Initial validation testing has been completed on a novel cathode material that could lower the manufacturing costs and lengthen the lifetimes of lithium-ion batteries. The new cathode material represents a departure from the traditional Li-ion intercalation chemistry used in current…
Bio-Hydrogen Scientists at Indiana University (IU; Bloomington, Ind.; www.iu.edu) have created a highly efficient biomaterial that catalyzes the formation of hydrogen from water. The biomaterial could be used to produce H2 or generate power from H2 in a fuel cell.…
Early this year, Lanxess AG (Cologne, Germany; www.lanxess.com) will start production of bright red iron-oxide pigments at its Ningbo, China production site. The production facility will utilize — for the first time — the Ningbo Process, a highly sustainable production…
Automobile catalytic converters contain cerium-based co-catalysts to enhance the overall effectiveness of the converter by absorbing and releasing oxygen to convert CO into CO2. Existing emission control systems typically use CeO2-based materials, such as solid solutions of ceria and zirconia,…
A convenient route for the fabrication of a bio-mimetic, coral-like nanoporous γ-Al2O3 with a higher capacity to adsorb Hg(II) in aqueous solution than those of commercial Al2O3, has been reported by a research group from Anhui Jianzhu University (Hefei City,…
A recently announced process based on a novel solid-acid catalyst is effective at producing high-quality alkylate from a variety of feedstocks, including methanol. Technology developer Exelus Inc. (Fairfield, N.J.; www.exelusinc.com) says its technology converts methanol and mixed-butanes to high-octane alkylate.…
Copper and cadmium exist naturally in the environment, but human activity can increase their concentrations to a point where they become a health hazard. Conventional wastewater treatment to remove those metals includes chemical precipitation, coagulation, flocculation, ion exchange, membrane filtration,…
At the end of last year, Mino Ceramics Co. (Nagoya City, Japan; www.mino-ceramic.co.jp) began shipping its first commercial high-temperature heat exchangers, which were developed in a project by Thermal Management Materials and Technology Research Assn. (TherMAT, Tokyo, Japan; www.thermat.jp). Developed…
Consisting of a land-based mechanical facility and underwater pipelines and accumulators, the underwater compressed-air energy-storage (UCAES) system from Hydrostor Inc. (Toronto, Ont., Canada; www.hydrostor.ca) takes electricity (potentially excess solar or wind energy) and uses it to run a compressor, which…
The recently commercialized high-speed turbo (HST) compressors from BOGE Kompressoren Otto Boge GmbH & Co. KG (BOGE; Bielefield, Germany; www.boge.de) produce 100% oil-free (Class 0) compressed air at the highest degree of efficiency and with minimal maintenance effort, according to…