Most existing carbon-dioxide removal (CDR) approaches have focused on air, but the volumetric concentration of dissolved inorganic CO2 in surface water is much higher (150X) than its concentration in the atmosphere. Removing CO2 from water could prove to be a…
Pyrolysis has received much attention as a technology capable of breaking down waste plastics in recycling processes, but existing pyrolysis approaches often give rise to products with broad molar mass distributions and poor yields. Catalysts can improve yield and selectivity,…
A first-of-its-kind energy-recovery system harnesses the energy of water flow and pressure in pipelines to produce renewable energy. The patented HydroXS unit, developed by InPipe Energy, Inc. (Portland, Ore.; www.inpipeenergy.com) in collaboration with Grundfos Corp. (Brookshire, Tex.; www.grundfos.com/us), is a…
Two recent developments at Queens Carbon Inc. (Pine Brook, N.J.; www.queenscarbon.com), a spinoff company from Rutgers University (New Brunswick, N.J.; www.rutgers.edu), illustrate the potential for reducing the high carbon-dioxide emissions that result from cement and concrete production. Both are results…
The Netherlands-based startup company Ore Energy (Amsterdam, the Netherlands; www.oreenergy.com) recently announced that it has successfully connected its flagship iron-air battery system to the electric grid in the city of Delft, the Netherlands. It is the first iron-air battery system…
Breaking the stable carbon-fluorine bonds within per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) is one of the most significant challenges in mitigating persistent PFAS pollution. The Hydrothermal Alkaline Technology (HALT; diagram), invented at the Colorado School of Mines (Golden, Colo.; www.mines.edu) and…
The production of “green” hydrogen via electrolysis is seen as a key decarbonization pathway for certain industry sectors, but its efficiency can be hampered by a number of factors, including the accumulation of gas bubbles on electrode surfaces within electrolyzers…
Extremely high-salinity water streams present difficulties for many types of processing equipment, such as membranes and filters, and most commercial treatment methods involve thermal evaporators or crystallization, which are energy-intensive and require special anti-corrosion materials. A new membrane-less, non-evaporative process…
The growing need for energy-storage solutions for a gamut of applications from electronic devices to large-scale energy systems has spurred an increase in research for innovative technologies. Considerable attention is being given to new chemistries beyond the widely used lithium-ion…
A patent-pending material developed at the Technical University of Munich (TUM; www.tum.de) has achieved the fastest-ever conductivity of lithium ions, and is now poised to significantly improve the efficiency of future solid-state batteries. Solid-state batteries, often seen as a more…