Newsletter: April 2017

Warm greetings and welcome to the energy focus of the Nano News, brought to you by NPEP and partners.  We are already at the end of the month of March and it is hard to keep pace with how the year is flying.

Following on the success of our previous NanoNews writing workshops, including the latest workshop that was conducted at CHRTEM, NMMU, earlier this month, more writing workshops will be rolled out in the next few months. The next workshop will take place at iThemba Labs, Cape Town in the next month. These workshops are aimed at developing a new generation of scientists skilled in science communication. Interested postgraduates are encouraged to email us at NanoNews to express an interest in participating.

Imagining the energy of the future – nanotechnology for clean and sustainable power. Energy security is a big deal for most countries and the demand for energy often outstrips the supply. Electricity is still produced largely from fossil fuels that generate harmful greenhouse gases, a leading cause of climate change. The challenge is to produce energy in a way that is not harmful to the planet, and enough to satisfy the growing demand. Enter the nanoworld, where scientists are unlocking the secrets of how nanotechnology can play its part in solving this challenge.  Nanomaterials are being put to work by scientists in the energy sector in South Africa to help us produce energy to power our nation. In this newsletter, you can read about some of the developments of nanotechnology in the energy sector.

With a mandate to achieve technological change in South Africa’s economy and society, the Department of Science Technology (DST) has identified Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies as a “frontier science and technology” platform that will allow proactive innovation and knowledge generation to benefit from South Africa’s natural resources . Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technology (HFCT) is a technology which uses both hydrogen and fuel cells to generate electrical energy, and is a key player in the alternative energy sector. Therefore this month’s newsletter also looks at how nanotechnology can assist in the development of HFCT in order to improve the South Africa’s economy and thereby improve the quality of life of our people.

As always, we value your input, articles or recommendations on all things nano that you would like to see profiled at the NPEP NanoNews, from news items and postgraduate opportunities to event notifications. For all comments and suggestions, simply email us at nanonews@npep.co.za.