China in Africa

A team around Jian SUN has used high-energy plasma to prepare a copper catalyst sputted on silica which reacts during hydrogenation as Cu^o (zero-valence or noble metal state). The catalyst reduced dimethyloxalate with 87% selectivity to the primary hydrogenation product, methyl glycolate, not to the complete hydrogenation products ethylene glycol and ethanol. Density functional theory calculations revealed that Cu^ois the active site of the preliminary hydrogenation step, selectively converting DMO to MG via •H addition.

CAS news release, December 22, 2018

Luminescent solar concentrators (LSCs) are large-area sunlight collectors. Efficient LSCs can significantly reduce the cost of photovoltaic (PV) technologies. WU Kaifeng and colleagues at CAS DICP have used ytterbium doped perovskite nanocrystals and shown that absorption of one blue photon by the nanocrystal host led to the emission of two near-infrared photons from the ytterbium dopants. This is a signature of quantum cutting, i.e., cutting one photon into two while conserving the total energy. By incorporating such doped nanocrystals into a polymer matrix, they were able to fabricate the first quantum cutting LSC with the highest ever internal optical efficiency, two-fold higher than previous records.

CAS news release, December 21, 2018

The group of LIU Tianzhong from CAS Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology (QIBEBT) has investigated yellow-green microalga Tribonema sp., a filamentous oleaginous microalgae, for biodiesel production. It has advantages over other unicellular oily microalgae for cultivation adaptability and easy harvesting due to its filamentous character. Moreover, Tribonema sp. is also capable of using glucose as substrate for rapid heterotrophic growth, providing a way to speed up the production of microalgal lipid.The team constructed a global network model of the central carbon metabolism and lipid biosynthetic pathways and showed thatinsufficient supply of carbon precursors related fatty acid synthesis caused low levels of final lipid accumulation during heterotrophic cultivation. When they supplemented exogenous potassium palmitate, the total lipid content in T. minus grown in heterotrophic culture was dramatically enhanced.

CAS news release, December 21, 2018

According to the “2018 Chinese artificial intelligence mobile phone industry research report”, AI smartphones held only 10 % market share in 2017 but will rise to 80 % in 2022, with sales of over 1.3 billion units. The most important functions are face authentication, smart brightness adjustment in photography, AI-based smart facial beauty, and AI image recognition. 

Japan JST China news, December 20, 2018

BF-30 is a single chain polypeptide which contains 30 amino acid residues, with a molecular mass of 3637. First isolated by CAS Institute of Zoology in Kunming which has specialized in antimicrobial peptides derived from snakes and amphibians, the peptide has been approved for clinical treatment of vaginosis but is also studied as an antiviral agent.

CAS news release, December 18, 2018

The “Zhongqiu 1 Well” in the Kucha depression at the intersection of the Tarim Basin and the South Tianshan orogenic belt has become the main area for the construction of the 30 million-ton oil and gas field in the Tarim Oilfield. According to China Economic Net, 100 billion cubic meters of condensate may be buried there.

Japan JST China news, December 14, 2018

The manned submarine developed by Shanghai Ocean University and West Lake University has reportedly exceeded twice a depth of 10.000 m during diving tests.

Japan JST China news release, December 13, 2018

The lunar probe launched on Dec. 8 was decelerated to orbit the moon and choose an appropriate time for landing at the distant side of the moon. The scientific tasks, apport from surveying terrain and landforms, will be on low-frequency radio astronomical observation. Low-frequency radio observation on the front side of the moon is not very effective due to the cause of the earth’s electromagnetic environment. On the reverse side, the electromagnetic environment is very excellent, and it provides an ideal place for low frequency radio astronomy observation and research which is the most advanced in the field of space science.

CAS news release, December 13, 2018

According to a statement of China Great Wall Industry Co., the company will start construction of a satellite system Hongyan which will allow users access to their exact position accurate to about 10 centimeters in less than one minute, no matter where they are, The Beidou system will obtain basic positioning data and then transmit it to ground control, which will use algorithms to improve accuracy before sending the information to the Hongyan constellation. Hongyan satellites, carrying augmentation devices in low orbit, will then further process the positioning data and deliver it to end users around the globe. China Aerospace intends to carry aloft about 60 Hongyan satellites before the end of 2022, and then place more than 200 smaller satellites in orbit to form a network called Kuilong with global reach. Kuilong would revolutionize a wide range of businesses including the internet of things and smart transportation.

Japan JST China news, December 7, 2018

The distributed digital control system DCS can supervise up to 200 nuclear reactors and initiate automatic shut-down in case of problems. The system was developed in China and is considered there as the safest control system hitherto developed. China at present operates 44 nuclear power plants and has 13 more under construction.

Japan JST China news, 7. Dezember 2018

The Chengdu Literature Information Center and the Guangzhou Institute of Biomedicine and Health, both under the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), have published a website  “Stem Cell Innovation Engine”, http://stemcell.kmcloud.ac.cn, which tries to cover much of the present knowledge on stem cell technology. The website is bilingual (English-Chinese) but navigation in English is cumbersome.

CAS news release, December 6, 2018

WANG Feng and colleagues have used a typical dilute fermentation broth of Clonstridium acetobutylicum containing ABE (acetone–butanol–ethanol–water) and transformed the mixture to 4-heptanone (4-HPO), using tin-doped ceria (Sn-ceria) as a Guerbet-catalyst. Selectivity was as high as 86%. Water (up to 27 wt%), detrimental to the reported catalysts for ABE conversion, was beneficial for producing 4-HPO, highlighting the feasibility of the current reaction system. In a 300 h continuous reaction over 2 wt% Sn-ceria catalyst, the average 4-HPO selectivity was maintained at 85% with 50% conversion and > 90% carbon balance.

CAS news release, December 5, 2018

Zhejiang University has introduced a four-legged robot that can walk and climb stairs. “Shadow” can lift objects weighing 20 kilograms, is one meter long, 60 centimeters high and weighs 70 kilograms. The robot is fully electric, has a charged operating time of about two hours and can run at a top speed of just over six kilometers per hour. In the future, it will be used for security checks, logistics, education and research.  

JST Japan China news, December 5, 2018

The groups of Tao JIANG and Xiangxi WANG have solved the structure of the CRISPR-CAS complex of Thermococcus onnurineus by cryo electronmicroscopy. It is the hitherto simplest structure of such complex and might be developed into a new engineering tool.

CAS news release, November 28, 2018