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Categories: Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry, Geoscience: Oceanography

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Current techniques for measuring nano/microplastic (N/MP) concentrations in soil require the soil organic matter content to be separated and have limited resolution for analyzing N/MPs sized <1 m. Therefore, researchers have developed a novel yet simple method to measure N/MP concentration in different soil types using spectroscopy at two wavelengths. This method does not require the soil to be separated in order to detect the N/MPs and can accurately quantify N/MPs regardless of their size.

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Detecting marine debris from space is now a reality, according to a new study. Until now, the amount of litter -- mostly plastic -- on the sea surface was rarely high enough to generate a detectable signal from space. However, using supercomputers and advanced search algorithms, the research team has demonstrated that satellites are an effective tool for estimating the amount of litter in the sea.

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A gold-coated milling vessel for ball mills proved to be a real marvel: without any solvents or environmentally harmful chemicals, the team was able to use it to convert alcohols into aldehydes. The catalytic reaction takes place at the gold surface and is mechanically driven. The vessel can be reused multiple times. 'This opens up new prospects for the use of gold in catalysis and shows how traditional materials can contribute to solving modern environmental problems in an innovative way,' says Borchardt.

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A ubiquitous compound, called ester can be broken down to produce desirable alcohols and other chemicals for use across industries including pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, but the process can be costly, both financially and in terms of the environment. Researchers developed a novel photocatalyst 'N-BAP.' When irradiated with blue light, the photocatalyst reduces esters in the presence of oxalate, a negatively charged molecule found widely in nature, resulting in the desired alcohols.

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Spontaneous parametric down-conversion (SPDC), as a source of entangled photons, is of great interest for quantum physics and quantum technology, but so far it could be only implemented in solids. Researchers have demonstrated, for the first time, SPDC in a liquid crystal. The results open a path to a new generation of quantum sources: efficient and electric-field tunable.

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Thirty-by-thirty: protect 30% of the planet by 2030. While conservation is popular in principle, the costs of actually enacting it often stall even the most earnest efforts. Researchers have now proposed a market-based approach to achieving the 30x30 targets in the ocean.

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With their 'T-REX' method, researchers developed a glassy, amber-like polymer that can be used for long-term storage of DNA, such as entire human genomes or digital files such as photos.

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The understanding of the global zinc cycle in our oceans has important implications in the context of warming oceans. A warmer climate increases erosion, leading to more dust in the atmosphere and consequently more dust being deposited into the oceans. More dust means more scavenging of zinc particles, leading to less zinc being available to sustain phytoplankton and other marine life, thereby diminishing the oceans' ability to absorb carbon.

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When it comes to the ocean's response to global warming, we're not in entirely uncharted waters. A new study shows that episodes of extreme heat in Earth's past caused the exchange of waters from the surface to the deep ocean to decline.

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A team aims to improve options for renewable energy storage through work on an emerging technology -- liquids for hydrogen storage.

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Deposits of deep-pink sand washing up on South Australian shores shed new light on when the Australian tectonic plate began to subduct beneath the Pacific plate, as well as the presence of previously unknown ancient Antarctic mountains.

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To understand the unique physical phenomena associated with the properties of magnetic hedgehogs and antihedgehogs, which behave as virtual magnetic monopoles and antimonopoles respectively, it is essential to study their intrinsic excitations. In a new study, researchers revealed the dynamical nature of collective excitation modes in hedgehog lattices in itinerant chiral magnets. Their findings serve as the foundation for studying the dynamics of emergent magnetic monopoles in magnets.

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Researchers have demonstrated miniature soft hydraulic actuators that can be used to control the deformation and motion of soft robots that are less than a millimeter thick. The researchers have also demonstrated that this technique works with shape memory materials, allowing users to repeatedly lock the soft robots into a desired shape and return to the original shape as needed.

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A study revealed that a simple thermal reaction of gallium nitride with metallic magnesium results in the formation of a distinctive superlattice structure. This represents the first time researchers have identified the insertion of 2D metal layers into a bulk semiconductor. By carefully observing materials through various cutting-edge characterization techniques, the researchers uncovered new insights into the process of semiconductor doping and elastic strain engineering.

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In facing life's many challenges, we often opt for complex approaches to finding solutions. Yet, upon closer examination, the answers are often simpler than we expect, rooted in the core "essence" of the issue. This approach was demonstrated by a research team in their publication on addressing the inherent issues of solid-state batteries.

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A common type of ocean algae plays a significant role in producing a massively abundant compound that helps cool the Earth's climate, new research has discovered.

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If a material absorbs light, it will heat up. That heat must go somewhere, and the ability to control where and how much heat is emitted can protect or even hide such devices as satellites. An international team of researchers has published a novel method for controlling this thermal emission in Science.

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A new study has produced the first comprehensive survey of the many complex structures beneath the seafloor in the Cascadia Subduction Zone, off British Columbia, Washington, Oregon and California. It is providing scientists with key insights into how future disasters may unfold.

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Thousands of particles of light can merge into a type of 'super photon' under suitable conditions. Physicists call such a state a photon Bose-Einstein condensate. Researchers have now shown that this exotic quantum state obeys a fundamental theorem of physics. This finding now allows one to measure properties of photon Bose-Einstein condensates which are usually difficult to access.

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Engineers have created a patent-pending method that creates layered perovskite nanowires with exceptionally well-defined and flexible cavities that exhibit a wide range of unusual optical properties beyond conventional perovskites.