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Chemistry & Physics

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 15-Jun-2026 12:16 ET (15-Jun-2026 16:16 GMT/UTC)

HKU chemists unlock the secret to designing ultra-tough and responsive “smart” materials

The University of Hong Kong
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A research team led by Professor Yufeng WANG and Professor Ho Yu AU-YEUNG from the Department of Chemistry at The University of Hong Kong (HKU) has achieved a breakthrough to address this challenge. By using discrete molecular rings as precise structural models of polymer knots, the team untangled the complex relationship between molecular architecture and material properties, allowing them to correlate characteristics such as stiffness, strength, and elasticity with the specific structures and topologies of the molecular rings. Their findings were recently published in the prestigious Journal of the American Chemical Society (JACS).

Journal: Journal of the American Chemical Society

HKU physicist Professor YAO Wang honored with Certificate of Merit at National Award for Excellence in Innovation

The University of Hong Kong
Grant and Award Announcement

Professor YAO Wang, Chair Professor in the Department of Physics at The University of Hong Kong (HKU), has received a Certificate of Merit at the Fourth National Award for Excellence in Innovation in recognition of his outstanding contributions to valley optoelectronics in two-dimensional semiconductors.

First physics result of Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory published in Nature

Chinese Academy of Sciences Headquarters
Peer-Reviewed Publication

JUNO's first physics result was published in Nature. Through the analysis of valid data collected over 59 days from August 26 to November 2, 2025, the JUNO Collaboration made the high-precision measurement of the two key oscillation parameters, reducing the associated uncertainties by a factor of 1.6 compared to the combined experimental results in the past decades.

Journal: Nature

A fentanyl countermeasure that adapts to combat future black-market drugs

Scripps Research Institute
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Fentanyl and related variants of the synthetic opioid kill more Americans each year than car accidents and gun violence combined. In too-high doses, the drugs hijack brain chemistry and shut down the signals that control breathing. Existing medical interventions can reverse an overdose, but only if given quickly enough after it occurs. Now, scientists at Scripps Research have shown the feasibility of a completely different approach to combating fentanyl deaths: a vaccine that teaches the immune system to rapidly neutralize the drug before it reaches the brain in the first place.

Journal: Journal of Medicinal Chemistry

Biochar’s hidden electron power could unlock cleaner pollution control and energy recovery

Biochar Editorial Office, Shenyang Agricultural University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Biochar has often been praised as a “black gold” for sustainable agriculture, pollution control, and carbon storage. Yet despite its promise, its wider use has been limited by a practical challenge: compared with materials such as activated carbon, graphene, and carbon nanotubes, biochar often has lower surface area and electrical conductivity. Expensive post-treatment methods can improve its performance, but they may also increase cost, energy use, and secondary pollution.

Journal: Biochar

Fungi help biochar and compost lock more carbon in nutrient-poor urban soils

Biochar Editorial Office, Shenyang Agricultural University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Urban parks, campus lawns, residential gardens, and other greenspaces are vital parts of city life. They cool neighborhoods, support biodiversity, store carbon, and provide places for people to relax. Yet many urban soils are losing organic matter and nutrients under the pressure of rapid urbanization. A new study published in Biochar suggests that the success of common soil restoration practices may depend strongly on one often-overlooked factor: the balance between fungi and bacteria already living in the soil.

Journal: Biochar

Georgia State preparing next generation of sustainable scientists

Georgia State University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Faculty and students at Georgia State University are working to integrate sustainable practices into undergraduate science education, and a new study highlights ways to advance laboratory practices and teaching strategies.

Journal: Journal of Chemical Education

New paper shows overlooked pollutants are responsible for about 15% of current global warming

Spark Climate Solutions
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A new paper by leading climate scientists and policy experts finds that indirect greenhouse gases account for roughly 15% of current global warming from human emissions yet remain largely absent from climate policy. These overlooked pollutants, including carbon monoxide, non-methane volatile organic compounds, nitrogen oxides, and molecular hydrogen, do not warm the climate directly. Instead, they alter atmospheric chemistry in ways that increase levels of methane, ozone, and other greenhouse gases, which results in increased warming. Reducing these emissions represents an overlooked opportunity to slow warming while delivering air quality benefits.

Journal: Science

Cell-inspired material captures energy and releases it on demand

Northwestern University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

New material works like a cell’s dynamic internal skeleton, assembling and disassembling as it stores and releases energy. It can harvest energy from sunlight or other sources and store it in the dark. Material could open the door for clean, renewable energy that doesn’t require plastics or metals. First report of a material that stores energy by physically rebuilding itself.

Journal: Chem
Funder: U.S. Department of Energy

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