Latest News: Technologies
Accelerated decomposition of halogenated compounds
A new research partnership between the Water Environment & Reuse Foundation (WERF; Alexandria, Va.; www.werf.org) and the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA; www.uta.edu) seeks to tackle one of the most challenging and persistent water contaminants — perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS).…
Ferro-coke utilization promises to reduce energy consumption in ironmaking
JFE Steel Corp. (Tokyo, Japan; www.jfe-steel.co.jp) plans to build a pilot plant for using ferro coke in the ironmaking process at its Fukuyama area of West Japan Works, with support from the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO;…
Getting more value from recycled polystyrene
Although polystyrene has been adopted into a large number of end products, it remains one of the least-recycled plastic waste streams — an estimated 95% of polystyrene materials are discarded after a single use. Employing a proprietary thermo-catalytic process, GreenMantra…
High-performance aluminum-cerium alloy
A newly developed aluminum-cerium alloy is exceptionally stable at high temperatures, and is highly corrosion-resistant, allowing its use in components for advanced engines and for other aerospace, automotive and power-generation applications. Co-developed by Eck Industries (Manitowoc, Wis.; www.eckindustries.com) and Oak…
Liquid metal membranes improve on Pd membranes for separating hydrogen
A liquid metal membrane with liquid gallium (Ga) sandwiched between two porous silicon carbide supports offers a pathway to improve the currently available membranes of solid palladium (Pd) metal for separating hydrogen after the steam reforming of methane. Pd metal…
Chementator Briefs
Polyesters Customizing the macroscale properties of polyesters by using sidechain chemical groups is difficult, and is limited for commercially available polyesters. Now, researchers at Virginia Tech (Blacksburg, Va.; www.vt.edu) have developed a novel method for synthesizing polyesters that may expand…
A very efficient SOFC
Hitachi Zosen Corp. (HITZ, Osaka and Tokyo, Japan; www.hitachizosen.co.jp) has installed a solid-oxide fuel cell (SOFC) demonstration unit at Osaka Research Institute of Industrial Science and Technology, Izumi Center (Orist; Osaka, http://orist.jp), and has been performing tests since June. The…
This portable pesticide detector offers a quick check of produce
A micro portable pesticide detector for food analysis, called a Handheld Pesticide Residue Detector, has been developed by the Smart Microsystems Technology Center of the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI, Hsinchu City, Taiwan; www.itri.org.tw). The detector is based on the…
This hybrid power-generation system combines SOFC and a gas turbine
Last month, Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems, Ltd. (MHPS; Yokohama, Japan; www.mhps.com) launched a new, pressurized, hybrid power-generation system (photo) that integrates solid-oxide fuel cell (SOFC) stacks with micro gas turbines (MGT). The hybrid system (diagram) has a broad range of…
Ammonia as a H2 carrier enabled by a catalytic membrane
A major challenge in using hydrogen to power motor vehicles is the difficulty in transporting H2 to refueling stations. Researchers at CSIRO Energy (Melbourne, Australia; www.csiro.au/energy) have responded to the challenge by converting H2 to NH3 and then using existing…