Neste, Borealis, Uponor, Wastewise Group enable chemical recycling of hard-to-recycle plastic waste

First production of cross-linked polyethylene (PEX) pipes based on feedstock from chemically recycled PEX waste

17-Feb-2023 - Neste, Borealis, Uponor and Wastewise have successfully produced pipes made of cross-linked polyethylene (PEX) which was based on feedstock gained from chemically recycled post-industrial waste plastic from PEX pipe production, using an ISCC PLUS certified mass-balancing approach. The partner ...

Reducing power plants' freshwater consumption with new silica filters

20-Oct-2017 - Power plants draw more freshwater than any other consumer in the United States, accounting for more than 50 percent of the nation's freshwater use at about 500 billion gallons daily. To help save this water, researchers at Sandia National Laboratories have developed a new silica filter for power ...

Corrosion in real time

18-Sep-2017 - What affects almost everything made of metal, from cars to boats to underground pipes and even the fillings in your teeth? Corrosion -- a slow process of decay. At a global cost of trillions of dollars annually, it carries a steep price tag, not to mention, the potential safety, environmental and ...

System automatically detects cracks in nuclear power plants

20-Feb-2017 - A new automated system detects cracks in the steel components of nuclear power plants and has been shown to be more accurate than other automated systems. "Periodic inspection of the components of nuclear power plants is important to avoid accidents and ensure safe operation," said Mohammad R. ...

3-D printing and nanotechnology, a mighty alliance to detect toxic liquids

12-Jan-2017 - Carbon nanotubes have made headlines in scientific journals for a long time, as has 3D printing. But when both combine with the right polymer, in this case a thermoplastic, something special occurs: electrical conductivity increases and makes it possible to monitor liquids in real time. This is a ...

Zeroing in on the true nature of fluids within nanocapillaries

12-Jan-2017 - Shrinking the investigation of objects down to the nanometer scale often reveals new properties of matter that have no equivalent for their bulk analysis. This phenomenon is motivating many current studies of nanomaterials which can reveal fascinating new phenomena. It inspired a group of ...

Atomic scale pipes available on demand and by design

09-Sep-2016 - Materials containing tiny capillaries and cavities are widely used in filtration, separation and many other technologies, without which our modern lifestyle would be impossible. Those materials are usually found by luck or accident rather than design. It has been impossible to create artificial ...

Preventing another Flint, Mich.; new research could lead to more corrosion-resistant water pipes

06-May-2016 - With documented public water problems in Flint, Mich., and Hoosick Falls, N.Y., caused by corrosion, understanding how copper is affected at the atomic level is critical to avoiding problems in future pipes. Corrosion-related damage costs more than three percent of the United States' Gross ...

Bending the light with a tiny chip

A silicon chip developed by Caltech researchers acts as a lens-free projector--and could one day end up in your cell phone.

13-Mar-2014 - Imagine that you are in a meeting with coworkers or at a gathering of friends. You pull out your cell phone to show a presentation or a video on YouTube. But you don't use the tiny screen; your phone projects a bright, clear image onto a wall or a big screen. Such a technology may be on its way, ...

Thousands of potentially harmful natural gas leaks found in Washington

20-Jan-2014 - High levels of natural gas are escaping from the aging pipes beneath the streets of the nation's capital, creating potentially harmful concentrations in some locations, a new study has found. Natural gas leaks pose explosion risks, health concerns and contribute to climate change. The paper, ...