SUSTAINABLE ENERGY STORAGE
One aspect of the research on how to make energy sources more sustainable is the introduction of technological innovations that will enable energy to be stored in an environmentally friendly way. It is obvious that energy storage will gain great importance in the near future with the widespread use of devices powered by this energy source, especially electric cars. At this point, lithium-ion batteries have significant limitations regarding sustainability, and researchers criticize the use of lithium-ion in many ways, underlining the need for energy storage technologies that are compatible with the needs of the planet. Based on this need, companies are currently replacing the metals in sodium batteries with lignin-based carbon fibers; lignin fibers produced by electro-fiber extraction method are carbonized and made ready for use. This innovative method makes battery production both sustainable and more efficient.
CARBON CAPTURE TECHNOLOGIES
One of the most important factors that led to the emergence of carbon capture technology is the Paris Agreement. One of the critical articles of the Paris Agreement, which has been in force since 2016 and signed by 175 countries, was to ensure that the global temperature increase is less than 2 °C and to make developments to limit this increase to 1.5 °C. To this end, researchers have accelerated their efforts to prevent the release of carbon dioxide in a way that will trigger climate change, and to capture it and make it available for industrial reuse. This technological innovation has many applications and we will certainly witness the widespread use of carbon capture technologies in the future. Among the main projects that are currently being implemented using these technologies are the production of fuel and energy production with captured carbon.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AGAINST PLASTIC WASTE
The pollution caused by plastic waste is alarming all over the world. Taking steps to prevent this situation, researchers have developed an intelligent robot that can distinguish between different types of plastic waste and detect soft plastics. Thus, it became possible to include these substances, which cannot be distinguished under normal conditions, in the recycling process. Artificial intelligence technology was used to recognize and sort the materials.
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