Environment

Rice University researchers have happened upon a powerful new tool they say can neutralize the threat posed by dangerous pollutants known as "forever" chemicals, offering a new catalyst that can destroy them in a matter of hours.

Making biofuel from algae is showing promise as a green energy source, but it does create large amounts of toxic wastewater. Now, researchers in Australia have found a way to clean up that wastewater, with a simple and scalable electrical process.

Carbon dioxide is an all too common waste product of industry, belched into the air from smokestacks. Now, researchers have developed a new type of fluorinated membrane that can selectively filter CO2 out of flue gas at the point of release.

What would Earth’s climate naturally be doing if it weren’t for human intervention? Researchers have now analyzed 12,000 years of climate data, and found that human-induced warming interrupted and reversed a long-term natural global cooling period.

Scientists have uncovered an accelerated heating trend taking place at the South Pole, with 30 years of weather data revealing the region has warmed at more than three times the global rate since 1989.

There are few more spectacular demonstrations of nature's power than a thunderstorm. The World Meteorological Association (WMO) has now confirmed two new records for the biggest lightning bolts in recorded history, measured by duration and distance.

New observations from a weather station in Siberia illustrate the warming trend taking hold in the Arctic Circle, with scientists logging an extreme temperature of 38 °C (100.4 °F), thought to be a new record for the region.

That tiny plastic fragment exists in soil is perhaps not so surprising, but researchers have now conducted one of the first studies on what this means for plant life, finding that it can reduce the total biomass of the finished product.

Everyone knows that walking on soft sand is more difficult than walking on a hard sidewalk. By the same token, MIT scientists are now suggesting that if road surfaces were to be made stiffer, large trucks would use less fuel.

Scientists are exploring many options when it comes to shoring up the wellbeing of coral reefs in the face of warming waters, and an international team of researchers is putting forward another possibility, showing how probiotics can boost their health and chances of survival.

BMW i Ventures announced today it is investing in Prometheus Fuels. The Silicon Valley startup is working on technologies for pulling CO2 out of the atmosphere and processing it into carbon-neutral gasoline.

One area where metal organic frameworks have real potential is in the field of carbon capture, which a team of researchers has demonstrated with a sponge-like device that adsorbs CO2 using just a third of the energy required by other methods.