In the near future, it is expected that a wide variety of composite materials will be strong, light-weight, cheap and "greener", thanks to a new invention - an energy-saving technology that allows the utilization of reactions that occur at low temperatures
[Translation by Dr. Nachmani Moshe]
Richard E. Riman focuses on making ceramic materials under sustainable conditions.
Nine years ago, Professor Richard E. Riman in the Department of Materials Science at Rutgers University invented an energy-saving technology that enables the utilization of reactions that occur at low temperatures in an aqueous medium. As a result of this development, he and the researchers in his team can now carry out chemical reactions that previously required the use of very high temperatures.
So far, the revolutionary technology has been used to prepare more than thirty different types of materials, including cement capable of storing carbon dioxide, which is the main greenhouse gas that causes global warming. Other materials include several groups of composite materials that include a wide variety of metals, polymers and ceramic components whose activity may be similar to that of wood, bones, shells and even steel. A particularly promising possibility inherent in the invention is the ability to develop lightweight materials for the automotive industry. These materials could be used for the production of engines, chassis and internal and external vehicle parts. Other materials will be able to perform advanced and innovative electronic, optical and magnetic functions that can replace the mechanical functions that exist today.
The researchers are now focusing on the preparation of sustainable ceramic materials, i.e. materials prepared with little energy investment and with a low carbon dioxide footprint. The innovative technology, protected as a patent, allows the creation of chemical bonds between different materials at low temperatures and is known as "reactive hydrothermal liquid-phase densification". The research findings have long been published in the scientific journalJournal of the American Ceramic Society.
"Normally, our reactions to prepare composite materials do not occur at a temperature exceeding 240 degrees Celsius, and in many of the processes we have tried, the temperature is as low as room temperature." The lead researcher explains how he arrived at the innovative development: "I looked at how molluscs create ceramic protective layers at low temperature, layers such as carbon crystals, and from these observations I came up with the idea to replicate this mechanism in my laboratory." The researcher came up with his idea decades ago, but he didn't reveal his technology until global warming became a serious problem.
"When it was important for researchers to focus on the development of "green" (environmentally friendly) technologies in order to address the problem of carbon emissions in the world, I decided that the time had come to commercialize and reveal my technology." Following this, he founded the start-up company Solidia Technologies Ltd. in New Jersey in 2008. The company itself markets advanced and environmentally friendly cement for the construction industry. "In the first step, we wanted to prove that it is possible to produce a material whose cost is the same as that of Portland cement." We were able to develop a process technology that allows us to apply our technology directly to the existing production lines in the cement industry without investing financial expenses."
The company produces cement with excellent strength and stability that allows for a reduction of the carbon footprint by up to 70 percent. The company's products based on cement components include tiles, blocks and other building components. The second start-up company founded by the researcher, RRTC Ltd., develops advanced composite materials for diverse use, among others in the fields of electronics, optics, magnetic materials, biomedicine, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, agriculture, electrochemistry, energy production and storage, aviation, automotive , the shielding, the fabrics and the like.
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There is already the mccrit
Funny that they patent something whose vision is sustainability! On the one hand they limit the use for a period of at least 15 years and on the other hand the vision that widespread use will affect global warming.