Tag Archives: ClimateChange

Beating Plants at Its Own Game

Posted on October 16, 2017 by | 2 comments

Photosynthesis, the ability to convert sunlight into energy, has always been known as the trademark for plants. With the treat of climate change and a shift away from fossil fuel energy, this often overlooked ability seem to be a perfect solution.

Photosynthesis in Nature (Sourced: Wiki Commons)

A group of researchers at UCLA has beaten plants at its own game of photosynthesis. They developed an artificial photosynthesis system that is more efficient that its nature counterpart. Photosynthesis is the simple process of using sunlight energy to convert carbon dioxide (CO2) and water into chemical energy. In nature, the process of photosynthesis is not very efficient as it only convert approximately 1% of solar energy into usable chemical energy. The research utilized a hybrid system which was reported to be 10 times more efficient than plants.

Plants’ photosynthesis efficiency is mainly limited by the light absorbing pigments. However, solar panels that absorbs light much better has already been invented. The researchers designed a nano-wire coated with bacteria which collects sunlight similar to a solar panel and allows the bacteria to use the energy to convert carbon dioxide and water into liquid fuel. The difficulty of previous attempts at imitating photosynthesis is the deaths of bacteria responsible for the conversion of light into chemical energy caused by a bacteria killing oxygen by-product. They developed a new catalyst to kick start the chemical reactions by the bacteria without killing them.

There is a video explaining the nano-wire research below:

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This new system is estimated to be able to recycle carbon dioxide in 85,000 liters of air into fuel. The research also found by using a different bacteria, nitrogen gas can be converted into ammonia, a common ingredient in fertilizers. This research can change our approach on how to solve the energy crisis due to climate change.

Who could have known that such little plants could hold the key to solve such a big problem?

Written By: Harvey Wu

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Driving with Lemon

Posted on September 24, 2017 by | 1 comment

Climate change has been the most discussed topic for the past decade. The world is feeling the effects of global warming and research has shown that the burning of fossil fuel is one of the leading causes. Fossil fuel must be replaced with a clean and sustainable energy source. A novel new research has found an interesting alternative in lemon peel oils.

Imagine that lemon peels, a produce that is often regarded as food wastes, has the potential to power everyday vehicles. Researcher has successfully extracted oils from lemon peels which has the potential to be an environmentally friendly substitute for diesel fuel.

Lemon Peel

The scientists injected the biofuel into a diesel engine and studied its effects. The engine increased in performance and emitted significantly lower emission levels. One of the measurements made was NOx emission levels as NOx (Nitrious Oxide)  is one of the biggest contributors to global warming.

The biofuel was a mixture of lemon peel oil and diesel fuel, but the increases in proportion of lemon oil corresponded to better performance and less emission. Dr. Ashok, the lead researcher, wrote” it is concluded that 50% lemon peel oil could be readily used in diesel engine with comparable performances and improved emission characteristics”. This study was published in the journal Energy Conversion and Management.

The researchers extracted the lemon peel oil with steam distillation. They tested different proportions of lemon peel oil and diesel fuel mixtures in a fully functional diesel engine. The lemon oil’s natural low viscosity and low boiling point allowed it to function in a normal engine.

Lemon and other Citrus Wastes

The research into lemon peel oil and other biofuels can tackle multiple world issues such as the food waste crisis. Examples such as the lemon peel oil biofuel can be produced and implemented cheaply due to its abundancy as food wastes. Dr. Ashok and the team of researcher stated “Overall diesel engine characteristics indicated that lemon peel oil can partially or completely replace the petroleum diesel usage”.

Written by: Harvey Wu

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Recent Study in Nature Geoscience Highlights Need for International Cooperation on Climate Change

Posted on September 24, 2017 by | Leave a comment

September 24, 2017

Revised: October 14, 2017

Author: Kiara Grant

Pollution in China might be contributing to ozone levels over the western United States, according to an article recently published in Nature Geoscience. The article detailed the findings of a research group at the Royal Meteorological Institute of Belgium, which analyzed data from a NASA satellite called Aura. Aura measured concentrations of ozone, and its precursors in the atmosphere, specifically in two layers of the atmosphere, called the stratosphere and the troposphere.

Tracking the level of ozone in the troposphere is important because, while in the stratosphere ozone protects the planet from UV radiation, just below, in the free troposphere, it acts as a greenhouse gas, contributing to global warming.  Furthermore, in the lower troposphere it can have negative health effects on plant and animal life. Ozone pollution is known to aggravate conditions like asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and can even impair lung development in children.

Diagram of the layers of Earth’s atmosphere       Credit: NASA/Goddard

 

 

The authors of the study broke down the causes of the observed changes in ozone into three categories: emissions, transport, and stratosphere-troposphere exchange. Emissions refers to emissions of nitrogen oxides caused by human activity. Nitrogen oxides are a class of chemicals which, as their name would imply, are made up of nitrogen and oxygen atoms. The term nitrogen oxides is used primarily to refer to NO and NO2 gas. In the troposphere, these gases are precursors to ozone. Transport refers to the long-range transport of ozone, by air currents. Finally, stratosphere-troposphere exchange refers to the natural exchange of ozone from the stratosphere to the troposphere.

The major finding of the Royal Meteorological Institute of Belgium’s study was that significant quantities of ozone travelled from China to the western United States, and that this transport greatly offset the reduction in free-tropospheric ozone which was expected in that area. Between 2005 and 2010, there was an estimated 21% decrease in nitrogen oxide emissions over the Western US. This was thanks to changes in federal, state and local air quality policies. However, approximately 43% of the expected ozone reduction in the Western US between 2005 and 2010 was completely offset by inflow of ozone from China, where tropospheric ozone increased by nearly 7% in that same time period.

This map shows the longwave radiative effect of infrared radiation absorbed by tropospheric ozone as estimated from top-of-atmosphere observations.
Credit: NASA/Goddard

 

The authors of the study concluded that “air quality and regional climate change mitigation policies could eventually have limited impact if not considered in a global context.” Despite the present need for global cooperation to face the threat of climate change, recent events, such as Donald Trump’s announcement that the US will withdraw from the Paris climate accord, have some worried that international alliances are weakening. This study is a clear reminder that when facing global problems, individual nation’s actions have international impact.

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