Latest News: Technologies
A more efficient way to upgrade lignin bio-oils
Lignin bio-oil is a common waste stream formed during the production of cellulose and ethanol from biomass. Due to its high oxygen and low hydrogen content, lignin bio-oil must be upgraded via hydrogenation and deoxygenation before it can be used…
New process efficiently filters hormones from water
Drinking water can be contaminated with micropollutants, including steroid hormones that are used as medical substances and contraceptives. Although their concentration in wastewater may be only a few nanograms per liter, this small amount can already damage human health and…
Chementator Briefs – Sept. 2020
Smart Stir Bar Scientists at the University of Warwick (Coventry, U.K.; www.warwick.ac.uk) have developed a magnetic stir bar with an integrated process monitoring system. Described in a recent issue of ACS Sensors, the Smart Stirrer has an integrated microprocessor and…
New Japanese project targets CO2 and brine utilization
A new project has been selected by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Org. (NEDO; Tokyo, Japan; www.nedo.go.jp) that aims to recover useful salts from desalination brine or seawater, as well as mineralizing CO2 into a useful product. The…
Coretec partners with Evonik to produce cyclohexasilane
The Coretec Group Inc. (Ann Arbor, Mich.; www.thecoretecgroup.com) recently entered a supply partnership with specialty chemical company Evonik Industries AG (Essen, Germany; www.evonik.com) in which Evonik will produce cyclohexasilane (CHS; Si6 H12) for application development using intellectual property developed by…
Upcycled silicon improves LIB energy storage
Silicon is seen as a promising alternative to graphite in lithium-ion battery (LIB) anodes, due to its abundance and higher energy-storage capability — silicon is said to store ten times more energy than graphite in LIB applications. However, manufacturing processes…
New fabrication method for fluorine-containing carbon-capture membranes
Recent work by a team of researchers from Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL; Oak Ridge, Tenn.; www.ornl.gov) and the University of Tennessee (Knoxville; www.utk.edu) has brought cost-effective, fluorinated carbon molecular-sieve membranes within closer reach. To make the membrane, the researchers…
A zinc-based catalyst makes syngas by co-electrolysis
Researchers from the University of New South Wales (Sydney, Australia; www.unsw.edu.au), led by professor Rose Amal, have shown that by making zinc oxide at very high temperatures using a technique called flame spray pyrolysis (FSP), they can create nanoparticles that…
Waste-based rubber can be joined or repaired catalytically
A new sustainable rubber that can, with an amine catalyst, be repaired and returned to its original strength in minutes, has been discovered by researchers from Flinders University (Adelaide, Australia; www.flinders.edu.au), the University of Western Australia (Perth), and the University…
Improved process for treating AMD waste recovers more rare earth elements
By modifying a traditional treatment method for acid mine drainage (AMD), researchers at Penn State University (PSU; State College, Pa.; www.psu.edu) were able to both reduce the amount of chemicals required for treatment and increase the amount of rare earth…