Asahi Kasei, the National Institute of Technology in Kitakyushu, Japan, and the Tokyo University of Science have jointly developed a closed-loop recycling process for low-value carbon-fiber-reinforced plastics. Called the electrolyzed sulfuric acid solution method, it can be used to repeatedly reuse carbon fibers, the partners claim.
January 20, 2023
This breaking of the extremely strong C–F bond can be accomplished at a mere 120 °C (Science 2022, DOI: 10.1126/science.abm8868). The scientists hope to test the method against other types of PFAS. Before this work, the best strategies for remediating PFAS were to either sequester the compounds or break them down at extremely high temperatures using large amounts of energy—which may not even be totally effective, says Jennifer Faust, a chemist at the College of Wooster.
by Katherine Bourzac | December 15, 2022
—Fashionable scientists and the science of sustainable fashion “” A lab coat for every ‘body’ When Derek Miller began his PhD in materials science, he couldn’t wait to get started with his research. But before he did, he had to go through the experimentalist’s rite of passage: picking out a lab coat.
by Krystal Vasquez | November 20, 2022
Bruker has agreed to acquire Neurescence, a provider of fiber-bundle imaging devices used in neuroimaging of animals. Bruker says the firm fits with its multiphoton and miniscope businesses. IBM and Algorithmiq, a Helsinki-based quantum computing start-up, are partnering to explore the use of quantum chemistry simulations to solve complex problems in the life sciences.
November 20, 2022
The 10 technologies that made IUPAC’s list, after consideration by a panel of judges, spotlight scientific fields as diverse as materials science, energy storage, drug discovery, and education. All the technologies, which were proposed by researchers from around the globe, could provide solutions to real-life problems and transform the way we live.
by Bibiana Campos Seijo | October 29, 2022
For example, methanolysis can be used to recycle PET products like fibers and sheets that aren’t amenable to mechanical methods. And firms have been breaking down nylon using hydrolysis for many years. But the bulk of the plastics we use—the candy wrappers, stand-up pouches, potato chip bags, protective packaging, single-use cups, frozen food bags, razors, toothpaste tubes, cotton swabs, and other objects of our daily lives—defy both mechanical recycling and depolymerization.
by Alexander H. Tullo | October 10, 2022
In a recent article in ACS Food Science and Technology, agricultural sciences professor Faizan Ahmad of Aligarh Muslim University and coworkers explored the use of banana peel flour to boost cookies’ nutritional content and lengthen their shelf life (2022, DOI: 10.1021/acsfoodscitech.2c00159). Far from the garbage they usually end up as, banana peels are packed with dietary fiber, protein, amino acids, polyunsaturated fatty acids, and potassium.
by Craig Bettenhausen | September 25, 2022
Some science on the energy efficiency of buildings conducted for other industries could be used as a starting point for the cannabis industry. So if federal funding becomes available, researchers would not have to start from scratch, Doig says. Federal money for research could lead to “a common way of measuring and monitoring and metering these facilities that would allow comparisons to be made,” he says.
by Britt E. Erickson | August 28, 2022
Mitsubishi Chemical Group wants to focus on more specialized areas, such as electronic materials and the life sciences. 12 Hengli Petrochemical 2021 chemical sales: $28.0 billion The expansion program at this Chinese firm is a good illustration of just how massively and systematically the Chinese petrochemical industry has been growing in recent years.
by Alexander H. Tullo | July 24, 2022