Category archives: Technology

A cheaper way to make green hydrogen, using AI

A cheaper way to make green hydrogen, using AI

Chemical engineeringChemistryComputer science

By Mapping Ignorance

Researchers at the University of Toronto are using artificial intelligence to accelerate scientific breakthroughs in the search for sustainable energy. They have used the Canadian Light Source (CLS) at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) to confirm that an AI-generated “recipe” for a new catalyst offered a more efficient way to make hydrogen fuel . To […]

Aborted clinical trials: what genetics has to say

Aborted clinical trials: what genetics has to say

GeneticsMedicinePharmacy

By Rosa García-Verdugo

Many (if not most) clinical trials end up failing, but given the bias towards positive results sometimes the reasons for their not working remain unclear. Luckily, a team at Open Targets and EMBL’s European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI) have analysed the reasons for aborted clinical trials mentioned in Clinicaltrials.gov, the open-source register for clinical trials worldwide […]

A passive, efficient way to extract water from air

A passive, efficient way to extract water from air

Chemical engineeringChemistry

By Mapping Ignorance

Freshwater scarcity affects over two billion people in the world, primarily in arid and remote regions, as well as islands and coastal areas without freshwater sources. Climate change and population growth are only making the problem worse, and existing methods require an energy input, usually electrical. Renewable energy can fix this and is required for […]

Oscillatory hydrodynamics in DNA-coated gold nanoparticles

Oscillatory hydrodynamics in DNA-coated gold nanoparticles

DIPC Advanced materialsMaterials

By DIPC

Periodic responses to nonperiodic energy inputs, such as oscillations, are hallmarks of living systems. Researchers have devoted considerable efforts to understanding and mimicking natural self-assembled structures and functions to systems composed of nonbiological components. This has rendered remarkable developments in regulating interparticle interactions to form static and dynamic self-assemblies. Dynamic assemblies can, under suitable stimuli […]

Sharp separation using isoporous membranes

Sharp separation using isoporous membranes

Chemical engineeringFood processingMaterialsMechanical EngineeringNanotechnology

By César Tomé

Imagine a close basketball game that comes down to the final shot. The probability of the ball going through the hoop might be fairly low, but it would dramatically increase if the player were afforded the opportunity to shoot it over and over. A similar idea is at play in the scientific field of membrane […]

New multispecies compact ion source and efficient experimental proton beam characterization

New multispecies compact ion source and efficient experimental proton beam characterization

Physics

By Invited Researcher

Any particle accelerator needs a reliable electron or ion source as a first, humble but essential and critical component. The world’s most powerful particle accelerator today -the Large Hadron Collider- extracts its protons from a single bottle of Hydrogen gas. Ion sources produce beams for a large variety of different scientific experiments, industrial processes and […]

Synthesis of organometallic helicenes by simple combinations

Synthesis of organometallic helicenes by simple combinations

ChemistryDIPC BiochemistryMaterials

By DIPC

“Helicene” is the name introduced by Newman in 1955, to describe the benzologues of phenanthrene in which the extra ortho -condensed rings give rise to a (regular) cylindrical helix. The pioneer work of Newman in this field cannot be overemphasized; his brillant synthesis and resolution of [6]helicene will remain as a landmark, for it opened […]

Stable, high-energy-density and fast charging lithium-ion batteries

Stable, high-energy-density and fast charging lithium-ion batteries

ChemistryMaterials

By César Tomé

Convenient fast charging and energy density of lithium-ion batteries have long been considered a trade-off, which has hindered the widespread adoption of electric vehicles. A new process will help develop stable, high-energy-density lithium-ion batteries capable of fast charging. A crucial prerequisite for the widespread adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) is the enhancement of lithium-ion battery […]