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Issue no. 32, 2007 Published: Oct 05, 2007
Norway to build world's first osmotic power plant
Chemical 'sponge' could filter CO2 from the air
Space technology to hunt down TB
Trust in open source software soars
Magnetic sensor could allow pigeon-style GPS
Mother-of-pearl inspires super-strong plastic
Scientists propose mirror shield against asteroids
Running on eggshells
Scientist invents computer pillow to stop snoring

Norway to build world's first osmotic power plant
Norway plans to build the world's first osmotic power plant, a renewable energy source that uses the pressure built up between sea water and fresh water, Norwegian energy group Statkraft said Wednesday. Osmotic power is based on the natural process of osmosis. In an osmotic power plant, sea water and fresh water are separated by a membrane. The sea water draws the fresh water through the membrane, thereby increasing the pressure on the sea water side. The increased pressure is used to produce power with a turbine, Statkraft said. According to Statkraft, the technology could produce some-1,600 terawatt hours (TWh) worldwide. That is equivalent to 13 times the annual hydroelectric production of Norway, which covers almost all of its energy needs with hydro power. In Europe, the potential is estimated at around 200 TWh, Statkraft said. The prototype of the osmotic power plant is being built in Hurum in southeastern Norway, and could produce between 2 kilowatt and 4 kilowatt hours. Construction is scheduled to be completed next year.
Middle East Times / AFP Oct 03, 2007	back to top

Chemical 'sponge' could filter CO2 from the air
Sucking CO2 out of the atmosphere could provide a last-ditch solution to climate change. Frank Zeman at Columbia University in New York believes CO2 could be efficiently extracted from the atmosphere using a relatively simple chemical process, before being buried underground. Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is currently being explored as a way to reduce CO2 emissions from large industrial plants. The idea is to isolate - or 'scrub' - the gas from factory exhaust before it is released into the atmosphere. But Zeman believes CCS could also offer a way to soak up CO2 that has already been emitted into the atmosphere, which is thought to require much more energy than extracting them from flue gasses where they are more concentrated. The process devised by Zeman involves pumping air from the atmosphere through a chamber containing sodium hydroxide, which reacts with the CO2 to form sodium carbonate. This carbon-containing solution is then mixed with lime to precipitate powdered calcium carbonate - a naturally occurring form of which is limestone. Finally, the 'limestone' is heated in a kiln releasing pure CO2 for storage. Zeman calculates that one carbon atom would need to be expended as fuel - to pump air and heat the process - in order to capture four carbon atoms from air.
New Scientist / Environmental Science & Technology Oct 03, 2007	back to top

Space technology to hunt down TB
A device developed for a mission to Mars could help spot signs of life closer to home - by spotting the bacterium that causes TB. The Open University and London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine project will use a tiny detection kit made for the Beagle 2 project. The gas chromatograph mass spectrometer (GC-MS) can pick out the unique chemical fingerprint of TB. Space researchers were disappointed by the failure of Beagle 2 - which stopped transmitting after landing on Mars in 2003. A similar device forms part of the current Rosetta mission, which aims to rendezvous with a comet and send back data on its chemical structure. The need to minimise its weight has led to a spectrometer the size of a shoebox, which could now be practical to use it in developing countries where TB is rife. At the moment, phlegm samples coughed up by patients suspected of having the disease are checked under a microscope, but this is unreliable and fails to diagnose up to half the active cases. The GC-MS could be a more accurate test, and significantly quicker than current methods. The bacterium that causes TB has a special coating and it is the pattern of chemicals in this coating that the mass spectrometer will be searching for.
BBC News Oct 04, 2007	back to top

Trust in open source software soars
IT security professionals have an almost equal preference for deploying open source or commercial software, according to research by security firm Barracuda Networks. A survey revealed that 53% of security managers would deploy open source software, compared to 47% who would deploy commercial software in their organisations for similar functionality. Some 80% of respondents cited 'pricing' as the top reason for adopting open source software over commercial software. Around 57% selected 'access to source code', and 41% chose 'community code review' as the primary reasons for open source preference. The survey also found that the top advantages for deploying commercial software over open source are 'professional services' (65%), 'ease of adoption' (47%) and 'automated updates' (47%).
VNUnet UK Oct 03, 2007	back to top

Magnetic sensor could allow pigeon-style GPS
A variety of migrating birds, as well as bats and even hamsters successfully use a 'magnetic sense' to navigate on long journeys. Now, a new type of sensor developed by scientists in the US could make it possible for humans do the same trick. Magnetic global positioning works by matching precise measurements of the Earth's magnetic field with a database of measurements from across the globe. The sensor developed by researchers at Virginia Tech University exploits a property called the 'giant magnetoelectric effect', where a material changes its electrical properties under the influence of a magnetic field. The core of the sensor is made from layers of lead zirconium titanate, which has the largest magnetoelectric effect of any material. This means it can detect the tiny variations in field strength and angle needed for magnetic GPS. To use the device as a geomagnetic sensor, a small alternating current is applied to a coil wrapped around the core and the resulting voltage generated from the core is measured. This voltage is proportional to the change in the Earth's magnetic field. To determine location, the values of the magnetic field and angles is compared to data from the United States Geological Survey, which has tabulated the Earth's mean field and its inclinations at many points over much of the Earth's surface.
New Scientist / Applied Physics Letters Oct 01, 2007	back to top

Mother-of-pearl inspires super-strong plastic
A plastic made at room temperature from clay and a common ingredient of paint and glue is a strong as steel and a match for materials made using much higher temperatures. The substance mimics the structure of mother-of-pearl, and its creators at the University of Michigan say further development of their new technique could provide lighter body armour, as well as aircraft and vehicle parts. Nanotubes and other structures have impressive mechanical strength, but getting them to take the strain in a composite material is not easy. Instead the other materials used to hold them together bear the brunt and buckle, snap or tear instead. The new material, however, is stiffer than any nanotube fibres made to date. The team used a new manufacturing process to make the new plastic from a polymer called polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) commonly used in paints and glue, and nano-sized sheets of mineral that make up a particular clay called Montmorillonite. To create the new material, the team use a robotic arm that builds up layers, one material at a time. It dips a piece of glass into the PVA solution and then into a solution containing the clay particles. Once those two layers have dried, the process starts again. It took 300 layers of each material to produce a sheet of material the thickness of a piece of plastic sandwich wrap.
New Scientist / Science (vol 318, p 80) Oct 04, 2007	back to top

Scientists propose mirror shield against asteroids
If an asteroid should be discovered on a catastrophic collision course with our planet, researchers at Glasgow University say mirrors are the best way to save us from annihilation. Up to 5,000 could be used to focus sunlight on to the asteroid, melting the rock and altering its orbital path away from the Earth. The doomsday scheme was devised after a team at the university compared nine methods of deflecting near-Earth objects - asteroids and comets. The research team compared the mirror technique with eight others, including different types of nuclear explosion and fixing a propulsion system to the asteroid. The nuclear options and the mirrors would be more effective than the others, but scientists fear the risk of flying debris from a nuclear blast. The orbiting mirrors would be used to focus sunlight on an area of the asteroid between 0.5 and 1.5 metres wide, heating the rock to around 2,100C - hot enough to melt the surface of the asteroid and create a thrust which would nudge it off course. The team found that the orbit of an asteroid measuring 150 metres across could be sufficiently modified by a network of 100 mirrors in a few days. For an asteroid the size of the one believed to have wiped out Earth's dinosaurs, a 5,000-strong fleet of spacecraft would need to focus a beam of sunlight on the surface for three or more years.
Scotsman Oct 05, 2007	back to top

Running on eggshells
Engineers at Ohio State University in Columbus have developed a recipe for making hydrogen fuel that uses a secret ingredient: pulverised eggshells. The technique could help scientists overcome some of the obstacles to powering more environmentally friendly cars. Hydrogen does not exist naturally on Earth as a gas; most of it comes from the conversion of fossil fuels to gas, resulting in CO2. When combined with water, carbon monoxide yields hydrogen. But the process also creates CO2, which contributes to global warming. But egg shells are 95% calcium carbonate, a compound that, when heated, becomes calcium oxide, which can absorb CO2. The researchers found that ground up eggshells removed as much as 78% of the CO2 made during the hydrogen- production process. The thin membrane that sticks to the shells' insides must be removed before the shells can be ground, and because it's 10% collagen, it can be used to regenerate skin in burn victims or in cosmetic surgery. The researchers have patented a special acid that removes the membrane, as well as the new technology that allows eggshells to be used in hydrogen production.
ScienceNOW Oct 02, 2007	back to top

Scientist invents computer pillow to stop snoring
A German scientist has come up with a solution for snoring - a computerised pillow that shifts the head's sleeping position until the noise stops. Daryoush Bazargani, a professor of computer science at the University of Rostock and the pillow's inventor, was displaying a prototype of his pillow at a health conference in Germany on Wednesday. The pillow is attached to a computer, which is the size of a book, rests on a bedside table, and analyses snoring noises. The computer then reduces or enlarges air compartments within the pillow to facilitate nasal airflow to minimise snoring as the user shifts during sleep. The ergonomic pillow can also be used for neck massages.
CNET News / Reuters Oct 03, 2007	back to top