytical Chemistry Wed, 15 Apr 2026 08:00:01 EDT news695380021 The University of Wyoming's Lauren Kim has solved a persistent problem in the cutting-edge field of high-entropy alloys, a class of materials with great potential in modern engineering, electronics and energy applications—such as jet engines, nuclear reactors, chemical processing systems, batteries and supercapacitors—along with cryogenics systems. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-phd-student-persistent-problem-high.html Analytical Chemistry Tue, 14 Apr 2026 17:30:01 EDT news695403421 Pollution released from our textiles is smaller and more irregular in shape than previously thought, according to new research led by The University of Manchester. In a study published in Scientific Reports, Manchester researchers—in collaboration with researchers from the University of East Anglia and Manchester Metropolitan University—have developed a new fluorescence-based method that dramatically improves the detection of microfibers released from textiles during washing and wear. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-fluorescent-technique-reveals-hidden-scale.html Analytical Chemistry Tue, 14 Apr 2026 15:20:06 EDT news695386861 In a paper just out in Nature Synthesis, researchers led by Prof. Timothy Noël of the University of Amsterdam's Van 't Hoff Institute for Molecular Sciences presented a breakthrough in autonomous laboratory systems for synthesis optimization. With an estimated cost of a mere $5,000, a versatile, modular design and the option for "human in the loop" analytics, RoboChem Flex caters to all synthesis laboratories, large or small. The paper provides all the information to build their own system. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-robotic-chemistry-built-deployed-lab.html Analytical Chemistry Mon, 13 Apr 2026 19:40:02 EDT news695313269 Materials that emit and manipulate light are at the heart of technologies ranging from solar energy to advanced imaging systems. But even in well-studied materials, some fundamental behaviors remain unexplained. Researchers at Rice University have now solved a long-standing mystery in a widely used organic semiconductor, revealing how tiny structural imperfections can actually improve how these materials work. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-tiny-crystal-defects-decades-mystery.html Analytical Chemistry Mon, 13 Apr 2026 18:30:04 EDT news695320082 Researchers at the Manchester Institute of Biotechnology (MIB) have used engineering biology—an emerging technology that uses nature's own processes to manufacture everyday chemicals and materials—to dramatically simplify how Lenacapavir is manufactured. A novel class of HIV antiretroviral drug, Lenacapavir offers long-acting protection against HIV transmission. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-cheaper-sustainable-breakthrough-hiv-drug.html Biochemistry Mon, 13 Apr 2026 15:20:05 EDT news695303581 Rhodium is one of the most powerful catalytic metals known to chemistry. Small amounts of it can drive reactions that produce millions of tons of useful chemicals every year. But getting rhodium to work well—quickly, selectively, and without degrading—depends heavily on the ligands surrounding it. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-scientists-arsenic-lined-crystal-pore.html Analytical Chemistry Sun, 12 Apr 2026 17:00:01 EDT news695035888 Have you ever wondered how mussels instantly glue themselves to rocks, allowing them to survive the crushing force of ocean waves? They complete this process in under 30 seconds. Yet, in a laboratory, replicating this process of molecular self-assembly, known as liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS), typically takes dozens of minutes, if not hours. A research team of The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) has recently solved this long-standing puzzle using large-scale molecular dynamics simulation and theoretical analysis, revealing the secret to nature's incredible speed and providing implications for instant biocompatible surgical glues. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-flux-pathway-reveals-mussel-liquid.html Polymers Sat, 11 Apr 2026 17:00:03 EDT news694882655 The halomethane compound bromoform (CHBr3) has devastating effects on the ozone layer. In the upper layers of the atmosphere, bromoform reacts with UV radiation, releasing bromine molecules which destroy ozone molecules. This reaction, however, has long puzzled scientists; the molecules involved seem to wander relative to each other in a way that energetically does not make sense. Scientists at European XFEL have now revealed structural evidence for this roaming mechanism for the first time, establishing it as a universal characteristic of photochemical reactions. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-bromoform-ozone-ultrafast-roaming-captured.html Analytical Chemistry Fri, 10 Apr 2026 17:40:01 EDT news695047146 Iron and oxygen bind together throughout the body. Most famously, iron binds dioxygen, or two oxygens paired with each other, in hemoglobin that transports oxygen through blood. But iron-oxo compounds, as they're called, are found in many other places throughout the body. For example, the highly reactive iron-oxo is used in liver enzymes that metabolize drugs. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-scientists-block-metals-yield-oxygen.html Analytical Chemistry Fri, 10 Apr 2026 17:00:03 EDT news695046062 A research team led by Prof. Sangwon Seo of the Department of Physics and Chemistry at DGIST has developed a catalytic technology that can easily and elaborately assemble key structural frameworks that serve as the scaffold of bioactive compounds. Using an abundantly available and inexpensive nickel (Ni) catalyst, the team has successfully synthesized β-methylene carbonyl derivatives, which form the core framework of many pharmaceuticals, exclusively in a single mirror-image isomer form. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-nickel-catalyst-enables-precision-mirror.html Biochemistry Thu, 09 Apr 2026 17:40:05 EDT news694970281 How do radicals form in aqueous solutions when exposed to UV light? This question is important for health research and environmental protection. For example, with regard to the overfertilization of water bodies by intensive agriculture. A team at BESSY II has now developed a new method of investigating hydroxyl radicals in solution. By using a clever trick, the scientists gained surprising insights into the reaction pathway. The findings are published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-hydroxyl-radicals-uv-exposed-reveal.html Analytical Chemistry Thu, 09 Apr 2026 15:40:01 EDT news694966861 Gas separation membranes are vital for carbon capture, biogas upgrading, and hydrogen purification, all of which require the separation of carbon dioxide from gases like nitrogen, methane and hydrogen. However, the membranes currently in use for these applications suffer from limitations like low throughput or performance under high pressure and humidity, low gas flow, instability, and reaction rate limits. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-membrane-filters-constant-adjustable-permeance.html Analytical Chemistry Thu, 09 Apr 2026 14:20:03 EDT news694957030 Insecticide-treated bed nets remain one of the most effective tools in malaria prevention, acting both as a physical barrier and as an insecticidal surface that kills or disables mosquitoes before they can transmit disease. New research by a multidisciplinary research team from the University of Liverpool and the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) uses surface science to assess how well malaria nets perform. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-surface-chemistry-impacts-malaria-nets.html Biochemistry Thu, 09 Apr 2026 13:00:04 EDT news694954561 In a discovery recently published in Nature, MIT chemists led by Professor Alison Wendlandt have developed a precision technique that allows scientists to seamlessly relocate alcohol functional groups from one spot on a molecule to a neighboring site. The paper is titled "Alcohol group migration by proximity-enhanced H atom abstraction." https://phys.org/news/2026-04-molecular-tool-relocates-alcohol-groups.html Analytical Chemistry Tue, 07 Apr 2026 18:20:01 EDT news694791481 A research team at the University of Tokyo has developed a new microscopy platform that can observe a previously hidden layer of biomolecular chemistry linked to weak magnetic fields. The work, led by Project Researcher Noboru Ikeya and Professor Jonathan R. Woodward at the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, addresses a long-standing technical gap in life-science measurement: Many important intermediates in spin-dependent reactions are "dark" molecules that do not emit light directly and therefore escape conventional fluorescence imaging. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-fluorescence-imaging-technique-reveals-hidden.html Biochemistry Mon, 06 Apr 2026 17:50:01 EDT news694711141 Everyone's idea of the perfect cup of coffee is different. Whether you have yours black, with a splash of milk or extra sweet, you like it your way. But is there a universal law that governs how that flavor gets into your cup? According to new research published in the journal Royal Society Open Science, part of the answer lies in the permeability of the puck, the name for the bed of tightly packed coffee grains through which water passes under high pressure. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-equation-baristas-espresso-shot.html Analytical Chemistry Mon, 06 Apr 2026 11:20:05 EDT news694687725 When paper dries and is subsequently rewetted, its properties change permanently. This phenomenon is known as hornification. New research now shows that the process is more complex than previously assumed, and that temperature, humidity, and fiber type all play decisive roles. During hornification, fibers in paper products lose some of their ability to absorb water. This has major implications for everything from paper manufacturing to recycling, where controlling the material's strength and durability is crucial. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-insights-hornification-future-paper-production.html Analytical Chemistry Sat, 04 Apr 2026 10:00:05 EDT news694362890 Plastic, once ingenious for its durability and versatility, has become a global environmental issue that is affecting every aspect of life. This, in turn, is fueling the development of degradable polymers as alternative solutions. Among contending the possibilities are poly(disulfide)s, which have garnered attention as redox-degradable polymers with various polymerization techniques that can break down in reductive environments, such as the seafloor. However, according to the specific objective, it is necessary to design and synthesize each monomer to control polymer properties and impart functionality. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-domino-polymerization-route-versatile-degradable.html Polymers Fri, 03 Apr 2026 10:20:01 EDT news694430161 As part of the FED-tWIN Face-to-Face project, a multidisciplinary team bringing together the European Centre of Archaeometry (University of Liège, ULiège), the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium (RMFAB), CNRS-Sorbonne University and Ca' Foscari University of Venice has published a study on the conservation condition of "The Temptation of St Anthony" (1946) by Salvador Dalí, a major work held by the RMFAB since 1965. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-dal-sublime-amber-medium-unusual.html Analytical Chemistry Thu, 02 Apr 2026 19:00:01 EDT news694362661 Worldwide, billions of people rely on water sources whose hygienic quality is unclear or difficult to monitor. Conventional microbiological analysis methods take up to 24 hours, are costly, and require specialized laboratories for evaluation. These delays complicate the provision of safe drinking water, decision-making during flood events, or in regions with insufficient laboratory infrastructure. Researchers at the Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing (BAM) have now developed a portable rapid test capable of detecting the molecule urobilin at extremely low concentrations. Their study is published in ACS Sensors. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-smartphone-rapid-microbiologically-contaminated-minute.html Biochemistry Thu, 02 Apr 2026 13:40:03 EDT news694346643 An electron microscopy image can capture atoms arranged in a crystal lattice or defects threading through a semiconductor material, but turning that image into materials insight can take weeks of careful analysis. Now, an autonomous artificial intelligence platform developed at Cornell can do that work in minutes. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-ai-electron-microscopy-materials-insights.html Analytical Chemistry Thu, 02 Apr 2026 10:40:01 EDT news694342102 Low-temperature CO2 hydrogenation might have sounded almost paradoxical until a recent study made it possible. Researchers have designed new catalysts that can transform the greenhouse gas into methanol at temperatures ranging from room temperature to 200° C, whereas most catalysts can operate only at or above 250° C. The research is published in the journal Nature Chemistry. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-disk-catalyst-carbon-dioxide-methanol.html Analytical Chemistry Thu, 02 Apr 2026 09:00:03 EDT news694278373