Microbes in cow stomachs can decompose plastic
Cattle may not be the best thing for the climate, but new study shows they could play a role in tackling plastic pollution
Jul 2021 22
Prachi Patel
Prachi Patel is a Pittsburgh-based freelance journalist who writes about energy, materials science, nanotechnology, biotechnology, and computing. Writes for Scientific American, IEEE Spectrum, Chemical & Engineering News, and MRS Bulletin. Find her at www.lekh.org.
Jul 2021 15
Think reusable straws, wraps, and cups are always better for the environment? Think again.
The climate, water, and energy footprint of reusable products depends more on how they are used—than how they are made.
Jul 2021 8
Plant-based plastic cutlery rarely gets composted. This advance could give it a new purpose
Researchers have now found a way to turn these plastics into foam that can be used for building insulation or flotation devices
Jun 2021 24
Sustainable aviation fuels could be even better than we thought
Jet fuels made from renewable and waste sources could eliminate contrail clouds, which are worse for the climate than an airplane's carbon dioxide emissions.
Jun 2021 17
Chemists unlock secret to making green ammonia from renewable energy in refrigerator-size reactors
The new, efficient technique could slash agricultural and transportation carbon emissions and be rolled out in communities and on individual farms
Jun 2021 10
Researchers generate electricity from wastewater, while cleaning it up
Taking advantage of bacteria's voracious appetite for organic materials, an engineering team devised a new twist on microbial fuel cells
Jun 2021 3
In a back-to-the-future move researchers use a compound in candles for grid energy storage
With this organic molecule, inexpensive, environmentally-friendly flow batteries could hold more energy and last longer
May 2021 27
Here’s something to chew on: researchers turn food scraps into materials stronger than concrete
Their novel method diverts organic waste from landfills, provides useful materials for construction or packaging—and the end product still tastes good.
May 2021 20
Cement battery could turn buildings and bridges into gigantic energy-storage devices
Coupled with solar power, this new technology could provide lighting for skyscrapers and power for infrastructure monitoring systems, among other energy needs.
May 2021 13
Starting from scratch, researchers have built a battery with proteins instead of lithium
It is metal-free, it degrades on demand for recycling—and does an end-run around the ethical and environmental problems that plague lithium-ion
