Environment  

We are all aware of the need to protect the environment and make our development more sustainable.  Here are a few key examples of how to target this global issue.

O

ver the past decade, green energy initiatives have remained a key talking point in politics, but little has changed. Until we abandon fossil fuels and stop the needless destruction of our delicate ecosystems, we will be sentencing our planet to a slow, painful death. Here are a few reasons why green technology is key to a sustainable future.

The Problem: Carbon Emissions

We know that carbon dioxide and methane are greenhouse gases, and we know that the average global temperature is rising in proportion to the level of those gases in our atmosphere. Much of these emissions stems from the burning of coal and oil throughout our national power grid.

Related articles Recalculation of Habitable Zone Exoplanets Reveals Them To Be More Common  Climate Change Described In An Infographic  Researchers Create Gasoline Directly from Bacteria

The Solution: New Energy

Solar energy is poised to dominate the energy markets by the early 2030s, which should help reduce the carbon in our atmosphere and consequently slow the melting of polar ice caps and glaciers, a process that will otherwise result in unsustainable sea rise. Unfortunately, that's not early enough to make a huge difference.

Vehicles are another major source of carbon emissions. Hydrogen fuel cell technology is advancing quickly, and the Toyota Mirai is due out later this year. Tesla is also manufacturing cheaper electric vehicles which are more environmentally friendly than their predecessors.

The Problem: Rainforest Deforestation

Even if we were to completely halt our energy-related dependence on fossil fuels, we would still be contributing to climate change. The tropical rainforests represent two things crucial to curbing global warming. First, they produce massive amounts of oxygen. Second, they suck in and store the carbon dioxide already in the atmosphere. When we cut down those trees, millions and millions of metric tons of carbon dioxide end up remaining in the atmosphere.

The Solution: Metamaterials and Digitalization

The resulting societal need is obvious: we need alternatives to wood in order to build a sustainable future. Nanotechnology is providing us with metamaterials, which have properties found nowhere else in nature. They're tougher and more durable, and we don't need to wipe out the rainforests in order to manufacture them. New engineering techniques are finally being pushed forward in colleges offering degrees such as a master’s in civil engineering, and the next generation of students will learn how to build sustainability using these materials and even design new types of concepts for our buildings.

Even in 2015, hospitals still haven't ditched the pad of paper in favor of digital referral systems, which are just now being developed. Not only is this inefficient and costly, it's also unsustainable in the long-term. Many other businesses still use paper as well. We must digitize all information as quickly as possible in order to curb deforestation.

Although many of these alternatives are available to us today, we haven't invested enough resources to replace dangerous technologies with those that will sustain us. This is poised to change in the next few decades, but we simply do not know whether that's fast enough. The time to act is now, before it's too late.

By Anica Oaks

Embed

Author Bio - A recent college graduate from University of San Francisco, Anica loves dogs, the ocean, and anything outdoor-related. She was raised in a big family, so she's used to putting things to a vote. Also, cartwheels are her specialty. You can connect with Anica here.

 Nanotechnology  

Researchers have created artificial nanostructures called metamaterials that can bend light. The challenge has been making enough of the material to turn invisibility cloaks into a practical reality. New research, however, may have just cracked that barrier.

Controlling and bending light around an object so it appears invisible to the naked eye is the theory behind fictional invisibility cloaks, such as those used by the Klingons in the Star Trek franchise.

It may seem easy in Hollywood movies, but is hard to create in real life because no material in nature has the properties necessary to bend light in such a way. Now scientists have managed to create artificial nanostructures that can do the job, called metamaterials. But the challenge has been making enough of the material to turn science fiction into a practical reality.

"Such large-area fabrication of metamaterials following a simple printing technique will enable realization of novel devices based on engineered optical responses at the nanoscale."

Related articles New Nanoscale Router Converts and Directs Subwavelenght Signals  Nano 3D Printing Electrodes May Be Used For Brain-Machine Interfaces  Nanotech Metasurfaces Will Usher In New Optic Technologies

The work of Debashis Chanda at the University of Central Florida, however, may have just cracked that production barrier. The cover story in the March edition of the journal Advanced Optical Materials, explains how Chanda and fellow optical and nanotech experts were able to develop a larger swath of multilayer 3D metamaterial operating in the visible spectral range. They accomplished this feat by using nanotransfer printing, which can potentially be engineered to modify surrounding refractive index needed for controlling propagation of light.

“Such large-area fabrication of metamaterials following a simple printing technique will enable realization of novel devices based on engineered optical responses at the nanoscale,” said Chanda, an assistant professor at UCF.

The nanotransfer printing technique creates metal/dielectric composite films, which are stacked together in a 3D architecture with nanoscale patterns for operation in the visible spectral range. Control of electromagnetic resonances over the 3D space by structural manipulation allows precise control over propagation of light. Following this technique, larger pieces of this special material can be created, which were previously limited to micron-scale size.

By improving the technique, the team hopes to be able to create larger pieces of the material with engineered optical properties, which would make it practical to produce for real-life device applications. For example, the team could develop large-area metamaterial absorbers, which would enable fighter jets to remain invisible from detection systems.


SOURCE  University of Central Florida

By 33rd Square

Embed