Despite significant methodological and technological advancements in chemical recycling of synthetic polymers, an effective mechanochemical PET degradation has not yet been described in the scientific literature, until now! Vjekoslav Štrukil from the Rudjer Boskovic Institute (RBI), Zagreb, Croatia, found that the challenging breakdown of waste PET under ambient conditions of temperature and pressure can be achieved by mechanochemical ball milling or vapor-assisted aging.
Scientists from Australia have set a world record for the most stable transmission of a laser signal through the atmosphere. The team combined Aussie phase stabilisation technology with advanced self-guiding optical terminals to effectively eliminate atmospheric turbulence, an advance which could help test Einstein s theory of general relativity.
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Chemical engineers at UNSW Sydney have found a way to make green ammonia from air, water and renewable electricity that does not require the high temperatures, high pressure and huge infrastructure currently needed to produce this essential compound.
And the new production method - demonstrated in a laboratory-based proof of concept - also has the potential to play a role in the global transition towards a hydrogen economy, where ammonia is increasingly seen as a solution to the problem of storing and transporting hydrogen energy.
In a paper published today in
Energy and Environmental Science, the authors from UNSW and University of Sydney say that ammonia synthesis was one of the critical achievements of the 20th century. When used in fertilisers that quadrupled the output of food crops, it enabled agriculture to sustain an ever-expanding global population.
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IMAGE: A simulation of a fuel rod s pellets pressing against rod s protective cladding performed in MOOSE before (top) and after (bottom) implementing Coreform s spline technology. Contact is one of the most. view more
Credit: Idaho National Laboratory
Long before an advanced nuclear reactor begins to generate power or another complicated project comes to life, researchers and engineers model and simulate it to ensure success. Now a collaboration between Idaho National Laboratory and Orem, Utah-based Coreform makes this modeling and simulation faster, less costly and more efficient.
The partnership improves upon an open-source INL platform to make simulations more true to life, benefiting the many projects that leverage it.
Since SARS-CoV-2 was identified in December 2019, researchers have worked feverishly to study the novel coronavirus. Although much knowledge has been gained, scientists still have a lot to learn about how SARS-CoV-2 interacts with the human body, and how the immune system fights it. Now, researchers reporting in