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Chemistry Breakthrough: Faster and Cheaper Ethanol-to-Jet-Fuel on the Horizon

New catalyst and microchannel reactors improve efficiency and cost. A patented process for converting alcohol sourced from renewable or industrial waste gases into jet or diesel fuel is being scaled up at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory with the help of partners at Oregon State University and the carbon-recycling experts at LanzaTech. Two key technologies power the energy-efficient fuel production units. A single-step chemical conversion streamlines what is currently a multi-step process. The new PNNL-patented catalyst converts biofuel (ethanol) directly into a versatile “platform” chemical called n-butene. A microchannel reactor design further reduces costs while delivering…

Advanced Civilizations Could be Using Dyson Spheres to Collect Unimaginable Energy From Black Holes

Lead image: an artist’s representation of a Dyson sphere around a black hole. Black holes are more than just massive objects that swallow everything around them – they’re also one of the universe’s biggest and most stable energy sources. That would make them invaluable to the type of civilization that needs huge amounts of power, such as a Type II civilization on the Kardashev scale. But to harness all of that power, the civilization would have to encircle the entire black hole with something that could capture the power it is emitting. One potential solution would be a Dyson sphere –…

Jupiter’s Gigantic Super Polar Cyclones Won’t Be Disappearing Anytime Soon

Lead image: Pentagon of vortices. Mosaic of infrared images of Jupiter’s south pole. Credit: NASA/SWRI/JPL/ASI/INAF/IAPS Weizmann Institute scientists reveal how gigantic cyclones remain stable at both of Jupiter’s poles. Until recently, before NASA’s Juno space probe entered its orbit around the planet Jupiter, no one knew that powerful cyclones, approximately the size of Australia, rage across its polar regions. Jupiter’s storms, as opposed to their earthly variety, do not disperse, hardly change, and are clearly not associated with flying rooftops and damp weather reporters. In an article published recently in Nature Geoscience, researchers from the Weizmann Institute of Science reveal…

New Nanomaterial Resists Projectile Impact Better Than Kevlar

Lead image: Engineers at MIT, Caltech, and ETH Zürich find “nanoarchitected” materials designed from precisely patterned nanoscale structures (pictured) may be a promising route to lightweight armor, protective coatings, blast shields, and other impact-resistant materials. Credit: Courtesy of the researchers Thinner than a human hair, new material can absorb impacts from microparticles traveling at supersonic speeds. Engineers at Caltech, MIT, and ETH Zürich have developed a nano-architected material made from tiny carbon struts that is, pound for pound, more effective at stopping a projectile than Kevlar, a material commonly used in personal protective gear. Pioneered by Caltech materials scientist Julia…

NASA’s Perseverance Rover Plans Next Mars Rock Sample Attempt, After First One Crumbled

Lead image: NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover will abrade the rock at the center of this image, allowing scientists and engineers to assess whether it would hold up to the rover’s more powerful sampling drill. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech After failing to collect a rock sample that proved too crumbly, Nasa’s Perseverance rover has set its eyes on another rock nicknamed ‘Rochette’. The US space agency on Thursday said a tool mounted on the robotic arm of Perseverance will abrade the surface of the rock. The scientists will look inside Rochette to determine whether they would move ahead to capture the sample with…