Today's Tech News: Notable or Not?

https://techxplore.com/news/2026-01-mesh-bioreactor-20fold-efficiency-reduction.html "biocake layer naturally forming on 10–200 μm mesh to filter solids eventually clogs/ fouls... overcome integrating piezoelectric ultrasound transducers creating microbubbles rapidly collapsing (transient cavitation), stripping away fouling... cleaning: 3.8 seconds (anaerobic conditions)/ <10 seconds (aerobic), biocake reforms <10 minutes (minimal downtime/ consistent effluent quality)... 120-day continuous filtration test, then 21-day field trial: mesh maintained structural/ mechanical integrity... scalable" Related: New permanently wet coating method could transform wastewater treatment by helping bacteria survive better https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1128820

https://phys.org/news/2025-04-tracking-photogenerated-electrolytes.html#google_vignette "photocatalysis involves interplay between surface charges/ charge transfer at catalyst-electrolyte interface... directly measures nanoscale surface charges (potential/ photovoltage) in liquid electrolyte environments using charged probe, isolating electrostatic forces from long-range interactions, mapping electric field distribution within electrical double layer... surface charges at solid-liquid interface create additional driving force, pulling photogenerated electrons to surface, driving charge transfer reaction" Related: Novel unsymmetrical molecule produces perfect photocatalyst potential https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1095128 Red light and recyclable catalysts drive sustainable photocatalysis https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1102742 A molecular engineering breakthrough could make photocatalytic reactions over 40X more efficient https://www.colorado.edu/rasei/2025/...

https://techxplore.com/news/2023-02-simultaneous-electricity-generation-filtration-wastewater.html "sandwich-like membrane provide drinking water and generate continuous electricity from wastewater, seawater, and groundwater... filters water at bottom and conductive polymer generates electricity at top... controls direction of water flow. Water flowing perpendicularly to membrane generates direct current by movement of ions in horizontal direction... rejects >95% of contaminants of sizes <10 nm... microplastics and heavy metal removed, and continuous electricity can be generated for >3 h with only 10 µl water" Related: Bioengineered E. coli generates electricity from wastewater https://techxplore.com/news/2023-09-bioengineered-coli-generates-electricity-wastewater.html Generating small amounts of electricity by squeezing luffa sponges https://techxplore.com/news/2023-09-generating-small-amounts-electricity-luffa.html Loofah-like polymer for sustainable filters and el...

https://discovery.kaust.edu.sa/en/article/1197/making-light-work-of-emerging-micropollutants "The researchers found that the effectiveness of high-intensity pulsed light (HIPL) varied significantly depending on parameters including the number of pulses and the total energy dose delivered by the light. This allowed them to identify the most effective conditions for treating a test solution containing 11 significant OMPs, including drugs, hormones and industrial chemical contaminants" Related: Novel nanofiltration membrane shows high efficiency in acidic wastewater treatment https://phys.org/news/2023-01-nanofiltration-membrane-high-efficiency-acidic.html From waste to clean water: Tiny carbon particles can do the job https://phys.org/news/2023-03-tiny-carbon-particles-job.html New wood-based technology removes 80% of dye pollutants in wastewater https://phys.org/news/2023-03-wood-based-technology-dye-pollutants-wastewater.html Wastewater to energy: New treatment process can im...

https://news.mit.edu/2021/removing-lead-water-electrodialysis-0922 "first such method that might be applicable for treating household water supplies, as well as industrial uses... uses a process called shock electrodialysis, in which an electric field is used to produce a shockwave inside an electrically charged porous material carrying the contaminated water... costs are mostly for the ongoing energy input, which is very small... We do have a reasonable idea of how to scale this up" Related: Zapping Untreated Water Gets Rid Of More Waterborne Viruses https://today.tamu.edu/2021/10/20/zapping-untreated-water-gets-rid-of-more-waterborne-viruses/ Microwave-assisted synthesis of biomass-derived N-doped carbon dots for metal ion sensing https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1097204

https://news.fit.edu/academics-research/from-septic-to-sustainable-a-potential-new-source-of-fertilizer/ "converting human waste from home septic systems into phosphorus-rich fertilizer... could reduce the cost of pumping out septage by as much as 25 percent... high temperature, high-pressure process called hydrothermal carbonization (HTC)... a thermochemical conversion technique that can transform wet biomass into energy and chemicals without pre-drying... a mobile unit that can pick up the waste, convert it to fertilizer and then move on to the next house" Related: CSU researchers launch $1.9 million project for water treatment and reuse using biochar https://agsci.source.colostate.edu/csu-researchers-launch-1-9-million-project-for-water-treatment-and-reuse-using-biochar/ How plants are inspiring new ways to extract value from wastewater https://phys.org/news/2023-01-ways-wastewater.html SHARC extracts heat from wastewater https://www.waste360.com/wastewater/sharc-unleashes...