Robotics
Origami robots can be formed by tightly integrating multiple functions of actuation, sensing and communication. But the task is challenging as conventional materials including plastics and paper used for such robotic designs ...
Energy & Green Tech
The cold blast of an air conditioner can be a welcome relief as temperatures soar, but "A/C" units require large amounts of energy and can leak potent greenhouse gases. Today, scientists report an eco-friendly alternative—a ...
Mar 26, 2023
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135
Energy & Green Tech
The rapid pace of global climate change has added urgency to developing technologies that reduce the carbon footprint of transportation technologies, especially in sectors that are difficult to electrify. In response, researchers ...
Apr 1, 2022
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55
Energy & Green Tech
Sea pineapples, an edible ascidian, are a delicacy in Japan. The Tohoku region is famed for its sea pineapple production—known as hoya in Japanese. Now, a research group has established a new use for the scores of sea pineapple ...
Feb 9, 2022
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114
Energy & Green Tech
In pursuit of batteries that deliver more power and operate more safely, researchers are working to replace the liquids commonly used in today's lithium ion batteries with solid materials. Now, a research team from Brown ...
Oct 21, 2021
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721
Consumer & Gadgets
Most electronic devices aren't waterproof, much to your irritation if a sprinkler suddenly sprays you while you're talking outside on your cellphone. Some electronics can be made at least water-resistant by, for example, ...
Apr 1, 2021
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24
Energy & Green Tech
Scientists in China have developed a process for converting plant waste from agriculture and timber harvesting into high-density aviation fuel. Their research, published March 21 in the journal Joule, may help reduce CO2 ...
Mar 21, 2019
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183
Engineering
Even without a brain or a nervous system, the Venus flytrap appears to make sophisticated decisions about when to snap shut on potential prey, as well as to open when it has accidentally caught something it can't eat.
Jan 15, 2019
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268
Energy & Green Tech
The earliest days of health foods in a big supermarket consisted of looking for a special sign "natural or health" foods and then walking down one narrow aisle, out of a dozen more, to get low-sugar, low-fat groceries usually ...
Energy & Green Tech
Southwest Airlines is buckling down on its environmental goals with a $30 million investment into a sustainable aviation fuel technology provider and launching a new subsidiary dedicated to it.
Feb 29, 2024
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9
Cellulose is an organic compound with the formula (C6H10O5)n, a polysaccharide consisting of a linear chain of several hundred to over ten thousand β(1→4) linked D-glucose units.
Cellulose is the structural component of the primary cell wall of green plants, many forms of algae and the oomycetes. Some species of bacteria secrete it to form biofilms. Cellulose is the most common organic compound on Earth. About 33 percent of all plant matter is cellulose (the cellulose content of cotton is 90 percent and that of wood is 50 percent).
For industrial use, cellulose is mainly obtained from wood pulp and cotton. It is mainly used to produce cardboard and paper; to a smaller extent it is converted into a wide variety of derivative products such as cellophane and rayon. Converting cellulose from energy crops into biofuels such as cellulosic ethanol is under investigation as an alternative fuel source.
Some animals, particularly ruminants and termites, can digest cellulose with the help of symbiotic micro-organisms that live in their guts. Cellulose is not digestible by humans and is often referred to as 'dietary fiber' or 'roughage', acting as a hydrophilic bulking agent for feces.
This text uses material from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA
