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Inventing a new, faster way to produce sustainable, self-dyed leather alternatives is a major achievement for synthetic biology and sustainable fashion. Professor Tom Ellis

Synthetic chemical dyeing is one of the most environmentally toxic processes in fashion, and black dyes – especially those used in colouring leather – are particularly harmful. The researchers at Imperial set out to use biology to solve this.

How can older trees help combat climate change? This is what a recent study published in Nature Climate Change hopes to address as an international team of researchers investigated changes in woody biomass in older trees that have been while exposed to free-air CO₂ enrichment (FACE) resulting from climate change. This study holds the potential to help researchers, climate scientists, and the public better understand the steps that can be taken to decrease CO₂ emissions and combat climate change worldwide.

For the study, the researchers, led by the University of Birmingham’s Institute of Forest Research (BIFoR), conducted a FACE experiment through a combination of canopy laser scanning and tree-ring analysis to examine the 180-year-old Quercus robur L. woodland in central England between 2021and 2022. The goal was ascertaining the effectiveness of older trees compared to younger trees regarding their consumption of CO₂, also known as CO₂ storage. In the end, the researchers found increased levels of CO₂ compared to ambient conditions in 2021 and 2022, respectively, equivalent to 1.7 tons of dry matter per hectare per year.

“Our findings refute the notion that older, mature forests cannot respond to rising levels of atmospheric CO₂, but how they respond will likely depend on the supply of nutrients from the soil,” said Dr. Richard Norby from the University of Birmingham, who is lead author of the study. “Evidence from BIFoR FACE of a significant increase in woody biomass production supports the role of mature, long-established, forests as natural climate solutions in the coming decades while society strives to reduce its dependency on carbon.”

Researchers at the University of Maryland genetically modified poplar trees to produce high-performance, structural wood without the use of chemicals or energy-intensive processing. Made from traditional wood, engineered wood is often seen as a renewable replacement for traditional building materials like steel, cement, glass and plastic. It also has the potential to store carbon for a longer time than traditional wood because it can resist deterioration, making it useful in efforts to reduce carbon emissions.

But the hurdle to true sustainability in engineered wood is that it requires processing with volatile chemicals and a significant amount of energy, and produces considerable waste. The researchers edited one gene in live poplar trees, which then grew wood ready for engineering without processing.

The research was published online on August 12, 2024, in the Journal Matter.

Australian scientists have joined an elite club of just eight around the world, making a perovskite solar cell that can hit 30 per cent efficiency.

Led by storied University of Sydney professor Anita Ho-Baillie, the Sydney team’s work was weighed and measured by the US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).

“It shows that we are capable of producing high performance cells. The next step we will achieve is higher performance, either by double junction or triple junction,” Ho-Baillie says.

This LHP (loop heat pipe) is unprecedented in transporting such a large amount of heat without electricity.

In a groundbreaking development, scientists at Nagoya University in Japan have created the world’s most powerful loop heat pipe (LHP), capable of transporting an astounding 10 kilowatts of heat without using any electricity. This innovation promises to revolutionize energy efficiency across multiple industries, from electric vehicles to data centers.

Understanding Loop Heat Pipes

Continue reading “Revolutionizing Heat Transport with 4X Efficiency: Japanese Researchers Break World Record” »

More than 100 sustainable homes, also known as “living vessels,” are built into the earth in Taos, New Mexico, and are not connected to any water or electricity.

SpaceX is working towards the goal of landing both the super heavy booster and Starship on a drone ship in the ocean, which has the potential to revolutionize space travel and support their mission for greater sustainability and reusability Questions to inspire discussion What is SpaceX’s goal for landing the super heavy booster and Starship?

‘Earth Science to Action: How NASA connects space to village’ Learn from experts how NASA’s cutting-edge Earth observation and satellite technology is empowering communities worldwide to tackle climate change and natural disasters. This talk, organised by the SERVIR-HKH initiative at ICIMOD, features key speakers Dan Irwin (SERVIR Global Program Manager) and Ashutosh Limaye (SERVIR Chief Scientist) from NASA Marshall Space Flight Center. Learn how these advancements are bridging the gap between data and actionable insights for a thriving planet.

Oxford scientists make new solar cell technology discovery which you could soon wear, stick on your mobile or coat your car with.