Didier Guffond, of French aerospace laboratory ONERA's Physics, Instruments and Sensing department, looks at some of the ways in which military aircraft are protected against ice deposits. Atmospheric ice is a meteorological hazard that may affect an aircraft's operations. It is formed when supercooled droplets impact on the front part of different structures. Ice deposits on aircraft surfaces affect the aerodynamic performance of lifting and control components, directly influence the safety of ...
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Scientists ask themselves: how can we get hold of the vast, yet intermittent and unevenly distributed, solar energy resource such that it can be stored and transported from the sunny and uninhabited regions of the earth’s sunbelt to the world’s industrialized and populated centers, where much of the energy is required? This question has motivated the search for recipes to transform sunlight into chemical energy carriers in the form of storable and dispatchable liquid fuels, such as gasoline ...
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Cutting deeply into Australia’s overall energy consumption by changing how a single industry operates sounds ambitious. But even small improvements to the way aluminium is made can save a lot of energy, along with jobs and future investment, as global pressures to cut carbon emissions rise. Seeking a better way to make aluminium – one of Australia’s biggest industries that last year exported $5 billion worth of metal, directly employed 13,000 people and consumed 14 per cent of all electric...
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Thanu Padmanabhan, a distinguished professor at the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics,rnNEW DELHI: Thanu Padmanabhan, a distinguished professor at the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics, Pune, was awarded the Infosys Foundation Prize 2009 for Physical Sciences this week for his contribution to a deeper understanding of Einstein’s theory of Gravity in relation to thermodynamics. In an interview with ET, Prof Padmanabhan talks about the behaviour of black...
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ExxonMobil Research and Engineering Company has filed a US patent application (#20100326387, published 30 December 2010) on methods using a wide range of fuel-alcohol blends to expand the operating envelope of engines operating in advanced combustion modes. Advanced combustion modes covered include homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI); premixed charged compression ignition (PCCI); low-temperature combustion (LTC) mode; or other non-traditional highly-mixed combustion modes. As an examp...
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Biodiesel is the term used for derivatives of vegetable oils and animal fats that have been chemically modified so that their physical properties resemble those of diesel fuel. This chemical modification ensures that they can be used as fuels for diesel engine without posing significant risk of damage, and without any drastic changes in performance. There are many environmental benefits that have been attributed to biodiesel use, including biodegradability and reduction of emissions of greenhous...
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About 45 percent of the electricity generated in the United States this year has come from coal-fired power plants, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. As a combustible fuel, coal has key advantages, including low costs. Recent mining tragedies have served as a reminder that coal has drawbacks as well. The advantages of burning coal to produce electricity are realized by almost everyone in the form not just of lower electricity prices but also of reduced costs for practicall...
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Linda Abriola, dean of the School of Engineering at Tufts University, has been recognized in "American Women of Science Since 1900" (ABC-CLIO, 2010), an encyclopedia focused on 500 of the 20th century’s most notable American women scientists. "American Women of Science Since 1900" examines the pioneering but sometimes overlooked achievements of distinguished women in disciplines from genetics to computers to nutrition. “I am truly honored to be recognized alongside such accomplished and pion...
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The Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) will be initiating R&D in oil and gas equipment to position Singapore as an innovation hub for the Oil and Gas (O&G) equipment sector and strengthen Singapore's marine and offshore industry. The announcement, made by Mr S Iswaran, Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry and Education, at the 18th International Oil & Gas Industry Exhibition & Conference (OSEA 2010) on 30 November, highlighted that A*STAR will be collaborating with t...
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Owners of a natural gas-fired power plant in Grays Harbor County are one step closer to expanding production. A state panel recommended to Gov. Chris Gregoire last week that Chicago-based Invenergy LLC be allowed to go forward with the $400 million project, the Olympian newspaper reported. The governor has 60 days to make a decision. Invenergy wants to add two combustion-turbine generators and a single steam generator to double production at its power plant in Satsop. The expansion could generat...
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