A modular, fuel-cell-like assembly featuring specially developed microbial communities is capable of producing pure hydrogen from a wide range of organic wastes. Developed by startup company Electro-Active Technologies (Oak Ridge, Tenn.; https://electroactive.tech), the microbial electrolysis system is now in the…
An international group of scientists has created a bowl-shaped electrode that can efficiently convert CO2 into carbon-based fuels and chemicals. The group includes scientists from the University of Bath (Bath, UK; www.bath.ac,uk), Fudan University (Shanghai, China; www.fudan.edu.cn), and the Shanghai…
The use of direct reduced iron (DRI; sponge iron) and hot briquetted iron (HBI) is expected to continue to grow due to the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the growing number of electric arc furnaces (EAFs) in service…
Conventional plastics are difficult to recycle because end-of-life processing generally is either energy-intensive or alters the physical properties of the materials. A team of researchers from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley, Calif.; www.lbl.gov) and the University of California at…
Chemists from the research group of Stefania Grecea at the University of Amsterdam’s (UvA; the Netherlands; www.uva.nl) Research Priority Sustainable Chemistry have devised a way to enhance the practical performance of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). By using leaves from the black…
Scientists from the University of Science and Technology of China (Hefei; https://en.ustc.edu.cn), led by professor Shu-Hong Yu, have developed a thermal insulator that mimics the structure of individual polar-bear hairs, and have scaled toward a material made of many hairs.…
Hypersaline industrial wastewater brines are difficult to treat. Current approaches for removing salt from such brines — such as evaporative distillation and reverse-osmosis (RO) — are problematic because evaporation is highly energy-intensive and RO cannot handle salt levels present in…
An international team, including staff from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (Kaist; Daejeon, South Korea; www.kaist.ac.kr), led by Kaist’s professor Jeung Ku Kang, has developed a technology to analyze the gas adsorption behavior of molecules of each…
Thyssenkrupp Materials Services GmbH (Essen, Germany; www.thyssenkrupp-materials-services.com) continues to drive digital transformation: since early 2019, an artificial intelligence (AI) solution, supported by Microsoft’s cloud platform Azure, has been integrated into the processes of the largest materials distribution and service provider…
A new low-cost, safe and environmentally friendly method for removing polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) from water has been developed by researchers from Flinders University (Adelaide, Australia; www.flinders.edu.au). PFAS are commonly used in non-stick and protective coatings, lubricants and aviation fire-fighting…