Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis oder Saccharomyces cerevisiae – the names of some industrially used microorganisms have been encountered even by laymen. What these three have in common is that they prefer rather mild growth or reaction conditions. They are usually unsuitable for processes or products that require elevated temperatures or special pH values. The situation is different with so-called thermoacidophilic archaeae, to which Sulfolobus acidocaldarius belongs.
Chemistry
Software evaluates packaging recycling
How must certain plastic packaging be designed so that it can be easily recycled? Since the beginning of 2019, this question has been answered by software from Henkel. The company has now presented a new program version that also analyses packaging made of paper/cardboard, glass, aluminium and tinplate. The Fraunhofer Institute for Environmental, Safety and Energy Technology UMSICHT tested the quality of the application.
Handbag
Leather production: hazardous to health and harmful to the environment
Some steps in leather production are extremely unsavory. In order to be able to process and preserve the hide, it has to be tanned. Classical tanning processes use substances that are harmful to health and pollute soils and waters considerably. In addition to the harmful substances, animal farming is also problematic, because not every animal skin is a waste product.
Bacteria as pigment factories
Nadja Henke has a great job: she brings color into life - at least in animal feed and cosmetics. The young systems biologist is developing a sustainable process in which bacteria produce the antioxidant pigment astaxanthin under economic conditions.
Fertilizer from bagasse ash
Along with soya and corn, sugar cane is one of the most important crops in Brazil. It is used to produce not only sugar but also biofuels such as ethanol. However, processing produces enormous amounts of bagasse - fibrous remains - which up to now were not used efficiently. Instead, the lignocellulosic residual material is burnt in inefficient incinerators and usually disposed of in landfills or scattered on fields. But ash is more than just burned biomass. It contains nutrients such as phosphorus, which are essential for plant growth.
An on-farm biorefinery
If it were up to Andrea Kruse, every farmer would have his own biorefinery. Waste materials such as grass, straw or wood would be broken down into their components in a mini plant and converted into new products such as platform chemicals. The idea of the Hohenheim chemist is by no means utopian. Such an on-farm plant was inaugurated at the end of October on the site of the experimental station at the University of Hohenheim on Unteren Lindenhof. "We still need about three years before all teething troubles are resolved.
Deruster
Counteracting rust
The brown coating is formed when iron oxidizes. Rust is not only unattractive, it also causes damage because it continues to decompose the metal. Conventional rust solvents contain acids as an effective component, usually phosphoric or hydrochloric acid. These reverse the process and stop the formation of rust. Acids, however, are dangerous to handle and pollute the environment.
Running shoes
Ideal properties
As synthetic materials are much easier to care for than leather and also resistant to moisture, they are increasingly being used as uppers for running shoes. adidas uses a very special material in its new "Futurecraft Biofabric Shoe". The upper of the shoe is made entirely of artificial spider silk. Spider silk is extremely robust. The threads are thinner than a hair, yet more tear-resistant than steel, more elastic than rubber and also ultra-light.
Sweden
In 2012, the Swedish Science Council for Environment, Agriculture and Spatial Planning (Formas) commissioned the government and, in collaboration with the Swedish Energy Agency and the Academy of Innovation, published a national bioeconomy strategy, the "Swedish Research and Innovation Strategy for a Biobased Economy".