Tag Archives: water
Scientists from Australia's Deakin University, together with French colleagues, say that they have manufactured a lightweight and reusable material that can absorb up to 33 times its weight in a wide range of spilt oils, chemical solvents and dyes, while repelling water. Deakin University's Dr Wei Wei Lei said that "The effective removal of oils, organic solvents and dyes from water is of significant, global importance for environmental and water source protection.” The absorbant material consists of sheets of boron nitride, also called "white graphene". The sheets are highly porous, have a high surface area and float on water. When the … Continue Reading
Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology in Madras have developed a simple point-of-use water filtration technology,using nanomaterials to filter and clean the water, which they say is effective for producing drinking water at a cost of just $US2.50 per year per family. The device uses a two-stage process to purify the water. In the first stage, it removes biological contaminants, such as bacteria and viruses. In the next stage, silver nanoparticles are used to remove chemical and heavy metal pollutants. The biggest challenge for the research team was to develop a system that could release silver ions continuously as … Continue Reading
Peru's capital, Lima, has very high humidity but hardly any rain. Engineers from the University of Engineering and Technology have taken advantage of the high humidity to build a billboard which gathers the water through reverse osmosis and purifies it to give clean drinking water.
Dr. Paul Edmiston and students at the College of Wooster in Ohio have discovered a material which absorbs small organic molecules while repelling water. The material, which they call "Osorb", is a nano-engineered glass that can absorb hydrocarbons, volatile organic compounds, pharmaceuticals, pesticides, and solvents which are either dispersed or disolved in water. The absorbed compounds can be separated from the glass with a heat or water treatment and the glass material itself can be regenerated over 100 times. As well as its potential use in oil spills, the material could be used to reclaim waste water from oil and … Continue Reading
Israeli company, Emefcy, has developed a microbe-based technology that harvests energy while treating waste water. The process starts with the same principle as most wastewater treatment – water is aerated so that bacteria in the liquid breaks down organic material. But instead of using electricity to push air into the water, Emefcy uses a permeable, polyethylene filter that allows air in but doesn't let liquid out, The polyethylene membrane surrounds a fuel cell chamber into which the waste water flows. Inside the fuel cell, anaerobic bacteria release electrons. The electrons flow to an anode and then to cathodes in a … Continue Reading
The Center for Architecture, Science and Ecology in New York has come up with a building exterior that not only helps the interior comfortable but purifies water. The exterior surface of the building is clad in modular glass blocks which are configured to capture, refocus and intensify sunlight. Greywater from sinks, showers and hand washing flows through channels in the glass blocks. Inside the building, the blocks create a diffused daylight which eliminates solar heat gain and keeps rooms cooler. This reduces the need for high-energy heating and cooling mechanisms as well as being easier on the eyes. The glass … Continue Reading
Monarch Power, a private research and development company in Arizona, is developing a lotus-shaped solar collector that is expected to produce up to 3 kilowatts of solar thermal power, as as well as steam for heating. The company also expects that the solar concentrator could be used to produce up to 3 kilowatts of solar photovotaic electricity. / The Monarch Lotus has 18 petals which unfold to form a 4-metre diameter flower solar collector that can be opened and closed – aiding in transportation as well as protecting the concentrator from severe weather. Monarch says that, because it is easy … Continue Reading
The moringa oleifera is known as the "miracle tree" because it has been used in northern India and many parts of Africa for traditional medicine, food and cooking oil, a pesticide, a domestic cleaning agent and biofuel. Moringas are extremely hardy. They grow on marginal soils, regrow after being chopped down and are one of the few trees that produce fruit during a drought. They are native to the foothills of the Himalayas but Re widely cultivated in Africa, Central and South America, Sri Lanka, India, Malaysia and the Philippines Research in the past has shown that its seeds can … Continue Reading
NASA researchers have developed a system to help farmers better manage irrigation systems. The system uses data from NASA satellites, local weather observations and wireless sensor networks installed in agricultural fields to calculate water requirements of crops in individual fields and provide farmers with the information immediately. Water requirements and forecasts can be accessed from computers or handheld devices. Farmers can then provide crops with their exact water needs as it is needed – giving the same yield with less water. It is estimated that the system should improve irrigation efficiency by at least 20 to 25%.. The project is … Continue Reading
Videos
Renewables News- New Aussie Technology to Clean Polluted WaterScientists from Deakin University, together with French colleagues, say that they have manufactured a lightweight and reusable material that can absorb up to 33 times its weight in a wide range of spilt oils, chemical solvents and dyes, while repelling … Continue Reading → […]
- Aussie Researchers Make Efficient Solar Cells from Low-grade SiliconResearchers at the University of New South Wales have found a way to make very high efficiency solar cells out of cheap, low-grade silicon. It has been known for several decades that hydrogen atoms can be introduced into the atomic … Continue Reading → […]
- First Aussie “Hot Rocks” Power Plant Begins ProducingThe first power plant in Australia to produce electricity using an enhanced geothermal ("hot rocks") system has begun producing electricity in the far north-east of South Australia. The one-megawatt Habanero pilot plant near outback Innamincka is operated by Geodynamics. Geodynamics … Continue Reading → […]
- New Aussie Technology to Clean Polluted Water
