New Scientistreported that China has developed a new way to extract uranium from seawater efficiently and more economically, possibly paving the way for a large-scale industrialization of uraniumextraction.
China has developed a new method for uranium extraction
China Leads the World in Nuclear Power Plant Expansion
According to New Scientist, China is leading the world in building new nuclear power plants, which will only be aided as they have developed a new method for efficient extraction of uranium from seawater. New Scientist reported that "half of the nuclear reactor projects currently under construction are in China," with their installed nuclear capacity to surpass both the US and European Union by 2030.
China has developed this as New Scientist reports that "the world's oceans hold an estimated 4.5 billion tonnes of uranium, which is more than 1000 times the amount that is available through mining."
China Develops New Method for Trapping Uranium with Electric Fields
Previous experiments have harvested uranium from seawater using artificial sponges made of a polymer material. Then there was a method that trapped uranium using an electric field.
According to New Scientist, researcher Shuangyin Wang at Hunan University along with colleagues have developed a new electrochemical method that is both cheaper and more efficient to extract uranium from seawater.
When they tested the method, they were able to extract 100% of the uranium from East China Sea and 85% of the uranium from the South China Sea.
The Cost Savings of New Uranium Extraction Method
They did this by running 1 liter of seawater through the system using two copper electrodes - one positive and one negative, and both collect uranium. This highly efficient method allows both electrodes to gather uranium with incredible cost savings.
Previous electrochemical methods cost $360 per kilogram of uranium extracted, while this new method claims that it cost $83 per kilogram of uranium extracted.
Mercedes-Benz electric truck prototype (July 2016)
Mercedes-Benz shows off Fully Electric Heavy Transport Truck Prototype
Mercedes-Benz unveiled the first fully electric heavy transport truck prototype on Wednesday, July 27, 2016 in Stuttgart, Germany. This "clean energy" commercialtruck has an admissible weight capacity of 29 US tons, and operates with considerable less noise attributed to having no internal combustion engine. The obvious benefit to an electric commercial truck is that it doesn't run on fossil fuel, which improves the air quality versus the current trucks on the road today.
Mercedes-Benz Urban eTruck not Expected to roll out until 2020
Mercedes-Benz calls it the "Urban eTruck" with a maximum driving range of about 124 miles on one charge. Daimler points out on PRNewswire that these clean energy commercial trucks may not be available for commercial use until about 2020. Daimler says that this is due to the "cost-to-efficiency" ratio of building them and an expected decrease in cost to produce the batteries they will use.
Light Distribution Electric Truckers being Tested with Customer trials
Also, fully electric light distribution Daimler trucks are currently being tested with customer trials. This shows that Daimler is actively seeking to compete with Tesla - the car company that only offers electric vehicles - which recently revealed that they are working on an electric semi transport truck.
Mercedes-Benz Rescue Assist App
Mercedes-Benz has developed a "Rescue Assist App" which allows emergency responders to have access to rescue cards in their vehicles. The app gives responders access to rescue cards for all Mercedes-Benz passenger cars and vans since 1990 and all smart models built since 1998. These rescue cards show first responders the safety components in the vehicles, such as the airbags, batteries, and the fuel lines. This app can operate without the need of internet, and is available free of charge.
Mercedes-Benz 2017 E-Class
Mercedes-Benz 2017 E-Class
Mercedes-Benz 2017 E-Class Commercial
Mercedes-Benz E-Class Confusion in "Controversial" TV Commercial
Mercedes-Benz did have a TV commercial that compared its 2017 E-Class to the F 015 "autonomous" concept car, but it did not stay on the air for very long before it was pulled. This is because viewers believed that the new E-Class is an autonomous car, when it is not. It has the self parking feature, and advanced driver-assist systems, but the E-Class is not self driving. The U.S. commercial that was pulled from the air can be watched below.
