Biofilms are conglomerates of bacteria and other organisms, which are feared in medicine as well as other areas because they can contain pathogens and are highly resistant to treatment. Chemists at Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (HHU) have, in collaboration with colleagues from Munich and Groningen, examined how the polysaccharide “Pel” – a central component of many biofilms – is exported out of the cell by the pathogen P. aeruginosa. In the scientific journal Nature Communications, they describe the structure of the so-called PelBC export complex, which represents the last station in the cell before “Pel” is released.

A team led by Prof. Shlomo Magdassi from the Institute of Chemistry and Prof. Hanna Dodiuk from Shenkar College has recently developed a new adhesive, which addresses one of the major challenges in materials science: developing adhesives that, on the one hand, have rapid curing capabilities and can function on a wide range of surfaces, and, on the other hand, are recyclable and removable without compromising their properties. The research was performed by the PhD student Natanel Jarach, published in the prestigious journal Advanced Materials, presented a new adhesive that can be cured across almost the entire visible light spectrum and can be decomposed using a household microwave, all without requiring solvents, UV radiation, or high temperatures.

A team of Korean scientists has developed an innovative green technology that transforms plastic waste into clean hydrogen fuel using only sunlight and water.

Researchers at the Institute for Basic Science (IBS) Center for Nanoparticle Research, led by Professor KIM Dae-Hyeong and Professor HYEON Taeghwan of Seoul National University, announced the successful development of a photocatalytic system that produces hydrogen from PET bottles. The key innovation lies in wrapping the photocatalyst in a hydrogel polymer, which helps it float on water and stay active even under harsh environmental conditions.

Optical neural networks hold promise as future hardware for energy-efficient artificial intelligence tasks. The implementation of nonlinear functions in photonic integrated circuits is required for optical neural network design and performance calculation. A European scientific collaboration has experimentally demonstrated a novel optical nonlinearity arising from the hydrodynamic behavior of electrons in doped semiconductors. These results could enable advanced photonic integrated circuits using mature microfabrication processes, paving the way for scalable, high-performance optical computing.

The combination of solar energy and natural hydrothermal systems will innovate the chemistry of CO₂ hydrogenation; however, the approach remains challenging due to the lack of robust and cost-effective catalytic system. Here, Zn which can be recycled with solar energy-induced approach was chosen as the reductant and Co as catalyst to achieve robust hydrothermal CO₂ methanation. Nanosheets of honeycomb ZnO were grown in situ on the Co surface, resulting in a new motif (Co@ZnO catalyst) that inhibits Co deactivation through ZnO-assisted CoO_x reduction. The stabilized Co and interaction between Co and ZnO functioned collaboratively toward the full conversion of CO₂–CH₄. In situ hydrothermal infrared spectroscopy confirmed the formation of formic acid as an intermediate, thereby avoiding CO formation and unwanted side reaction pathways. This study presents a straightforward one-step process for both highly efficient CO₂ conversion and catalyst synthesis, paving the way for solar-driven CO₂ methanation.

SAN ANTONIO — June 10, 2025 — Southwest Research Institute’s Dr. Craig DeForest discussed the latest accomplishments of NASA’s PUNCH (Polarimeter to Unify the Corona and Heliosphere) mission during a media event at the 246th American Astronomical Society meeting in Anchorage, Alaska. As the spacecraft constellation completes commissioning, early PUNCH data showed coronal mass ejections, or CMEs, as they erupted from the Sun and traveled across the inner solar system.