The aim was to create hydrophobic paper by exploiting the mechanical properties and water resistance of cellulose nanofibres, and so produce a sustainable, high-performance material suitable for packaging and biomedical devices. This involved a supramolecular approach, i.e. combining short chains of proteins (peptide sequences) that do not chemically modify the cellulose nanofibres. Sustainable hydrophobic paper may one day replace petroleum-related products.

Science can be difficult to explain to the public. Explaining a theoretical science concept to high school students requires a new way of thinking altogether, which is precisely what researchers at UC San Diego did when they orchestrated a dance with high school students at Orange Glen High School in Escondido as a way to explain topological insulators. The experiment was led by former graduate student Matthew Du and UC San Diego Associate Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry Joel Yuen-Zhou.

An international team led by scientists of GSI/FAIR in Darmstadt, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz and the Helmholtz Institute Mainz, succeeded in determining the chemical properties of the artificially produced superheavy elements moscovium and nihonium (elements 115 and 113). Moscovium thus becomes the heaviest element ever chemically studied. Both of the newly characterized elements are more chemically reactive than flerovium (element 114), which was previously studied at GSI/FAIR. The results are published in the journal Frontiers in Chemistry.

Two English journals hosted by the Institute of Atmospheric Physics at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), were recently acknowledged for their impact in global media.

Hydrogen's potential as a promising future energy source is increasingly recognized. However, safely transporting large quantities of hydrogen gas remains a notable challenge. Researchers from University of Tsukuba have addressed this issue by developing a durable, poison-resistant non-noble metal anode that can potentially replace the expensive metal electrodes currently used in organic hydride electrolytic synthesis. This method allows the handling of hydrogen as a liquid energy carrier.

Using a transmission electron microscope, researchers at the University of Tsukuba have directly observed the breaking of carbon nanotube fibers is induced by molecular slippage, involving repeated transitions between static and kinetic friction. Furthermore, they have discovered that this slippage can be considerably suppressed by doping nitrogen into individual carbon nanotube molecules, followed by bundling them into fibers. Specifically, when these nitrogen-doped nanotubes are irradiated with an electron beam, the resulting fibers exhibit enhanced strength.