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ScienceQuiet 11d · day 11

Chemists develop laboratory method to generate atomic hydrogen

Researchers have overcome a century-long barrier by making isolated hydrogen atoms accessible in the chemistry lab for synthetic work.

newest coverage 11d agosummary written 10d ago5 pieces11 likes & upvotes MastodonHacker NewsGoogle News

What to know

  • Isolated hydrogen atoms—the simplest and most reactive chemical species—have been inaccessible to synthetic chemists for over a century despite being the most abundant element in the universe.
  • Early methods by Langmuir (1912, thermal) and Franck (1922, mercury photosensitization) generated atomic hydrogen but were impractical for routine chemistry due to extreme conditions or toxic reagents.
  • Researchers have now developed a laboratory method that makes atomic hydrogen accessible as a practical synthetic reagent for building new compounds.

“This single, unpaired electron makes it what chemists call a radical; the most fundamental reactive species in all of chemistry.”

The Conversation · The Conversation article

Irving Langmuir American chemist, General ElectricJames Franck German-American physicistRobert Crabtree Chemist

Chemists develop laboratory method to generate atomic hydrogen
theconversation.com

How it unfolded 1 development · click the chart to see its coverage articlesposts

Peak 3 pieces in 3h at Oct 28, 7 AM; 5 pieces over 11 days (3 articles · 2 posts) Oct 28, 7 AM — 3 pieces · 1 article · 2 posts — Google News 1, Hacker News 1, Mastodon 1Oct 28, 10 AM — 1 piece · 1 article — Google News 1Oct 28, 1 PM — 1 piece · 1 article — Mastodon 1Oct 28, 4 PM — quietOct 28, 7 PM — quietOct 28, 10 PM — quietOct 29, 1 AM — quietOct 29, 4 AM — quietOct 29, 7 AM — quietOct 29, 10 AM — quietOct 29, 1 PM — quietOct 29, 4 PM — quietOct 29, 7 PM — quietOct 29, 10 PM — quietOct 30, 1 AM — quietOct 30, 4 AM — quietOct 30, 7 AM — quietOct 30, 10 AM — quietOct 30, 1 PM — quietOct 30, 4 PM — quietOct 30, 7 PM — quietOct 30, 10 PM — quietOct 31, 1 AM — quietOct 31, 4 AM — quietOct 31, 7 AM — quietOct 31, 10 AM — quietOct 31, 1 PM — quietOct 31, 4 PM — quietOct 31, 7 PM — quietOct 31, 10 PM — quietNov 1, 1 AM — quietNov 1, 3 AM — quietNov 1, 6 AM — quietNov 1, 9 AM — quietNov 1, 12 PM — quietNov 1, 3 PM — quietNov 1, 6 PM — quietNov 1, 9 PM — quietNov 2, 12 AM — quietNov 2, 3 AM — quietNov 2, 6 AM — quietNov 2, 9 AM — quietNov 2, 12 PM — quietNov 2, 3 PM — quietNov 2, 6 PM — quietNov 2, 9 PM — quietNov 3, 12 AM — quietNov 3, 3 AM — quietNov 3, 6 AM — quietNov 3, 9 AM — quietNov 3, 12 PM — quietNov 3, 3 PM — quietNov 3, 6 PM — quietNov 3, 9 PM — quietNov 4, 12 AM — quietNov 4, 3 AM — quietNov 4, 6 AM — quietNov 4, 9 AM — quietNov 4, 12 PM — quietNov 4, 3 PM — quietNov 4, 6 PM — quietNov 4, 9 PM — quietNov 5, 12 AM — quietNov 5, 3 AM — quietNov 5, 6 AM — quietNov 5, 9 AM — quietNov 5, 12 PM — quietNov 5, 3 PM — quietNov 5, 6 PM — quietNov 5, 9 PM — quietNov 6, 12 AM — quietNov 6, 3 AM — quietNov 6, 6 AM — quietNov 6, 9 AM — quietNov 6, 12 PM — quietNov 6, 3 PM — quietNov 6, 6 PM — quietNov 6, 9 PM — quietYesterday, 12 AM — quietYesterday, 3 AM — quietYesterday, 6 AM — quietYesterday, 9 AM — quietYesterday, 12 PM — quietYesterday, 3 PM — quietYesterday, 6 PM — quietYesterday, 9 PM — quietToday, 12 AM — quietToday, 3 AM — quietToday, 6 AM — quietToday, 9 AM — quiet 1
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  1. 1
    • TheConversationUK@newsie.social

      The hydrogen atom: the universe built almost everything with it. Synthetic chemists are only just learning to use it in the lab.

      TheConversationUK@newsie.socialMastodon11d ago1▲view on Mastodon ↗
  2. background

    Franck discovers mercury photosensitization method for splitting hydrogen — German-American physicist James Franck discovers that mercury atoms exposed to ultraviolet light at 254 nanometres can absorb energy and transfer it to hydrogen molecules, breaking them apart into atoms. The process, called mercury photosensitization, works but requires toxic mercury vapor and specialized UV lamps.

  3. background

    Langmuir first generates atomic hydrogen by heating over tungsten — Irving Langmuir, an American chemist at General Electric, becomes the first scientist to temporarily create atomic hydrogen by heating molecular hydrogen over a tungsten filament to above 1,700°C. The recombination of atoms at cooler surfaces releases enormous energy, producing temperatures of 3,400°C to 4,000°C—enough to weld tungsten, making it an early industrial welding process.

Also covered reported alongside — the timeline has no entry for these yet

  1. 2 outlets The hydrogen atom: the raw material of the universe barely exists on Earth – now we’ve made it in a flask

    first by Mastodon, 10d ago · also The Conversation