Climate Change

The Future Looks Bright for Infinitely Recyclable Plastic

April 22, 2021

worker looks at bails of plastic

Only about 2% of plastics are fully recycled currently. PDK plastics could solve the single-use crisis. (Chanchai Phetdikhai/Shutterstock)

A new environmental and technological analysis suggests that a revolutionary eco-friendly plastic is almost ready to hit the shelves.

Plastics are a part of nearly every product we use on a...

Ron Cohen talks about the Beacon project

August 26, 2020

In a new video from Ron Cohen, UC Berkeley Professor of Chemistry and Earth and Planetary Sciences, the remarkable change in our atmosphere with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic is explored. Cohen postulates what the world would be like with fewer CO2 emissions.

Peidong Yang awarded 2020 Global Energy Prize

September 10, 2020

Peidong Yang

Peidong Yang, S.K. and Angela Chan Distinguished Professor of Energy and Professor of Chemistry, has been recognized as one of three laureates of the 2020 Global Energy Prize for the pioneering invention of nanoparticle based solar cell...

Chemistry of the orange sky

September 11, 2020

Orange sky at the College

Image: Looking toward Tan Kah Kee Hall (l) and Campbell Hall (r) from the mining circle (9/9/20). Photo by Pete Rosos for Berkeleyside

This event happened on September 9th, 2020.

The sky is orange because longer wavelength light (reds and oranges) are able to push through smoke particulates, whereas shorter...

New technique to capture CO2 could reduce power plant greenhouse gases

July 23, 2020

Use of MOFs to capture CO2

A big advance in carbon capture technology could provide an efficient and inexpensive way for natural gas power plants to remove carbon dioxide from their flue emissions, a necessary step in reducing greenhouse gas emissions to slow global warming and climate change. Developed by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and ExxonMobil, the new technique uses a highly porous material called a metal-organic framework, or MOF, modified with nitrogen-containing amine molecules to capture the CO2 and low temperature steam to flush out the CO2 for other uses or to sequester it underground.

Richmond Brings Air Pollution Control To The People

October 23, 2019

Ron Cohen

We hear a lot about bad air quality in California. And, it’s hard to know what to do about it. But thanks to a 2017 law, two Bay Area communities known for their air pollution are helping set their own air quality policies. But what does putting air pollution in the hands of the people really look like? In this Cross Currents report from KALW, reporter Brett Simpson attends an important community air quality meeting in Richmond as a committee of residents decide how much monitoring they should do before putting stricter standards in place. Richmond, California has some of the worst air pollution in the country. The committee was divided between more monitoring and wanting to enact stricter standards now.

Scientists use DNA origami to alter gene expression in plants

April 4, 2019

DNA origami could change the way we alter plants

new research reported from the lab of Markita Landry, a professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at UC Berkeley, a team of scientists has taken an original approach of using DNA origami nanotechnology to slip through plant cell walls and graft small interfering RNA (siRNA) directly onto plant cells. Their research shows it is possible to directly silence genes in plants without damaging plant tissues, and without making any alterations to the plant’s genome.

MOF water harvesting technology one of ten innovations that could change the world

April 4, 2019

Testing the water harvester

The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) has released the results of its first search for the Top Ten Emerging Technologies in Chemistry. Initiated as a special activity in honor of IUPAC’s 100th anniversary this year, the results have been published in the 2019 April-June 2019 issue of Chemistry International. Research from the lab of Omar Yaghi on water harvesting from desert air technology has been featured as one of the top 10.

Scientists discover hydration is key to improving catalyst performance for industrial use

April 4, 2019

NanoEP experiment

Scientists have used neutron scattering to identify the secret to a metal-organic framework's (MOF) ability to efficiently convert chemicals, through a process called catalysis, into new substances. By probing a material known as MOF-808-SO4, the team discovered molecular behavior that causes the catalyst to become less acidic, which could slow down the catalytic process vital in making products such as plastics, fragrances, cosmetics, flame retardants and solvents.

A material to save the world?

November 6, 2018

MOF diagram by Mathieu Provet, UC Berkeley.Metal-organic frameworks are compounds that are set to solve some tough challenges: producing water in the desert, removing greenhouse gases from the air and storing dangerous gases more safely.