air
Air Pollution Shortens Lives
Globally, an estimated 4.5 billion people are exposed to particulate air pollution levels that are at least twice that of what the World Health Organization considers safe. But the impact that sustained exposure to air pollution has on a person’s life expectancy has remained a frustratingly unanswered question. That is until now.
Spreading Like Wildfire
Last July 7th, 140 wildfires started up in British Columbia, triggering a state of emergency. By the end of the summer, more than 1,000 fires had been triggered across the Canadian province, burning nearly 3 million acres of forest, about 10 times more than the average over the past decade.
Better Zinc-Air Batteries
Zinc-air batteries are metal-air batteries powered by oxidizing zinc with the oxygen from the air. They have high energy densities (as much as five times more energy than lithium-ion batteries) and are more environmentally friendly. Since they are based on abundant zinc, they are potentially much cheaper to produce than the lithium-ion batteries that are used in so many current applications. But because it is difficult and expensive to produce rechargeable versions of these batteries, they have only found limited use in hearing aids, in some film cameras, and in large form to power navigation instruments, oceanographic experiments and railway signals.
Air Travel And Global Warming
Air travel is pretty carbon intensive. For those of us who take plane trips, it represents a substantial part of our individual carbon footprints. It isn’t that plane travel is inefficient fuel-wise on a miles-per-gallon-per-passenger basis compared with driving, for example. It is just that we go so much farther on planes. Currently, aviation accounts for only a few percent of overall carbon emissions, but that is changing for two reasons.
Breathe Better With Air Conditioning
For many people, commuting to and from work is a time-consuming, stressful part of their lives. In fact, the average American spends nearly an hour a day facing traffic jams and congested highways. There are direct health hazards in commuting as well. Drivers are exposed to increased amounts of air pollutants that have been linked to a wide range of medical problems including cardiovascular disease, respiratory issues and even lung cancer.
Clean Air And Energy
Researchers in Belgium have engineered a device that uses sunlight to purify polluted air and, in the process, produces hydrogen gas that can be stored and used for power. Two teams of researchers separately investigating processes for air purification and hydrogen production combined their efforts to create the new device.
Dams And The Environment
There are an estimated 84,000 dams in the United States which impound 600,000 miles of river, or about 17% of the rivers in the country. Within the next 15 years, more than 90% of the world’s rivers will be fragmented by at least one dam.
Pedaling For Clean Air
Poor air quality is a problem all around the world. Exposure to air pollution is linked to the premature deaths of an estimated 6.5 million people every year, making it the fourth largest threat to human health, trailing only high blood pressure, dietary risks, and smoking.
The Methanol Economy
The methanol economy is an idea that was promoted by the late Nobel-prize-winning chemist George Olah since the 1990s. The idea is to replace fossil fuels with methanol for energy storage, ground transportation fuel, and raw material for hydrocarbon-based products. Methanol is the simplest alcohol and can be produced from a wide variety of sources ranging from fossil fuels to agricultural products to just carbon dioxide. Methanol can be used directly as a fuel or it can be reformed into hydrogen, which can then itself be used as a fuel.
Water From Thin Air
Scientists at UC Berkeley and MIT have demonstrated a water harvester that uses only sunlight to pull liters of water out of the air each day in conditions as low as 20% humidity, a level common in arid areas.
India’s Air Pollution
Poor air quality is a major problem worldwide. Exposure to air pollution is linked to the premature deaths of an estimated 6.5 million people every year. This makes air pollution the fourth largest threat to human health, trailing only high blood pressure, dietary risks, and smoking.
Cleaning Britain’s Air
According to a new study by the non-profit group Carbon Brief, carbon dioxide emissions in the United Kingdom are at their lowest levels since the 1920s. Four factors are responsible: a record drop in coal use, the rapid growth of renewable energy, the expansion of energy efficiency programs, and the increased use of natural gas for electricity power plants.
Solar Power In China
Installations of solar power continue to increase rapidly around the world and in no place more than China. By the end of 2016, total solar generating capacity in China reached 77.4 gigawatts, making it the largest producer of solar energy in the world. Globally, there is a total of 228 gigawatts of solar power installed, although that number keeps changing rapidly.
Coal And Chinese Air
China has worked to reduce its coal consumption in recent years but the air quality in cities like Beijing is still notoriously poor and a major health hazard.
A Soy-Based Air Filter
Particulate matter and toxic chemical pollutants are a pervasive problem in the air people breathe in many places. Poor air quality causes health problems worldwide and is a factor in diseases such as asthma, heart disease and lung disease.
Record Low Sea Ice
This time of the year, sea ice in the Arctic is on the rise as winter sets in. A combination of unusually high air temperatures and a warmer than normal ocean led to a record low for Arctic sea ice extent in November. In the Southern Hemisphere, Antarctic sea ice extent also hit a record low for the month.
Houseplants And Clean Air
Many of us like to have houseplants. They add a bit of nature to our homes and they look nice. It turns out that they have health advantages as well.
Our Air Is Killing Us
Poor air quality is a serious problem. Exposure to air pollution is linked to the premature deaths of an estimated 6.5 million people every year. This makes air pollution the fourth largest threat to human health. Only high blood pressure, dietary risks, and smoking are a bigger danger.
