A major two-year trial by RMIT University, Westernport Water and Australia’s national science agency CSIRO measured the impact of floating platforms of native plants on greenhouse gas emissions from a wastewater lagoon in Phillip Island, southeast Australia.  

The results published in the Journal of Environmental Management reveal dramatic results, with CO₂ emissions dropping by up to 36%, methane by up to 66% and nitrogen by 18% in the lagoon with a floating wetland installed, compared to the control lagoon with no wetland platform. 

A simple ball-milling process dramatically enhanced the antiviral activity of manganese-based oxides, as reported by researchers from Science Tokyo. The team treated four manganese-containing materials with ball milling in ethanol, which altered their surface chemistry and greatly improved their ability to inactivate an enveloped virus similar to SARS-CoV-2. The findings reveal a promising strategy for designing low-cost, high-performance antiviral materials for coatings and other self-disinfecting surfaces.

This work presents the first demonstration of a parallel heterodyne light-induced thermoelastic spectroscopy (PH-LITES) sensor for high-speed and high-sensitivity simultaneous multi-gas detection. By synergistically combining signal enhancement at the physical layer with intelligent decoupling at the information layer, the sensor achieves ppb-level simultaneous and fast multi-gas detection based on a single quartz tuning fork (QTF), providing an important reference for the future development of rapid and highly sensitive multi-gas sensing technologies.

Windows contribute significantly to energy inefficiency across global infrastructure. Overcoming complex trade-offs in multispectral optical responses, scientists in China have developed a physics-guided neural network to design energy-efficient thermochromic smart windows for directional privacy protection. These inverse-designed windows achieve ultrahigh simultaneous modulation of near-infrared transmittance and longwave infrared emissivity. Applied to electric vehicles and building envelopes, these customized smart windows demonstrate superior, climate-adaptive all-weather thermal management.

Researchers have developed a process to manufacture flu vaccines in baker’s yeast that is fast, inexpensive, and safe. The approach could even make the yearly flu shot obsolete by providing long‑lasting protection against multiple influenza strains. They will present their results at ACS Fall 2026.

Plastic might be the last ingredient you would ever add to a cookie recipe. But a team of researchers is looking to change that. They’ve programmed yeasts to turn plastic and agricultural waste into edible proteins and flavoring molecules, creating a treat from trash. The technology not only offers a new upcycling method, but could also sustain life in disaster zones or manned deep-space missions. The researchers will present their results at ACS Fall 2026.