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Cutouts (top) allow light to strike certain areas of a substrate exposed to gaseous precursors of plastic, creating films with specific shapes. Credit: J. M. Kaiser et al./J. Am. Chem. Soc. Uvc Light
Chemists have devised a simple method for using light to control the chemical reaction that forms some plastics1. This could broaden the industrial uses of two of the most common plastics, polyethylene and polypropylene.
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doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-03709-1
Kaiser, J. M., Burroughs, J. M. & Long, B. K. J. Am. Chem. Soc. https://doi.org/10.1021/jacs.2c08548 (2022).
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Ultraviolet Water Steriliser Nature (Nature) ISSN 1476-4687 (online) ISSN 0028-0836 (print)