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    Cheers! NASA’s Webb finds Ethanol, other Icy Ingredients for Worlds

    March 18, 2024, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    Graphic titled “NGC 1333 IRAS 2A Protostar, MIRI Medium -Resolution Spectroscopy” shows a graph of optical depth on the y-axis versus wavelength of light in microns on the x-axis. The x-axis ranges from 6.8 microns on the left to 8.6 microns on the right, labeled in even increments of 0.2 microns. The y-axis ranges from 0 on the top to about 0.65 on the bottom, with labeled tick marks at 0.2, 0.4, and 0.6. A jagged white line with several prominent valleys extends horizontally. Vertical bands in different colors mark different wavelength regions and are labeled with molecular names and formulas.
    NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope’s MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument) has identified a variety of complex organic molecules that are present in interstellar ices surrounding two protostars. These molecules, which are key ingredients for making potentially habitable worlds, include ethanol, formic acid, methane, and likely acetic acid, in the solid phase. The finding came from the study of two protostars, IRAS 2A and IRAS 23385, both of which are so young that they are not yet forming planets.
    Illustration: NASA, ESA, CSA, L. Hustak (STScI). Science: W. Rocha (Leiden University).

    What do margaritas, vinegar, and ant stings have in common? They contain chemical ingredients that NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has identified surrounding two young protostars known as IRAS 2A and IRAS 233...

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    Hydrogen Production Method opens up Clean Energy possibilities

    May 24, 2022, Categories  Chemistry/Nanotechnology

    Postdoctoral researcher Jamie Kee and Professor Su Ha and the novel reactor they developed to produce pure compressed hydrogen.

    A new energy-efficient way to produce hydrogen gas from ethanol and water has the potential to make clean hydrogen fuel a more viable alternative for gasoline to power cars.

    Washington State University researchers used the ethanol and water mixture and a small amount of electricity in a novel conversion system to produce pure compressed hydrogen. The innovation means that hydrogen could be made on-site at fueling stations, so only the ethanol solution would have to be transported. It is a major step in eliminating the need to transport high-pressure hydrogen gas, which has been a major stumbling block for its use as a clean energy fuel.

    “This is a new wa...

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    Carbon Dots dash toward ‘Green’ Recycling Role

    December 18, 2016, Categories  Chemistry/Nanotechnology, Environment/Geology

    An illustration of a nitrogen-doped graphene quantum dot like those being tested at Rice University for use as catalysts to reduce carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, into valuable hydrocarbons.

    An illustration of a nitrogen-doped graphene quantum dot like those being tested at Rice University for use as catalysts to reduce carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, into valuable hydrocarbons. Courtesy of the Ajayan Group

    Graphene quantum dots may offer a simple way to recycle waste CO2 into valuable fuel rather than release it into the atmosphere or bury it underground, according to Rice University scientists. Nitrogen-doped graphene quantum dots (NGQDs) are an efficient electrocatalyst to make complex hydrocarbons from carbon dioxide, according to the research team led by Rice materials scientist Pulickel Ajayan. Using electrocatalysis, his lab has demonstrated the conversion of the greenhouse gas into small batches of ethylene and ethanol.

    NGQDs worked nearly as efficiently as copper, w...

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