Plastic pollution in the oceans is a truly global problem. Because now the waste has even reached places where no one has been before. For example, at the bottom of the Mariana Trench almost 11,000 meters below the water surface. In principle, however, surprisingly little is known about the distribution of plastic that is no … Read more
Climate and environmental activists often view the extraction of raw materials with mixed feelings. On the one hand, they are often unmissable. Electrification of road traffic, for example, is only possible with the help of large batteries. However, this requires large amounts of lithium, among other things. On the other hand, mines and quarries are … Read more
What are hazardous substances and how do they differ? Handling hazardous substances should in principle be avoided, but handling such substances is essential, especially in industry. Future-oriented and safe handling of hazardous substances is of great importance for the protection and safety of the environment. This includes a corresponding declaration and special rules for storage … Read more
The transport sector plays a significant role in achieving the German climate targets. There has been controversy for some time about the comparison between the environmental balance of conventional drives, purely electric drives and hybrid concepts. The Fraunhofer Institute is now contributing to the debate, certifying that electric cars have the best climate balance. Only … Read more
Electromobility is playing an increasingly important role on the road, especially in the passenger car sector. This is not yet the case on the water and in the air. A US start-up wants to change this in the case of cargo ships: the proposed method is based on a battery system that is installed in … Read more
It will be a long time before humanity completely moves away from fossil fuels. While the road has been long gone, progress is too slow as there are still many dependencies to be overcome. The transformation process is cost-intensive, leads to a loss of wealth and challenges us to make uncomfortable behavioral changes. That is … Read more
Sand is a highly sought-after raw material and is used, among other things, for the production of glass and computer chips. However, by far the largest part is processed in construction. Because sand is absolutely necessary for the production of concrete. The global construction boom of recent years has helped annual sand consumption triple to … Read more
Water scarcity affects agriculture around the world. This is also the case in Europe. And especially in agriculture, a lot of water is used – and wasted. 70 percent of the fresh water available worldwide is used for agriculture, a lot of water is wasted. Geothermal data from the ISS should now help conserve water … Read more