| Peaceful Waters |
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At the age of 91, Prof. Emeritus Josef Hagin of the Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering is still actively doing what he has done most of his adult life - working towards a better future. He recently took upon himself to coordinate a new two-year joint Palestinian-Israeli research project between the Technion and Al Quds University in Abu Dis, aimed at removing pharmaceuticals from treated wastewater to be used for irrigation.
The project is managed by The Peres Center for Peace - which promotes cooperation and dialog between Israelis and Palestinians and Israel’s Arab neighbors through development and implementation of different projects - and is financed through a grant from the French multinational pharmaceutical company Sanofi. The research evaluates the use of advanced membrane technologies; this will not only lead to safer wastewater quality but also facilitates increased cooperation between Israeli and Palestinian researchers and students. Read more
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| Rust to Riches |
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Professor Avner Rothschild and his research team in the Faculty of Materials Science and Engineering have made a breakthrough in solar fuels.
Using the power of the sun and ultrathin films of iron oxide (commonly known as rust), the researchers have found a novel way to split water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen. The breakthrough, published online in November 2012 in Nature Materials could lead to less expensive, more efficient ways to store solar energy in the form of hydrogen-based fuels.
This could be a major step forward in the development of viable replacements for fossil fuels. “At the end of the day, we would like to substitute solar energy for oil,” lead researcher Rothschild says. “Our approach is the first of its kind. We have found a way to trap light in ultrathin films of iron oxide that are 5,000 times thinner than typical office paper. This is the enabling key to achieving high efficiency and low cost.”
Iron oxide is a common semiconductor material, inexpensive to produce, stable in water, and - unlike other semiconductors such as silicon - can oxidize water without itself being oxidized, corroded, or decomposed. Read more
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