Sustainability Week

Our world faces many challenges, and the UN sustainable development goals are a call for action. Research has a crucial role to play in reaching these goals. The high-quality light and experiment methods available at MAX IV Laboratory enable researchers to see further into materials than ever before. Some experiments directly lead to an improved product, and others are beginning to explore the materials we will use many years from now. MAX IV works together with universities and industry to explore materials and solutions for a sustainable future.

Here you are able to read about sustainability research conducted by MAX IV users.

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News articles

New Eyes on Forest-Based Materials – ForMAX comes online ForMAX is the 15th beamline to come online at MAX IV. A large part of the research to be conducted at the beamline will promote the development of new materials and speciality chemicals from renewable forest resources.
Salts of the Earth aid understanding of Martian salt chemistry How does one learn more about the characteristics of the Martian atmospheric chemistry and climate system from 56 million plus kilometres away? A research group studied the surface solvation of salts from Earth’s Qaidam Basin, which bear close resemblance to Martian salts and how these influence the red planet’s surface.
Mapping the genetic tools of fungi for fuel production Scientists explored the auxiliary activities 7 enzyme family, characterizing four fungal enzymes and uncovering a novel class of flavo-enzymes. The Nature study offers promise for tuning the efficiency of enzymatic break- down processes of biomass feedstocks used in energy and biomaterial production.
Disruptive solar cell company uses synchrotron X-rays to study radical product optimisation How can tomorrow’s solar cells become even more energy efficient? Cleantech company Epishine is currently investigating at the MAX IV beamline HIPPIE. Their patented manufacturing process for producing thin, flexible organic solar cells with printing techniques have resulted in industry-leading products with low-light cells for indoor use.
Scientists detect key structures responsible for coupling process in sugar symporters and decode active sugar transport in plants Researchers from Aarhus University achieved breakthrough insights about the coupling process that allows active sugar transport in plants.They detected the inward and outward confirmations of the symporter Sugar Transport Protein 10 (STP10) – a protein responsible for monosaccharide transport across cell membranes.
Making wood – aligning nanocellulose fibres Freeze drying suspensions of nanocellulose in water under the right conditions result in well-ordered networks of aligned fibres. This study shows that the ice-templating method is a promising way for sustainable composites and new human-made wood materials.
Riverine iron survives salty exit to sea Iron organic complexes in Sweden’s boreal rivers significantly contribute to increased iron concentration in open marine waters, X-ray spectroscopy data shows. A Lund University study in Biogeosciences characterizes the role of salinity for iron-loading in estuarine zones, a factor which underpins intensifying seasonal algal blooms in the Baltic Sea.
Designing a Model Catalyst for Large-Scale Biofuel Production The future of efficient biofuel production is within reach. With measurements from MAX IV’s SPECIES beamline, a group from Lund University and RISE, Research Institutes of Sweden, has successfully developed a model catalyst that, once tuned, holds potential to significantly improve the treatment process for the large-scale manufacture of viable biofuels from lignin. Lignin is a plant polymer only secondary in abundance to cellulose in nature.
Imaging temperature-dependent structural transition in a perovskite nanomaterial An international team of researchers have used nano focused X-rays at the NanoMAX beamline to image the complex structure of metal halide perovskite nanowires. The high-resolution imaging made it possible to see domains inside the nanowire, as the temperature was increased across a structural phase transition. The structure of perovskite materials plays an important role in their properties for solar cells and light-emitting device applications.
COOL sustainability more than a pipe dream in Lund Sustainability measures, when applied intelligently, bolster societal productivity and deliver tangible improvements to the natural environment. Some argue that world economies cannot survive the impacts of business as usual in terms of pollution and high energy demands. In Lund, sustainability in work and life is a consistent aim, and in the most constructive way with COOL DH—the build project for the world’s largest low temperature district heating grid—nearing completion.

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