Professor Masafumi Unno and colleagues at Gunma University (Kiryu City, Japan; element.chem-bio.st.gunma-u.ac.jp) have developed a simple method for the synthesis of “Janus cubes,” which are nano-sized organosilicons with two different substituents (diagram). These nanoparticles — named after the two-faced Roman…
Last month, AVA-CO2 AG (Zug, Switzerland; www.ava-co2.com) started up a pilot plant to further develop its AVA cleanphos process. The process recovers valuable phosphorus from “biocoal,” which is being produced from municipal wastewater sewage sludge through the company’s patented hydrothermal…
The research group of professor Shiro Saka at the Dept. of Socio-Environmental Energy Science, Graduate School of Energy Science, Kyoto University (Kyoto, Japan; www.ecs.energy.kyoto-u.ac.jp) has developed a new process that efficiently produces bioethanol from non-edible lignocellulose resources, without generating carbon…
Mixtures of rare-earth metals (REMs) are notoriously difficult to separate, but a team of researchers from Harvard University (Cambridge, Ma.; www.seas.harvard.edu) has developed a method for efficiently extracting REMs with a high level of selectivity. By taking advantage of the…
The main mineral component of our bones and teeth — hydroxyapatite [HAP; Ca10(OH)2(PO4)6] — has been used by a Chinese team to develop a highly flexible paper with high antibacterial activity. The paper, made from silver nanoparticle-decorated ultra-long HAP nanowires…
Last month, Clariant AG (Muttenz, Switzerland; www.clariant.com) said that the pilot plant of a new process for making substitute natural gas (SNG) has been successfully tested, signifying that the technology is ready for commercial application. The process, called Vesta Once-through…
The Dow Chemical Co. (Midland, Mich.; www.dow.com) recently announced that it has completed validation of a new plastic film technology that can be recycled in existing processes for flexible polyethylene (PE) packaging, but that also performs well as an oxygen…
Each year, a large amount of plastic waste is generated, with 60% of the total plastic content of municipal solid waste composed of high-, low- and linear-low density polyethylene (HDPE, LDPE and LLDPE) and polypropylene (PP). Existing methods for degrading…
Making more ARA Arcadia Biosciences Inc. (Davis, Calif.; www.arcadiabio.com) and Dupont Pioneer (Des Moines, Iowa; www.pioneer.com) recently completed field-trial validation for new safflower plants that produce high levels of arachidonic acid (ARA) oil, a high-value, specialty nutritional oil. The field…
Colloidal glasses develop structural color through constructive interference. The color can be tuned by adjusting interparticle distance, making the colloidal glasses attractive for use as color pigments for use in coatings, displays, colorimetric sensors and optical barcodes. While colloidal crystals…