Historical lead from petrol still poisons London’s air 20 years after its ban
Two decades after leaded petrol was banned in the UK, the toxic metal still hangs around London’s dusty roads – and it’s not going away
Deepest ocean trenches hold vast amounts of mercury
Despite only comprising 1% of deep sea areas, sediments in Pacific Ocean trenches contain up to 30% of marine mercury
Molecular complexity index could help find proof of alien life
Is it microbes on Venus or just lifeless planetary processes? Discovery could help scientists identify life on other planets
Pollen-mimicking antidote saves bees after pesticide exposure
Calcium carbonate microparticles deliver detoxifying enzyme to bees’ guts
Surprise as nickel vapour is found in comet tails far too cold for metal sublimation
Discovery points to unusual organometallic chemistry going on in deep space
Meteorites show modern Mars’ subsurface has ingredients to support life
Terrestrial chemistry that sustains microbial life deep underground appears to be occurring on the Red Planet too
Sunlight transforms plastic into tens of thousands of new compounds
Marine plastics don’t persist forever, sun exposure can break them down into extremely complex chemical compounds in just weeks
Chemical definition of brine as water could help clear up Chile’s lithium controversy
As evidence grows that lithium mining damages water sources, reclassifying brine as water – rather than as mineral – could empower Indigenous communities to protect their rights and convince mining companies to act more responsibly
Methane mystery on Saturn’s moon rekindles search for life on other planets
Researchers struggle to explain suspicious amounts of methane on Enceladus while a new chapter opens in the debate around the source of Venus’s phosphine. Why is it so hard to decide what counts as a sign of life?
Tusk isotopes reveal a mammoth’s life
17,000 years after its death, scientists use strontium analysis to trace animal’s movements throughout its 28-year life
Geochemists uncover evidence of massive Antarctic meteorite explosion 430,000 years ago
Airburst event spread material across most of Antarctica
Ion trapping desalination membrane fishes out valuable materials
Selectively trapping toxic or useful ions could reduce toxicity of brine waste and offset costs
Exoplanet’s chemical fingerprint suggest a distant birthplace
Unexpectedly high levels of carbon on Osiris indicate an intriguing past
Features
How should chemical mixtures be regulated?
Cleaning up industry’s water worries
Getting to the root of soil nitrogen
Sustainable solar power
The hellish chemistry of Venus’ atmosphere
Marking the Anthropocene
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A glimpse at alien volcanoes that spew metal
Hypothetical ferrovolcanoes explored with world’s only lava flow simulator
Super-slippery 2D material could be ideal lubricant for planetary rovers
Metal carbide material is significantly better lubricant than oils
Pointing the tools of atmospheric chemistry inside
US team monitoring air quality in an on-campus gym detects chemicals in the air that come from cleaning products reacting with sweat
High performance fabric that can be made from plastic bags could slash fashion’s huge emissions
Polyethylene yarn can create clothes that are stain resistant, cool the wearer and are simple to recycle
Bio-inspired scaffold sequesters lead in damaged perovskite solar cells
System to address environmental and safety concerns also boosts performance
Photosensitive monomer allows polyurethanes to be degraded by light
Polymer designed to have a cleaving point after every second monomer unit
Newly identified greenhouse gas with no known use an ‘early warning’
Montreal Protocol doesn’t sufficiently control harmful by-products made during other chemical production processes, say atmospheric scientists
Catalyst turns mixed plastic waste into natural gas
Swiss researchers are now scaling-up the technology
Molecular simulations show how plant-based materials capture water pollutants
Ion adsorption mechanism revealed by using simulations at the molecular level for the first time in this field
Shipping ‘skid mark’ detected in the North Sea
Antifouling coatings are an underestimated source of plastic pollution
Atmospheric chemistry discovery could help Indian cities clear away the haze
High local HCl concentrations found to boost haze and fog formation in Delhi and Chennai