Laser 'unprinter' wipes photocopied ink from paper. 15 March 2012Last updated at 11:46 ET A close-up image of a sheet of "unphotocopied" paper reveals most of the toner has been removed A process to "unphotocopy" toner ink from paper has been developed by engineers at the University of Cambridge.
The process involves using short laser pulses to erase words and images by heating the printed material to the point that they vaporise. Scientists capture carbon dioxide with NOTT-202. Science journal Nature Materials has reported that a consortium of scientists from the universities of Nottingham and Newcastle have collaborated with members from the Oxfordshire Diamond Light Source and the Science and Technology Facilities Council’s Daresbury Laboratory have created a sponge-like material, known as “NOTT-202”.
NOTT-202 works by absorbing gasses under high pressure and releasing most of them back out into the atmosphere again once the pressure becomes lowered. The crucial factor is how the ‘sponge’ retains harmful greenhouse gases, such as CO2, reportedly a leading component of climate change. The idea of using a metal organic framework to capture and store gases has been around for several years; however the difficulty comes from selectively targeting just CO2. One Per Cent: Magnetic soap could clean up oil spills. Jacob Aron, technology reporter (Image: KeystoneUSA-ZUMA/Rex Features)
Magnetic soap could help in oil spill clean-ups. 23 January 2012Last updated at 23:09 A droplet containing the soap is attracted to the magnet at left An international team of scientists has demonstrated the first soap that responds to magnets.
This means the soap and the materials that it dissolves can be removed easily by applying a magnetic field. Experts say that with further development, it could find applications in cleaning up oil spills and waste water. Details of the new soap, which contains iron atoms, are reported in the chemistry journal Angewandte Chemie. New holey material soaks up CO2. Harder than diamond, stronger than steel. Graphene could help build a new generation of electronic devices, such as touch screens, solar panels and superfast computers.
Image: AlexanderAlUS/Wikimedia Imagine a material that is just one atom thick, 300 times stronger than steel, harder than diamond, a fantastic conductor of heat and electricity and super-flexible to boot. This might sound like the stuff of science fiction, but believe it or not, such a material already exists. Super-polluted city tries to clean itself with smog-eating paint. Manila is one of the world’s five dirtiest cities, but graffiti?
That’s not a problem. It’s not that people don’t paint on the walls in the hyper-polluted Philippines capital, because they do. 'Disruptive Technologies'. Synthetic biology - no worries? (item 5) News Alert Issue 288, 15 June 2012 Science for Environment Policy.
A State-by-State Roadmap To Climate-Friendly Automobiles. Wind turbine creates water from thin air. The turbine can produce up to 1,000 liters of drinking water every day, according to Eole Water.
French company, Eole Water, has invented a wind turbine that can generate water from humid air. Are Smart Phones Spreading Faster than Any Technology in Human History? Today’s technology scene seems overheated to some.
Apple is the most valuable company on earth. Software apps are reaching tens of millions of users within weeks. Major technology names like Research in Motion and Nokia are being undone by rapid changes to their markets. Underlying these developments: the unprecedented speed at which mobile computers are spreading. Presented below is the U.S. market penetration achieved by nine technologies since 1876, the year Alexander Graham Bell patented the telephone. Cognitive software captures experts’ performance on flight simulators. Chart Focus: How business uses social technologies. UK and Denmark to explore wind power interconnector - 30 Apr 2012. Tata Motors enters second phase of air-car development. MDI compressed-air technology is being developed in India by Tata Motors (pictured is MDI's MiniFlowAIR urban 3-seater) Cars that run on compressed air sound like a fantastic idea on paper, but bringing this technology to the masses has proven, well, a difficult road to travel.
There's some positive news on the air-car front though - auto giant Tata Motors, which holds the license to develop Motor Development International's (MDI) air engine technology in India, has announced that it has completed the proof of the technical concept and demonstration phase of its air-car program and is now moving toward a market ready product. The Potential of Photosynthetic Microbes as a Source of Energy in the UK Water Industry. Apple, Amazon, Microsoft choose dirty energy to power growing cloud computing Greenpeace report evaluates 14 global IT companies’ energy choices. The report, "How Clean is Your Cloud? ," (1) shows a growing split within the tech industry between companies that are taking steps to power their cloud computing infrastructures with clean energy, like Google, Yahoo and Facebook, and companies like Apple, Amazon and Microsoft who lag behind by choosing to build their growing fleets of data centres to be powered by coal and nuclear energy. (2, 3) The report evaluates 14 major IT companies and their electricity supply chains of over 80 data centres based on key elements needed to build a clean cloud computing infrastructure. (4) "When people around the world share their photos or music on the cloud, they want to know that the cloud is powered by clean, safe energy," said Mrinmoy Chattaraj, Campaigner Greenpeace India.
Pond skaters' feet inspire buoyant new material. 26 March 2012Last updated at 12:57 GMT The buoyancy of the pond skater is being exploited to make super-light materials. US researchers build 'waste water generator' 2 March 2012Last updated at 08:28 By Neil Bowdler Science and health reporter, BBC News The prototype uses two separate technologies to generate electricity Researchers in the US have built a prototype device which they say can generate electricity from waste water. The team at Pennsylvania State University says the technology would simultaneously treat the water. They suggest the process could be adopted in developing countries, providing clean water and power for homes. Details are published in the journal Science. UK's first wind-powered electric van.
29 September 2011Last updated at 16:54 The electric van will save more than 1.8 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions The UK's first fully wind-powered electric van has been unveiled in Fife. The electric van will save £1,500 a year, and more than 1.8 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions. The Holonic Streetlamp is an Off-Grid Streetlight that's Powered by Wind and Solar. Cyborg snail gets biofuel cell implant.