Daily Innovation News

October 30^th 2024

⚡️ Energy

🇩🇪 German scientists develop photoswitch to store solar energy as heat for months

Researchers in Germany have created an advanced photoswitch that captures and stores solar energy in chemical bonds, enabling heat retention for extended periods without energy loss. By incorporating a "sensitizer" compound, this system significantly boosts solar energy storage efficiency, overcoming previous limitations that required UV light. The photoswitch’s ability to repeatedly store and release energy as heat could address heating demands, which account for half of global energy use, offering a sustainable solution for renewable energy storage. The findings were published in Angewandte Chemie.

🚘 Transport

🇨🇳 China tests Mach 4 supersonic passenger jet prototype, aiming for 2027 debut

Chinese company Space Transportation successfully tested a prototype of its supersonic jet, Yunxing, reaching speeds near Mach 4—almost double that of the retired Concorde. Designed for ultra-fast travel, this prototype demonstrated resilience in extreme conditions, showcasing advanced all-composite structures, thermal protection, and flight control systems. The company envisions completing transcontinental flights, such as Beijing to New York, in just two hours by 2027, marking a new frontier in commercial aviation speed.

🤖 Artificial Intelligence

🇺🇸 Nvidia’s ethernet technology doubles the size of xAI's Colossus supercomputer, making it the world’s most powerful AI training system

Nvidia's Spectrum-X ethernet technology is powering the expansion of Elon Musk’s xAI supercomputer, Colossus, to double its GPU count, solidifying it as the world’s most powerful AI training system. Built in record time, Colossus comprises 100,000 Nvidia Hopper GPUs, with plans to reach 200,000, ensuring rapid, lossless data transfer essential for training xAI’s advanced language model, Grok. This development is expected to position Grok as one of the most capable AI chatbots globally, driving Musk’s vision of exploring the universe’s "true nature."

🌎 Environment

🇺🇸 🇮🇹 US and Italian scientists discover carbon-sequestering cyanobacterium that may aid in climate change fight

An international research team has identified a new strain of cyanobacterium, named UTEX-3222 or “Chonkus,” that efficiently absorbs CO₂ and sinks quickly, allowing captured carbon to be stored or repurposed in industrial processes. Found near volcanic CO₂ seeps off Sicily, this large, fast-growing bacterium is adept at high-density growth in CO₂-rich environments, making it a promising candidate for carbon sequestration and biomanufacturing. This discovery, published in Applied and Environmental Microbiology, highlights nature’s potential for aiding industrial decarbonization and sustainable production.

🇺🇸 US researchers develop reactor for energy-efficient direct air carbon capture and hydrogen cogeneration

Rice University scientists have created an electrochemical reactor that reduces energy consumption in direct air capture by using electrical energy instead of high heat. This modular, three-chambered device captures carbon dioxide with renewable energy at room temperature, eliminating toxic chemicals and unwanted byproducts. Additionally, it enables hydrogen cogeneration, potentially lowering costs for sustainable fuel production. This breakthrough, published in Nature Energy, offers a scalable, cost-effective tool for industries seeking net-zero emissions.

💊 Healthcare

🇰🇷 South Korean researchers create advanced LED mask boosting skin elasticity by 340%

Researchers at South Korea's KAIST developed a face-conforming LED mask that improves skin elasticity by 340% by delivering deep, uniform photostimulation. Unlike traditional rigid LED masks, this flexible FSLED mask uses a 3D origami structure and 3,770 micro-LEDs, minimizing light loss and optimizing deep skin impact. Clinical trials showed significant reductions in wrinkles and sagging without the risk of burns, with global distribution set for November. The research was published in Advanced Materials.

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