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Category: sustainability – Page 32

Scientists Create Biodegradable Plastic Alternative That’s Literally Alive

Swiss scientists have created a new plastic-like material that’s flexible, biodegradable, and even edible. The secret? It’s still alive.

The material, which was created by a team from Empa in Switzerland, manages to balance biodegradability with toughness and versatility – a feat that is far from easy in materials science.

The researchers processed fibers from the mycelium (the root-like part) of the split-gill mushroom (Schizophyllum commune) into a liquid mixture, without actually killing them off or destroying their natural biological functions.

Artificial Photosynthesis: Current Advancements and Future Prospects

Artificial photosynthesis is a technology with immense potential that aims to emulate the natural photosynthetic process. The process of natural photosynthesis involves the conversion of solar energy into chemical energy, which is stored in organic compounds. Catalysis is an essential aspect of artificial photosynthesis, as it facilitates the reactions that convert solar energy into chemical energy. In this review, we aim to provide an extensive overview of recent developments in the field of artificial photosynthesis by catalysis. We will discuss the various catalyst types used in artificial photosynthesis, including homogeneous catalysts, heterogeneous catalysts, and biocatalysts.

Earth’s seasonal rhythms are changing, putting species and ecosystems at risk

Seasonality shapes much of life on Earth. Most species, including humans, have synchronized their own rhythms with those of the Earth’s seasons.

Plant growth cycles, the migration of billions of animals, and even aspects of human culture—from harvest rituals to Japanese cherry blossom viewings—are dictated by these dominant rhythms.

However, climate change and many other human impacts are altering Earth’s cycles. While humans can adapt their behavior by shifting the timing of crop harvests or Indigenous fire-burning practices, species are less able to adapt through evolution or range shifts.

Why We’re Trying To Colonize Space

This docu-series covers all three of Earth’s next landing options – Asteroids, the Moon and Mars. The programmes explore the scientific reasons for and against each celestial body’s case to be the next that humans might colonise. They explore the technical and logistical problems and benefits of each – EG temperature at night and day, ability or inability to harness solar power and more.

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Magellan mission reveals possible tectonic activity on Venus

Vast, quasi-circular features on Venus’s surface may reveal that the planet has ongoing tectonics, according to new research based on data gathered more than 30 years ago by NASA’s Magellan mission.

On Earth, the planet’s surface is continually renewed by the constant shifting and recycling of massive sections of crust, called tectonic plates, that float atop a viscous interior. Venus doesn’t have tectonic plates, but its surface is still being deformed by molten material from below.

Seeking to better understand the underlying processes driving these deformations, the researchers studied a type of feature called a corona.

A new super material could lead to more powerful, energy-saving electronics

A research team led by physicists Ming Yi and Emilia Morosan from Rice University has developed a new material with unique electronic properties that could enable more powerful and energy-efficient electronic devices.

The material, known as a Kramers nodal line metal, was produced by introducing a small amount of indium into a layered compound based on tantalum and sulfur. The addition of indium changes the symmetry of the crystal structure, and the result promotes the novel physical properties associated with the Kramers nodal line behavior. The research, published in Nature Communications, represents a step toward low-energy-loss electronics and paves the way for more sustainable technologies.

“Our work provides a clear path for discovering and designing new quantum materials with desirable properties for future electronics,” said Yi, associate professor of physics and astronomy.

EV battery recycling key to easing future lithium supply constraints, modeling study shows

Lightweight, powerful lithium-ion batteries are crucial for the transition to electric vehicles, and global demand for lithium is set to grow rapidly over the next 25 years. A new analysis from the University of California, Davis, published May 29 in Nature Sustainability, looks at how new mining operations and battery recycling could meet that demand. Recycling could play a big role in easing supply constraints, the researchers found.

“Batteries are an enormous new source of demand for ,” said Alissa Kendall, the Ray B. Krone endowed professor of Environmental Engineering at UC Davis and senior author on the paper.

Lithium is a relatively common mineral and up to about 10 years ago demand was relatively small and steady, with a small number of mines providing the world’s supply, Kendall said. Global demand for lithium has risen dramatically—by 30% between 2022 and 2023 alone—as adoption of continues.

Prototype sodium-air fuel cell could power electric planes and trains

Batteries are nearing their limits in terms of how much power they can store for a given weight. That’s a serious obstacle for energy innovation and the search for new ways to power airplanes, trains, and ships. Now, researchers at MIT and elsewhere have come up with a solution that could help electrify these transportation systems.

Instead of a battery, the new concept is a kind of fuel cell which is similar to a battery but can be quickly refueled rather than recharged. In this case, the fuel is liquid sodium metal, an inexpensive and widely available commodity.

The other side of the cell is just ordinary air, which serves as a source of oxygen atoms. In between, a layer of solid ceramic material serves as the electrolyte, allowing sodium ions to pass freely through, and a porous air-facing electrode helps the sodium to chemically react with oxygen and produce electricity.

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