(NanoRealm) - A U.S. chemical engineer says he’s developed a way to make all-natural personal care products and purer pharmaceuticals in the laboratory.

Kansas State University Professor Peter Pfromm, in collaboration with former visiting doctoral student Kerstin Wurges, said he has engineered a way to use enzymes to efficiently catalyze chemical reactions to create such products as scents for perfumes or to avoid the introduction of inactive ingredients in drugs.

He said the process is essentially an enzyme-covered nanoparticle of fumed silica. Since enzymes come from natural organisms, the end product can be billed as natural, Pfromm said.
He said enzymes also can be used to make a purer form of pharmaceuticals, noting the active molecules in many drugs often come with an inactive twin. However, enzymes are very effective at only producing the active version of the molecule.

“Most of the time the inactive twin molecule is harmless, but there is a trend toward making more pure pharmaceuticals,” Pfromm said. “Enzymes are exceedingly good at taking reactants and making them into only one of the versions, not both. They are supremely selective in this way; chemical catalysts are not.”

Wurges, listed as a co-inventor on the process patent, worked with Pfromm on devising the preparation and did much of the lab work. She is presently pursing her doctorate at the Julich Research Center in Germany.

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Source: Ethopian Review (http://www.ethiopianreview.com/news/153650)

(NanoRealm) - The Shimizu Corporation, a Japanese construction firm, has recently proposed a plan to harness solar energy on a larger scale than almost any previously proposed concept. Their ambitious plan involves building a belt of solar cells around the Moon’s 6,800-mile (11,000-kilometer) equator, converting the electricity to powerful microwaves and lasers to be beamed at Earth, and finally converting the beams back to electricity at terrestrial power stations. The Luna Ring concept, the company says, could meet the entire world's energy needs.

Shimizu envisions that robots would play a vital role in building the Luna Ring. Teleoperated 24 hours a day from the Earth, the robots would perform tasks such as ground leveling and assembling machines and equipment, which would be done in space before landing them on the Moon. A team of astronauts would support the robots on-site.



Due to the massive amount of solar panels and other materials needed for the project, Shimizu proposes that lunar resources should be used to the fullest extent possible. The company’s plans call for producing water by reducing lunar soil with hydrogen imported from Earth. Lunar resources could also be used to make cementing material and concrete, while solar-heat treatments could help produce bricks, glass fibers, and other structural materials needed for the project.

The Luna Ring itself would initially have a width of a few kilometers, but could be extended up to 400 kilometers wide. The electric power generated by the solar cells would be transmitted by electric cables to transmission facilities on the near side of the Moon, which is constantly facing Earth. After the electricity is converted into microwave beams and laser beams, 20-kilometer-diameter antennas would beam the power to receivers on Earth. A guidance radio beacon would ensure accurate transmission to the receivers. The energy would then be converted back to electricity and supplied to grids, or possibly converted to hydrogen for fuel or storage.



Shimizu points out that one of the biggest advantages of the Luna Ring is that, since the Moon has virtually no atmosphere, there is no bad weather or clouds that could inhibit the efficiency of the solar panels. As such, the Luna Ring achieves 24/7 continuous clean energy generation, potentially ending our reliance on limited natural resources.

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Source: Shimuzu Corperation