Evolution of wind turbine heights and outputs.:
For conventional generators, such as a coal plant, a megawatt of capacity will produce electricity that equates to about the same amount of electricity consumed by 400 to 900 homes in a year. https://lnkd.in/gyMsFXxf
In the near future, one wind turbine can power 5200-13,500 homes!
1000 tons clamping force, 180°C heating, aluminum mold, close dimensional tolerances. A multi-molds industrial side loading workstation with an integrated large injection system.
Coexpair & Radius Engineering Partners, the largest suppliers of aerospace RTM equipment worldwide, welcome you at JEC Paris next week (Hall 5 - booth L58). We are ready for your most challenging projects!
Source:Andre B -CEO (Coexpair)
Indian EV passenger vehicle mass-market has posted the highest-ever quarterly sales in Q1-2022. This is largely contributed by Tata products namely – Nexon EV and Tigor EV. The introduction of the right BEV products at the right price is fueling the EV demand in India. With a 95% market share, Tata continues to be the market leader with the right product at the right price, way ahead of competitors. Tata Nexon EV has even outsold Nexon diesel in 2022!
University of British Columbia researchers have found a ‘silver bullet’ to kill bacteria and keep them from infecting patients who have medical devices implanted.
The team from UBC and the Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute has developed a silver-based coating that can easily be applied to devices such as catheters and stents. Their novel formulation, discovered by screening dozens of chemical components, overcomes the complications of silver that have challenged scientists for years.
“This is a highly effective coating that won’t harm human tissues and could potentially eliminate implant-associated infections. It could be very cost-effective and could also be applicable to many different products,” said Dr. Jayachandran Kizhakkedathu (he/him), professor in UBC’s department of pathology and laboratory medicine, Centre for Blood Research and Life Sciences Institute and co-senior author of the study published today in ACS Central Science.
Implanted medical devices can save lives, but they carry a great risk of infection which usually arises from contamination as the device is being implanted. Urinary tract infections from catheters, for example, are among the most common hospital-acquired infections.
Silver has long been viewed as a potential solution because of its ability to kill bacteria, but its use on implanted devices poses several challenges that have stumped researchers until now. The main challenge is its toxicity. Too much of the poison that kills bacteria can also be bad for human cells and tissues.
Coatings incorporating silver have also proven overly complicated to make, lacked durability, became easily gummed up with proteins or crystals, or simply didn’t adhere well to the surface of devices and implants.
The UBC team led by Dr. Hossein Yazdani-Ahmadabadi, a former chemistry PhD student from the Kizhakkedathu laboratory, combined silver nitrate, dopamine, and two hydrophilic polymers to generate the coating. Once implanted, it releases silver ions gradually in small, controlled quantities—enough to kill bacteria but not harm human cells. It repels live and dead bacteria and other fouling agents from its surface, keeping it clean.
It also maintains its killing activity for longer than has been achieved by other coatings.
The researchers tested it for 30 days in an environment with a high concentration of diverse and resilient bacteria known to cause infections. Their device came away with no bacteria attached. A seven-day test with live rats was performed the same way and did not harm the rats’ tissues.
“Other silver-based coatings rely on contact killing, meaning the bacteria have to attach to the material in order to be exposed to the silver and die.
Source: Kizhakkedathu laboratory
🔥Rule of thumb post - how processing conditions are impacting crystallinity and as a consequence the performance of plastic parts.
Sumitomo Chemical completed the construction at its Chiba Works (Ichihara, Chiba, Japan) of a pilot facility to manufacture ethylene using renewable ethanol as a raw material. The Company will verify an ethylene manufacturing technology at this new facility to commercialize polyolefin products that are environmentally sustainable and compatible with a circular economy and will provide samples to develop the market, with the aim of contributing to creating a circular economy.
Plastics such as polyolefin are essential materials for everyday life and are widely used in a variety of applications, such as automobiles, electronic devices, and packages and containers. Meanwhile, it has become a pressing global issue to recycle plastic products made from fossil resources and reduce the greenhouse gas emissions generated over their lifecycle, from production to disposal after use.
Circular Economy Initiatives
The new pilot facility at Chiba Works will produce ethylene from ethanol produced from waste by SEKISUI CHEMICAL CO., LTD., with which Sumitomo Chemical is collaborating on circular economy initiatives, as well as from bio-ethanol derived from biomass, such as sugarcane and corn. Leveraging the R&D and process engineering capabilities it has cultivated over many years, Sumitomo Chemical will work on the validation and scale-up of manufacturing technology for converting renewable ethanol into ethylene*1, while also working to produce, renewable ethanol-based ethylene, polyolefin products with quality equivalent to conventional polyolefin, with the aim of commercializing it in FY2025.
In addition, aiming to commercialize those polyolefin products as environmentally-sustainable products, Sumitomo Chemical will work to quantify their impact on the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by life-cycle assessment using the Company’s proprietary carbon footprint calculation system. It will also begin an effort to obtain ISCC PLUS certification for those polyolefin products to manage them across its entire supply chain, from raw materials to finished products, by applying the mass balance approach. In addition, Sumitomo Chemical will launch a new website to provide customers with useful information on and promote the marketing of, its sustainable technologies and products. The Company will consider selling the renewable ethanol-based polyolefin products under its Meguri®4 brand, launched last year, to raise its profile in society and their value.
Source: Sumitomo Chemical
Analyzing sodium levels in breast cancer tumors can give an accurate indication of how aggressive a cancer is and whether chemotherapy treatments are taking effect, new research has shown.
In a study, by the universities of York and Cambridge and funded by charities Cancer Research UK and Breast Cancer Now, researchers developed a technique using sodium magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to detect salt levels in breast cancer tumors in mice.
Using this technique, the researchers looked at breast cancer tumors and discovered that salt (sodium) was being accumulated inside cancer cells and that more active tumors accumulate more sodium.
The researchers then took a group of 18 tumors and targeted some of them with chemotherapy treatment. When they scanned the tumors a week later they found that sodium levels had reduced in the tumors treated with chemotherapy.
There are currently around 55,920 new cases of breast cancer diagnosed in the UK each year and it is the leading cause of cancer-related death in women worldwide.
Imaging salt levels could be a vital new tool to help diagnose and monitor breast cancer, the researchers say. The team is now conducting an observational study to see if their results can be replicated in human breast cancer patients.
Senior author of the study, Dr. William Brackenbury from the Department of Biology at the University of York, said: "We have known for a while that solid tumors are high in salt, but this research brings us a step closer to understanding why. Our findings show that the high levels of sodium in breast cancer tumors is coming from inside the cancer cells rather than the surrounding tissue fluid, meaning that there is something strange about their metabolic activity which leads to them accumulating more salt than healthy cells do.
"There are currently only a handful of sodium MRI scanners across the country, but our study paves the way for them to be used as a new technique for diagnosing breast cancer, monitoring the success of treatments and improving survival rates for patients."
According to the authors of the study, there is also the potential for the development of drugs to block sodium channels in cancer cells, slowing the growth and spread of tumors. Previous research led by Dr. Brackenbury identified a drug currently used to treat epilepsy which showed promise in targeting sodium channels and slowed cancer progression in laboratory models of breast cancer.
The researchers would also like to explore ways to improve the resolution of sodium MRI, which currently produces a relatively pixelated image in comparison to a normal MRI scan. The team wants to develop new technologies—such as the design of new radiofrequency coils and associated cooling systems—to improve the signal quality of sodium imaging. This would enable them to do further research including investigating whether there are sodium hotspots in tumors where growth is most active.
Clinical co-author on the study, Professor Fiona Gilbert from the University of Cambridge said,: "We are excited about using these techniques in the clinic."
Dr. Charles Evans, Research Information Manager at Cancer Research UK, said: "This interesting study demonstrates that using sodium MRI could be a powerful new way to improve detection of breast cancers. The technique also holds the potential to provide us with deeper insights into how breast cancers respond to treatments. What's more, these techniques could be applied to other cancer types. The study is at an early stage, however, and more research will be needed before sodium MRI can begin to benefit patients."'
Dr. Simon Vincent, Breast Cancer Now's Director of Research, Support and Influencing, said: "It's vital breast cancer is diagnosed quickly and accurately, and its response to treatment closely monitored, to ensure patients receive the best possible care. This innovative early-stage research into sodium MRI has the potential to improve patient care, giving medical teams more in-depth information. We look forward to scientists building on this discovery to understand how it can work in practice to benefit patients in the clinic. The way that breast cancer can accumulate sodium should also be investigated further as it may help discover new ways to treat this devastating disease."
"Sodium accumulation in breast cancer predicts malignancy and treatment response" is published in the the British Journal of Cancer insert link once published. The study was also supported by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC).
More information: Andrew D. James et al, Sodium accumulation in breast cancer predicts malignancy and treatment response, British Journal of Cancer (2022). DOI: 10.1038/s41416-022-01802-w
Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) is a common thermal analysis technique that provides composition information for polymeric materials. Most often, we associate TGA with quantitative data. However, I was reminded during a recent material analysis that TGA can also provide insight into the qualitative analysis.
I was analyzing a rubber O-ring. My first test, as usual, was Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The FTIR indicated that the material was a nitrile rubber (NBR) compound. Additional absorption bands associated with aluminum silicate clay were also present. Weak bands indicated an ester-based plasticizer. The general form of the spectrum was suggestive of a moderate loading of carbon black.
I conducted the TGA analysis and found all of the expected weight loss events for the quantification of the plasticizer, polymer, and carbon black, as well as the residue for the mineral filler. However, one additional weight loss stood out. A weight loss of 4.4% centered at approximately 280 C. The temperature and relatively sharp nature of the weight loss were characteristic of dehydrohalogenation – in this case, the evolution of HCl from poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC). PVC is often added to NBR rubber compounds to modify the mechanical properties of the rubber and increase the ozone resistance and improve the weathering resistance.
This example illustrates the power of thermogravimetric analysis, both quantitative and qualitative.
Plastics surround us, whether it's the grocery bags we use at the supermarket or household items such as shampoo and detergent bottles. Plastics don't exist only as large objects, but also as microscopic particles that are released from these larger products. These microscopic plastics can end up in the environment, and they can be ingested into our bodies.
Now, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have analyzed a couple of widely used consumer products to better understand these microscopic plastics. They found that when the plastic products are exposed to hot water, they release trillions of nanoparticles per liter into the water.
The NIST researchers published their findings in the scientific journal Environmental Science and Technology.
"The main takeaway here is that there are plastic particles wherever we look. There are a lot of them. Trillions per liter. We don't know if those have bad health effects on people or animals. We just have high confidence that they're there," said NIST chemist Christopher Zangmeister.
There are many different types of plastic materials, but they are all made up of polymers, natural or human-made substances composed of large molecules linked together. Scientists have found microscopic particles from these larger plastics in the oceans and many other environments. Researchers categorize them into two groups: micro and nanoplastics.
Microplastics are generally considered smaller than 5 millimeters in length and could be seen by the naked eye, while nanoplastics are smaller than one-millionth of a meter (one micrometer) and most can't even be seen with a standard microscope. Recent studies have shown some consumer products that hold liquids or interact with them, such as polypropylene (PP) baby bottles and nylon plastic tea bags, release these plastic particles into the surrounding water.
In their study, the NIST researchers looked at two types of commercial plastic products: food-grade nylon bags, such as baking liners—clear plastic sheets placed in baking pans to create a nonstick surface that prevents moisture loss—and single-use hot beverage cups, such as coffee cups. The beverage cups they analyzed were coated with low-density polyethylene (LDPE), a soft flexible plastic film often used as a liner.
The LDPE-lined beverage cups were exposed to water at 100 degrees Celsius (212 degrees Fahrenheit) for 20 minutes.
To analyze the nanoparticles released from these plastic products, the researchers first needed to determine how to detect them. "Imagine having a cup of water in a generic to-go coffee cup. It could have many billions of particles, and we would need to figure out how to find these nanoplastics. It's like finding a needle in a haystack," Zangmeister said.
So, he and his colleagues had to use a new approach. "We used a way of taking the water that's in the cup, spraying it out into a fine mist, and drying the mist and all that's left within the solution," said Zangmeister. Through this process, the nanoparticles are isolated from the rest of the solution.
The technique itself has previously been used to detect tiny particles in the atmosphere. "So, we're not reinventing the wheel but applying it to a new area," said Zangmeister.
After the mist was dried, the nanoparticles in it were sorted by their size and charge. Researchers could then specify a particular size, for example nanoparticles around 100 nanometers, and pass them into a particle counter. The nanoparticles were exposed to a hot vapor of butanol, a type of alcohol, then cooled down rapidly. As the alcohol condensed, the particles swelled from the size of nanometers to micrometers, making them much more detectable. This process is automated and run by a computer program, which counts the particles.
Researchers could also identify the chemical composition of the nanoparticles by placing them on a surface and observing them with techniques known as scanning electron microscopy, which takes high-resolution images of a sample using a beam of high-energy electrons, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, a technique that captures the infrared-light spectrum of a gas, solid or liquid.
All these techniques used together provided a fuller picture of the size and composition of the nanoparticles.
In their analysis and observations, the researchers found that the average size of the nanoparticles was between 30 nanometers and 80 nanometers, with few above 200 nanometers. Additionally, the concentration of nanoparticles released into hot water from food-grade nylon was seven times higher compared with single-use beverage cups.
"In the last decade, scientists have found plastics wherever we looked in the environment. People have looked at snow in Antarctica, the bottom of glacial lakes, and found microplastics bigger than about 100 nanometers, meaning they were likely not small enough to enter a cell and cause physical problems," said Zangmeister.
"Our study is different because these nanoparticles are really small and a big deal because they could get inside of a cell, possibly disrupting its function," said Zangmeister, who also stressed that no one has determined that would be the case.
The U.S Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates the plastics that touch the food we eat or the water we drink. The agency has standards and safety measures in place to determine what's safe. The FDA's researchers run rigorous tests on these plastics and measure how much plastic mass is lost when exposed to hot water. For example, the FDA has determined that food-grade nylon (such as that used in tea bags) can safely lose up to 1% of its mass under high-temperature conditions. In the NIST study using their new technique, the researchers found one-tenth of a percent of the mass was lost, which is significantly below current FDA limits for what's considered safe.
Zangmeister noted there isn't a commonly used test for measuring LDPE that is released into water from samples like coffee cups, but there are tests for nylon plastics. The findings from this study could help in efforts to develop such tests. In the meantime, Zangmeister and his team have analyzed additional consumer products and materials, such as fabrics, cotton-polyester, plastic bags, and water stored in plastic pipes.
The findings from this study, combined with those from the other types of materials analyzed, will open new avenues of research in this area going forward. "Most of the studies on this topic are written toward educating fellow scientists. This paper will do both: educate scientists and perform public outreach," said Zangmeister.
More information: DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.1c06768
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