Latest News: Technologies
Self-healing, recyclable solid electrolytes for Li-ion batteries
Energy-storage researchers have been in search of safer electrolytes for lithium-ion batteries, because of persistent concerns over possible overheating and fires resulting from dendrite formation in the anode. Solid polymer electrolytes have been explored to address these issues, but achieving…
Commercializing vacuum-microwave drying for pharmaceuticals
Vacuum-microwave drying for pharmaceuticals is much faster than other techniques, such as freeze drying or air drying, but the difficulty in achieving homogenous microwave-energy distribution under vacuum conditions has made it difficult to scale up for commercial manufacturing. “What tends…
Metabolic engineering allows robust, standardized fermentation that is predictive at scale
Production of bio-based chemicals has important environmental, cost and functional benefits, but historical approaches have lacked robustness to the commercial process environment and have proven costly to develop. A platform technology developed by DMC Biotechnologies (Boulder, Colo.; www.dmcbio.com) was designed…
Making renewable hydrogen for export
A large renewable hydrogen production facility, called the Murchison House Station, near the coastal town of Kalbarri, has been unveiled for Western Australia, with plans for up to 5 GW of a combined solar and wind project. The project has…
Findings suggest new design principle for water-splitting catalysts
Hydrogen derived from water and renewable electricity, rather than from natural gas, could offer abundant energy without carbon dioxide emissions if water-splitting processes could be scaled up effectively. But the best catalyst for the reaction — platinum — is scarce…
Membrane bioreactors improve the production of lignocellulosic-ethanol
Membrane bioreactors (MBRs) are widely used in wastewater treatment plants because they intensify the biotreatment process, reduce the number of processing stages, retain the biocatalyst and help remove the product from the suspended solids. In order to take advantage of…
Scaling up diamond growth for high-tech applications
A team of scientists in Kentucky are working to harness the unique material properties of diamonds — hardness, thermal conductivity, electrical resistivity and more — for advanced industrial applications, including biosensors and high-frequency and high-power devices. Kentucky Advanced Materials Manufacturing…
A direct route to adipic acid esters
Adipate diesters are building blocks of polyamides and polyesters, and are used in plasticizers, perfumes, lubricants, solvents, various pharmaceutical active ingredients and, in terms of quantity, mainly for the production of nylon. Currently, adipate diesters are produced industrially by oxidizing…
Chementator Briefs
Ultrathin membrane Researchers led by professors Hideto Matsuyama and Tomohisa Yoshioka at Kobe University’s Research Center for Membrane and Film Technology (Japan; www.research.kobe-u.ac.jp) have developed an ultrathin, fouling-resistant membrane that separates oil from water. Described in a recent issue of…
New project aims to scale up rapid carbon-capture process
A new project is exploring a unique large-scale carbon-capture facility in the U.S. Technology developer Svante, Inc. (Burnaby, B.C., Canada; www svanteinc.com), is working with LafargeHolcim, Oxy Low Carbon Ventures, LLC and Total S.A., to evaluate the construction of a…