CO2 To Go Please

 Posted by Garrett Moran

A very recent article on ScienceDaily illustrates a recent research group out of Caltech and the UCLA Samueli School of Engineering coming up with a way to effectively and efficiently convert carbon dioxide into ethylene. This conversion is incredibly useful as ethylene is a very important chemical used to produce solvents, plastics, cosmetics and many more important products around the world. This team accomplished this conversion by developing nanoscaled copper wires that had a specific shaped surface engraved into them. This copper wire surface looked almost like a staircase and would catalyze the chemical reaction and reduce the amount of CO2 produced while also generating ethylene. Co-corresponding author Yu Huang says that this conversion method is an excellent way to fight climate change as it reduces the amount of greenhouse gasses while also producing a very useful chemical product at the same time.

The article stresses that this efficient conversion has been attempted by scientist around the world for a long time but has never been truly successful with this degree of efficiency. The problem lies within the chemical reaction itself. This chemical reaction tends to produce both hydrogen and methane. These two products are undesirable in industrial production. Another problem lied within the system creating the reaction. Previous attempts from scientist resulted in the production of ethylene, but the product didn’t last long. As the system was allowed to run for longer periods of time, the conversion efficiency would drop resulting in an inefficient production of ethylene. The scientist from UCLA and Caltech decided to focus their studies on the design of the copper nanowire present in the system. These scientist designed a copper nanowire with highly active “steps” very similar to a set of stairs. With this design, the team was able to demonstrate an effective and efficient carbon dioxide to ethylene conversion rate of greater than 70%! This designed proved efficient as previous designs yielded 10% or less under the same conditions. Overall, UCLA’s Samueli School of Engineering and Caltech’s research team have discovered new advances when it comes to copper-based catalysts and have demonstrated a promising way to fight climate change while also producing a very useful chemical agent in industrial productions.

Evidence of Life’s Origin Springs Forth from Hydrothermal Pools

 Posted by Cole McElMurray

The origin of life is a hotly debated topic. Many competing theories still abound in the field of science over where and how the first living organism arose, whether on Earth or somewhere else in the universe. However, one recent discovery points to the possibility of life arising in extreme conditions: specifically, in terrestrial hot springs such as the ones found in Yellowstone National Park. Jack Lee of Science News reports that Drs. David Deamer and Bruce Damer of the University of California, Santa Cruz have found evidence that hot springs provide the necessary conditions for syntheses of organic molecules to proceed.

Figure 1: Hydrothermal hot spring, Hell’s Gate, New Zealand. This site was used by Damer for experimentation.

A condensation reaction is a simple organic reaction that removes water from any OOH group, such as a carboxylic acid or phosphate, and a neighboring hydroxyl group, to link them in an ester bond. Condensation reactions are important in biology to not only form lipid chains, but to link nucleotides in RNA and DNA. These reactions in living cells are catalyzed by enzymes, but Dr. Damer hypothesized that these reactions could occur in situ in a hot, wet environment such as a hot spring. To test the theory, he prepared vials with the precursors to RNA before placing them in a metal block which was then lowered into a hydrothermal pool at around 100 degrees Celsius. Measured quantities of hot spring water were transferred to the vials before letting the materials dry, simulating the tides of the primordial Earth. This pattern was repeated several times. At the end of the experiments, long chains of nucleotides had formed, lending support to Damer’s hypothesis that these reactions were likely to occur in hot springs such as the kind that were prevalent early in the Earth’s history.

Figure 2: Condensation reaction of a triglyceride, an important type lipid found in the body. 

The scientists’ theory is not without its detractors. Dr. Laurie Barge of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, finds that the conditions of underwater hydrothermal vents produces condensation reactions of RNA nucleotides. However, Deamer believes that the cycle of evaporation and saturation is the most important key to the natural formation of long-chain organic molecules, and contends that the dilution of molecules in the ocean as well as the high salt content inhibits the reactions that would drive the formation of the precursors to life.

The evidence of life’s origin under these conditions lends itself not only to the study of life on Earth, but to extraterrestrial life as well. Evidence has been found on Jupiter’s moon Europa and Saturn’s moon Enceladus of hydrothermal activity in the forms of plumes of water vapor erupting from underneath the icy surface. In addition, Barge postulates that the freezing and thawing of ice on these moons could emulate the cycle of dehydration and rehydration as an analogue to the tidal cycle of the primordial Earth that Deamer and Damer studied. The two, on the other hand, prefer to focus on Mars, where geological evidence suggests that hydrothermal hot springs were found millions of years ago.

Figure 3: Artist’s rendition of water vapor plumes on Europa. 

The article in Science News, being written for a crowd of both scientists and laymen with a vested interest in interesting discoveries and new theories, takes an overall neutral view of the subject. It reports and details both Deamer and Damer’s hypothesis and research results, as well as competing theories like that of Barge, and does not endorse any particular view, instead leaving it up to the reader to decide. While the article makes note that the chemical reactions that drive the formation of important biological molecules are the key to the scientists’ discoveries, it does not go into extreme

detail about what the reactions are, instead preferring to explain them as simply as possible so as not to bore readers.

Sources:

https://www.sciencenews.org/article/life-earth-origins-hostile-hot-springs-microbes

https://resources.stuff.co.nz/content/dam/images/1/r/3/5/i/i/image.related.StuffLandscapeSixteenByN ine.710x400.1r30ig.png/1533337202027.jpg

Chemistry, 3rd edition (Tro) https://www.sciencealert.com/images/2019-11/processed/EuropaWaterPlumesConfirmed_1024.jpg 

 

Heavy Metals Bring a Heavy Burden to Soil Health

 Posted by Timothy Martin

Soil enzymes are critical in maintaining the overall
health and fertility of the soil system through the
promotion of chemical reactions. However, human

industrial activity commonly led by the use of
chemically synthesized fertilizers has endangered the wellbeing of soil enzymes and thus soil health. In a recent meta-analysis done by a research group at RUDN university it was shown that the most affected soil enzymes are those that deal with the biogeochemical chemical cycling of minerals such as sulfur,carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus. Two critical endoenzymes, or enzymes which come from living cells, such as dehydrogenase and arylsulphatase were shown to be some of the most sensitive, with adverse effects starting metal concentrations of 200mg per 1kg of soil.

Common heavy metals in soils such as lead, zinc, cadmium, copper and arsenic are the largest contributors to the degradation of soil health and chemical remediation efforts are often the only solution to rectifying and healing the damaged soil system.

 Unfortunately, many of the sources of chemical contamination can lead back to chemistry laboratories, such as the creation of arsenic based fertilizers and pesticides which are often also high in cadmium. The decline of soil fertility poses a risk to a stable agricultural economy and, without a change in how chemists produce the tools necessary for large yield farming, a soil system collapse is looming in the near future.

Sources:

“Heavy Metals in Fertilizers.” EH: Minnesota Department of Health, www.health.state.mn.us/communities/environment/risk/studies/metals.html.

“Heavy Metals Make Soil Enzymes 3 Times Weaker.” Phys.org, Phys.org, 8 Sept. 2020, phys.org/news/2020-09-heavy-metals-soil-enzymes-weaker.html. 

Glass Vials vital for COVID-19 vaccine

 Posted by Qianhui Hua

The hottest topic in 2020 is COVID-19, which has brought huge losses and impacts to every country in the world. So I chose a news about COVID-19 vaccine storage and distribution, which is related to material chemistry.

Since Chinese scientists released the complete genome sequence of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) on January 11, 2020, there has been a global upsurge in the development of a vaccine against COVID-19. The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) is cooperating with health authorities and vaccine developers in countries around the world to promote the development of new crown vaccines. Once one or more vaccines are approved by the regulatory authorities, the next step is to vaccinate a large number of patients. By that time, glass vials with special properties are essential for distribution, which means that strong vials can protect their contents and will not react chemically with the vaccine solution.

Like many liquid medicines, vaccines are usually packaged in glass bottles instead of ordinary water bottles or plastic bottles. For decades, although containers made of newer materials are entering the market, most pharmaceutical manufacturers have relied on vials made of borosilicate glass.

Borosilicate glass is made primarily from silicon dioxide, the main constituent of sand, with boron oxide and other compounds that help stabilize the glass.  Borosilicate glass “is a chemically inert material and remains unchanged under all normal environmental circumstances,” Döscher says. It is stable and maintains its shape at temperatures as high as 500°C and prevent contamination. However, some metals or other contaminants can be leached from the vial or other packaging materials, such as the elastic seal on the vial. And glass fragments can interact with certain components in the vial, causing the drug to degrade.

Corning researchers tweaked the ingredients in soda-lime glass by adding aluminum and some potassium to develop a formula that prevents delamination and resists breakage. It's called Valor glass container.

Another company called SiO2 Materials Science is turning to plastic medical bottles lined with glass-like coatings. The company applied a nano-scale silicone layer inside the plastic shell to form a chemically inert interior. The company said that these medicine bottles have the advantages of thermal stability, chemical stability, and gas barrier properties, so they are easier to store.  In addition, the limited use of glass makes them less prone to breaking, both on filling lines and in the hands of patients makes them less prone to breaking, both on filling lines and in the hands of patients.  “We have fused the two materials into a better, safer, more durable hybrid.” The company’s website says the resulting vials are mechanically strong and shatterproof. 

Finally, regardless of the material of the glass vials, global manufacturers are increasing production and improving the demand for packaging COVID-19 vaccine. Relevant institutions around the world are committed to developing vaccines, and people all over the world look forward to defeating COVID-19 as soon as possible.

 

 

Venus as a New Home

 Posted by Emma Crouch

With global warming becoming an increasingly important issue, many scientists have looked to other planets as possible second homes for humans. One of these planets that show promise is Venus. An article published in Science News details the discovery of Phosphine gas in the atmosphere. Based on observation it seems this gas could have been produced by bacteria, suggesting extraterrestrial life. Examining the atmosphere, Greaves, Sousa-Silva and colleagues found that the planets clouds may contain up to 20 ppb of Phosphine.

To detect this gas, Greaves, Sousa-Silva and colleagues used a powerful telescope in which the absorption was measured and based on energy and environmental factors it was concluded to be Phosphine. This study proves to be extremely promising however does have a long way to go before humans are ready to pack up and move to Venus. Even though they were able to detect this gas in the atmosphere the researchers are still unsure of the source. Due to this missing conclusion much of this study is still up in the air. However, this is a small step in the right direction. 

Phosphine Hints at Possible Life on Venus

Posted by Anna Evers

1. New York Times 2020 09/14.

2. Nature Astronomy 2020 09/14.

Honeybees Might Help Save The Boobies

 posted by Sondra Broomell

Breast cancer is the most prevalent cancer among women worldwide. An article published on the BBC News website details the early stages of research findings pointing to melittin, a compound  found in honeybee venom, being an effective treatment. Venom from over 300 species of honeybees and bumblebees was tested against triple negative and HER2-enriched cancer cells. Both cancers are aggressive and difficult to treat.

The study, led by Ciara Duffy at Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research in Western Australia, showed melittin to be effective at killing cancer cells within an hour while causing little damage to neighboring cells. The toxicity, however, does increase at higher doses. Further investigation determined that melittin works by inhibiting the growth of the cancer cells by interfering “with signaling pathways within breast cancer cells to reduce replication,” according to Professor Peter Klinken.

Researchers are excited about their preliminary findings and point out that this an excellent example of using compounds found in nature to treat human diseases. However, there are thousands of compounds that kill cancer in laboratory settings but few that can be used for actual human treatment. Melittin is a small peptide (see below) and can be synthetically produced but researchers stress that they are in the early stages of this study and there is much more testing needed before melittin can be used in a clinical setting.  

Melittin structure