Can lightweight metal help the green shift?
The climate will benefit if we shift to using aluminium in more and more construction. Buyers need to look past the procurement costs and consider the total life cycle costs instead.
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Demand for rare minerals and metals creates eco-dilemma
The world is crying out for rare minerals for the manufacture of electric cars, wind turbines and other technologies that we simply need more of. But how can we guarantee access to these resources without threatening the natural world and mankind as we know it?
Shedding light on Nature’s tiniest building blocks
These research scientists are studying Nature’s own nanomaterials – applying tools and methods that are normally used for something quite different. Their work has provided us with knowledge that may revolutionise everything from medical treatments to building constructions.
Combating marine waste and ghost fishing with new materials
Ghost fishing and plastic waste from the fisheries industry is becoming a major environmental problem. Can we address the issue by using degradable plastics? Scientists at a new research centre are aiming to find the answers and develop the systems we need.
Why do some alloys become stronger at room temperature?
For more than 100 years, we’ve known that some metal alloys become stronger by being kept at room temperature. But we haven’t understood all the details – until now.
Bacteria-based concrete offers climate benefits
Ten cubic kilometres of concrete, equivalent to the volume of Mount Everest, are used in construction projects every year, resulting in huge volumes of emissions. But a new eco-friendly cement may help to reduce our global climate footprint.
How safe are the new Covid vaccines?
The new vaccines designed to combat the Covid-19 virus have been developed in record time, causing some people to be sceptical of taking them. Should we be worried about side effects? Norwegian SciTech News has been talking to two research scientists about this issue.
What does a rock climbing belay device have in common with a subsea cable installation vessel?
The answer is that both can cause torsion, meaning the climbing rope or cable will start to twist. Up until now, no-one could explain why this happened. However, two enthusiastic researchers, who happen to be rock climbers, made it their business to solve the mystery.
This is how the new Covid-19 vaccine works
Pfizer has recently announced that it is ready with a Covid-19 vaccine that is 90 percent effective. The vaccine is a so-called mRNA vaccine that has been developed jointly by Pfizer and BioNTech. But what is mRNA technology, and how does it work?
Simulation model may reduce the climate footprint of oil production
Future offshore oil and gas fields are most likely to be “satellite developments” that are less expensive and emit less greenhouse gases than other fields because they do not require new production platforms. An innovative Norwegian computational tool called “Slug Capturing 2” is now enabling the design of longer pipelines that will allow many more fields to be developed as satellites.
Searching for the secret to more efficient solar cells
The search for the perfect solar cell is not yet over. Norwegian researchers are now adopting a new approach to the cells’ raw material, crystalline silicon, with the aim of making the electricity-generating cells even more efficient.
Why Climate Sceptics are Wrong
Tired of people claiming that the climate crisis isn’t real? You’re not the only one. This is why they are wrong.
How a Plasma Gasifier Can Reduce CO2 Emissions
CO2 emissions are generally recognized as something we need to avoid. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could just transform the CO2 into useful substances? Plasma technology has been proposed as a way to achieve this, and we have studied the feasibility of the concept from physical, chemical and economical points of view.
Getting the body to make its own cancer drugs
Imagine that we could instruct our bodies to make the drugs they need themselves. The gene technology that makes this possible is called mRNA therapy, which may become a major tool in the treatment of multiple diseases. Norwegian researchers are currently helping to develop a drug of this kind to treat the most aggressive form of breast cancer.
A revolution in vaccine development – but will we all benefit?
By manipulating the “instruction manuals” that control cell function in our bodies, we will soon be able to combat many diseases, including the new coronavirus outbreak. However, in the worst scenario, such innovations will only benefit the rich.