Charting the course to eco-friendly steel: China’s blueprint for cleaner air and a cooler planet

Phys.org  February 7, 2024 Researchers in China described their integrated emission inventory that included air pollutants and CO2 emissions from 811 ISI enterprises and five key manufacturing processes in 2020. According to them sintering was the primary source of air pollution in the ISI. 81% of total CO2 emissions come from blast furnaces. Contributions of ISI have resulted in an increase in national population weighted PM2.5 concentration, causing approximately 59,035 premature deaths in 2020. Emissions from other provinces contributed to 48% of PM2.5-related deaths in China. According to them it is crucial for ISI manufacturers to prioritize the removal of […]

Researchers develop eco-friendly ‘magnet’ to battle microplastics

Phys.org  February 12, 2024 Removal of micro- and nano-plastics from water is challenging using conventional separation methods. A new class of solvents composed of hydrogen bond donors and acceptors called Deep eutectic solvents (DES) have been proposed as a cheaper alternative to ionic liquids. Hydrophobic DES derived from natural compounds (NADES) show promise as extractants in liquid–liquid extractions. Researchers at the University of Kentucky investigated the extraction efficiency of micro- and nano-plastics including polyethylene terephthalate, polystyrene, and a bioplastic polylactic acid from fresh water and saltwater using three hydrophobic NADES. The extraction efficiencies were in a range of 50–93% (maximum […]