Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology

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Scientists just uncovered the first new chemical bond in over 10 years

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  A group of researchers at the University of Tokyo have spent years testing the limits of chemical bonds . And now, after years of work, they’ve finally explored an idea originally proposed in 1931: a chemical bond formed using just a single electron. This, of course, poses quite a conundrum, as many believe single-electron chemical bonds can’t exist. That’s because all of the current known covalent bonds—where atoms connect by sharing their electrons—must contain two, four, six, or eight electrons . However, in 1931, Linus Pauling theorized that a covalent bond could exist with atoms sharing a single electron. However, creating a new single-electron chemical bond isn’t easy. To find out if it is possible, researchers started with a covalent bond that already exists with two electrons. They then removed one of those electrons by using a chemical reaction. They used a large hydrocarbon with long bonds between its carbon atoms to help ensure the energy cost would be too great for a...
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Solid State" Chemistry in Titan Ice Particles

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Scientists from NASA's Cassini mission suggested in a 2016 paper that the appearance of a cloud of dicyanoacetylene (C4N2) ice in Titan's stratosphere may be explained by "solid-state" chemistry taking place inside ice particles. The particles have an inner layer of cyanoacetylene (HC3N) ice coated with an outer layer of hydrogen cyanide (HCN) ice. Left: When a photon of light penetrates the outer shell, it can interact with the HC3N, producing C3N and H. Center: The C3N then reacts with HCN to yield C4N2 and H (shown at right). Another reaction that also yields C4N2 ice and H also is possible, but the researchers think it is less likely. A news feature can be seen here: http://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/nasa-scientists-find-impossible-cloud-on-titan-again . The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of Caltech in Pasadena, manages the mission f...
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Warming Mars’ atmosphere with nanoparticles

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  Mars has emerged as the leading candidate for human expansion. Its proximity to Earth, abundant amounts of sunlight and ample water trapped in ice makes Martian colonies theoretically plausible. One significant challenge though is Mars’ thin atmosphere . To heat Mars and thicken its atmosphere in preparation for human settlement, scientists have proposed that microscopic nanorods could be released into the Martian sky to accelerate the necessary greenhouse effect. The subsequent rise in temperature would melt ice and release more CO2 , trapped in solid form on Mars’ surface, significantly increasing atmospheric pressure. Using Mars’ own resources Due to a lack of magnetic field, Mars’ atmosphere was long ago stripped away by solar winds. Multiple strategies to thicken the Red Planet’s atmosphere have been proposed but require large quantities of resources, like greenhouse gases, be brought over as they aren’t abundant on Mars. With today’s current technology, the journey to Ma...
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