A significant contributor to the cost, energy consumption and carbon footprint of silver production is in the refining steps to remove, recover and recycle zinc from Parkes Crust silver-zinc intermetallic compounds. A fundamental redesign of the silver process to improve…
A significant portion of the energy and cost requirements in the production of lithium-ion batteries stems from the cost of converting lithium sulfate or lithium chloride into lithium hydroxide monohydrate (LHM) of sufficient purity for battery use. Noram Electrolysis Systems,…
Seemingly small component changes can make a large impact on the productivity of electrochemistry systems, such as electrolyzers used for producing “green” hydrogen. For example, a new coating technology developed by Oxford nanoSystems Ltd. (OnS; Abingdon, U.K.; www.oxfordnanosystems.com), when applied…
Recycling rates for post-consumer textile waste are very low (<0.5%) because the fabrics often consist of tightly interlaced synthetic and natural fibers that require costly sorting and separation processes, and because they often contain dyes and additives that must be…
Plasma technology is being explored as an avenue for many molecular conversions, such as methane reforming. Now, for the first time, a plasma-based CO2-conversion technology is being demonstrated industrially. The proprietary technology, developed by D-CRBN (Antwerp, Belgium; www.d-crbn.com), is being…
Co-fermentation processes that can consume both sugars and CO2 are emerging as a promising technology to enhance product yield and reduce emissions in biofuels production. A team of scientists at Oklahoma State University (Stillwater, Okla.; www.okstate.edu) are working to accelerate…
Artificial intelligence techniques have great potential in generating insights into catalytic reaction mechanisms, opening the door to more selective and efficient catalysts. However, using machine-learning (ML) in a general way to study chemical reactions is challenging because broad approaches aimed…
Using halide perovskites for photovoltaic (PV) solar-energy cells could dramatically reduce production costs compared to silicon-based PV cells, because perovskites are solution-processible at relatively low temperatures. However, long-term stability of these materials has been a significant challenge. Now, a research…
Electrolyzers are the key technology for producing “green” hydrogen using renewable energy. However, a new reactor platform aims to facilitate electrolysis without the need for any external electricity. The Electroless Coupled Exchange Reduction Oxidation technology platform (eXERO), developed by Utility…
Methane pyrolysis catalyst Catalytic methane pyrolysis (CMP) is an attractive route to producing hydrogen, because rather than generating CO2, the process produces solid carbon, which can be made in valuable forms that could offset the cost of hydrogen production. However,…