China in Africa

According to a spokesman of China’s National Energy Bureau, China’s investments in renewable energy during the 13th Five-Year Plan” will include hydropower, wind power, solar energy, biomass and geothermal energy and add up to 2.5 trillion Yuan. By 2020, China’s hydropower capacity should reach 380 million kilowatts, wind power more than 210 million kilowatts, solar power more than 1.1 million kilowatts, and biomass power generation 15 million kilowatts. The total use of geothermal heating would be the equivalent of 42 million tons of standard coal. Alltogether, by 2020 China’s commercial use of renewable energy should reach the equivalent of 580 million tons of standard coal. Carbon dioxide emissions will be reduced by about 1.4 billion tons, sulfur dioxide emissions by 10 million tons, nitrogen oxide emissions by 4.3 million tons, soot emissions by about 5.8 million tons, and about 3.8 billion cubic meters of water will be saved. These developments will lead to the employment of more than 13 million people.”

China Bio news release, January 6, 2017

The team of CHEN Shengbo, a geologist with Jilin University, said the 4.36 meters by 2.2 meters map will be finished by 2018, and released by 2020. The map will clearly show lunar geography such as geographic fractures and the size, appearance, and the structure of craters. China’s satellites have captured global images of the Moon, which contribute to the precision of lunar maps

CAS news release, January 5, 2017

China’s unmanned lunar probe Chang’e-5, set to be launched around December 2017, will bring lunar soil samples back to Earth. Chang’e-5 will consist of the orbiter, the return vehicle, the ascender and the lander. The orbiter and return vehicle will orbit the moon, while the lander and ascender will land on the moon. After the lander finishes taking samples, the samples will be placed in containers carried by the ascender, which will then dock with the orbiter and the return vehicle. The samples will be transferred to the return vehicle, which will eventually bring them to Earth.

CAS news release, January 5, 2017

The groups around Guoqiang XU and Xindang MU at CAS QIBEBT have developed a process whereby biomass-derived biofuels such as ethanol and butanol can be transformed in a one-pot chemical reaction with > 90 % selectivity to C8-C19 ketones and alcohols which have biofuel characteristics. A Pd-C catalyst was used for this reaction.

CAS news release, December 22, 2016

Three unmanned deep sea devices oft he type Haidou descended over 10,000 meters underwater and completed sea tests in the Pacific. China is the third country after Japan and the United States to build submersibles capable of reaching depths in excess of 10,000 meters. Scientists forecast that China will have a manned submersible capable of descending to 10,000 meters by 2019 or 2020.

CAS news release, Decembeer 30, 2016

The group of HANG Tao and QIAO Botao from Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (DICP) synthesized a ZnO nanowire supporting a Rh single-atom catalyst. The Rh1/ZnOnw single-atom catalyst was used for hydroformylation of olefins with remarkable activity under mild reaction conditions.

CAS news release, December 29, 2016

The Wuhan Institute of Rock and Soil Mechanics has completed a project to provide equipment for soil remediation technology targeted at typical industrial pollution sites. Three kinds of phosphate-based heavy metal contaminated soils were studied. An electrodynamic chemical remediation technology and a volatile organic matter-directed hot-steam technology were optimized.

China Bio news release, December 28, 2016

The tree shrew, a small mammal that looks like a squirrel, shares a higher degree of similarities with humans than rats do. The group around Ping ZHENG has developed methods to introduce cell surface markers into spermatogonial stem cells of this animal and will continue by knock-out experiments using this methodology.

CAS news release, December 28, 2016

The BeiDou network consisting of 35 satellites for global navigation will be complete by 2020 and start services. Basic services to countries along the Silk Road economic belt and 21st-century maritime Silk Road will start in 2018, and be continuously enhanced as a BeiDou-2 system in the next five years.

CAS news release, December 27, 2016

The China Remote Sensing Satellite North Pole Ground Station began trial operations in Kiruna in Sweden, The station is China’s first ground satellite receiving station overseas.

CAS news release, December 19, 2016

According to BBC research, the global gene sequencing market grew from US $ 8 million in 2007 to approximately US $ 4.5 billion in 2013 and will reach approximately US $ 11.7 billion by 2018. At present, Illumina holds over 70 % of the market share.

China Bio news release, December 26, 2016

A demonstration project of 200,000-kilowatt HTGR nuclear power station was started construction in Rongcheng, Shangdong Province, in 2012 and will start work by the end of 2017. The 600,000-kilowatt HTGR nuclear power station is designed to adopt six reactor modules which connect a single steam turbine, with the generating efficiency reaching 43.7%. China has signed cooperation memorandums on HTGR with Saudi Arabia and Indonesia.

CAS news release, December 23, 2016

The construction of China’s first domestic-built polar research vessel and icebreaker in Shanghai is expected to give a boost to the nation’s polar expedition efforts.
The vessel is scheduled to be completed in 2019, when it is expected to team-up with research vessel and icebreaker Xuelong (Snow Dragon). The vessel will be 122.5 meters long and 22.3 meters wide, with a displacement of 13,990 tonnes and a navigation capability of 20,000 nautical miles. It will be able to break through ice 1.5 meters thick at a maximum speed of 3 knots, according to the institute, which said the vessel can accommodate up to 90 people. According to the Polar Research Institute of China, it will be able to open ice on both its bow and stern, and is capable of sailing unrestricted in global navigating waters.

CAS news release, December 21, 2016

Using a combination of remote sensing, 3D scanning technology and virtual reality procedures, China explores many sites along the silk road such as the ancient city of Milan (Xinjiang), the silk road network oft he Western Han Dynasty (206 B.C.-25 A.D.) which extended to Uzbekistan or Tonguz-bash, a military stronghold from the Tang Dynasty (618-907 A.D.).

CAS news release, December 20, 2016

The holiday will be dedicated to China’s reportedly 81 million S&T workers in their mission to build China into a world-leading S&T power

CAS news release, December 15, 2016