Research

More heat pumps in buildings and more electric cars on the roads will lead to an increase in electricity consumption in Switzerland in the future. To meet this increasing demand, we rely on electricity imports, which, however, often have a large carbon footprint, as they come from gas or coal-fired power plants, for example. In a new study, researchers from Empa and the University of Geneva sketch out various scenarios to show how Switzerland can reduce these CO₂-emitting electricity imports by diversifying the expansion of renewables.

Eawag researchers have won a competition organised by Britain’s National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3R). The prize money is awarded for use in research to develop technologies to replace animal testing.

A team of experts in artificial intelligence and animal ecology have put forth a new, cross-disciplinary approach intended to enhance research on wildlife species and make more effective use of the vast amount of data now being collected thanks to new technologies. Their study recently appeared in Nature Communications.

Wastewater treatment plants are ‘hotspots’ for antibiotic resistance genes and bacteria but sewer overflows exacerbate the problem by disseminating them into rivers. Researchers at Eawag suggest ways to minimise these effects.

ETH Zurich researchers have created artificial colours by 3D printing certain nanostructures inspired by those of a butterfly. This principle can be used in the future to produce colour screens.

Mining can have serious consequences for nature and the health of the population in countries of the Global South, where environmental laws are often only inconsistently implemented. In Hwange, in western Zimbabwe, people have been fighting water pollution from coal mining for years. But they were powerless against the operators – until doctoral student Désirée Ruppen launched a citizen science project in 2018.

Super-insulating materials such as aerogels are expensive. At the same time, they offer a powerful advantage: the thinner the insulation of a building, the larger its usable area. An Empa research team shows when and where, even today, the use of aerogel is already economically viable and ventures an optimistic forecast.

ETH researchers have used computer simulations to show that tissue structure in different types of cancer is decisive in determining how a tumour develops. This information could make it possible to treat patients in a more targeted manner in future.

A system developed by Grégoire Courtine and Jocelyne Bloch now enables patients with a complete spinal cord injury to stand, walk and even perform recreational activities like swimming, cycling and canoeing. 

Can you see sounds? Obviously not. Nevertheless, this Gallery attempts the seemingly impossible, building a visual bridge to the soundscape the ear perceives all around PSI.

Those who have just undergone surgery in the hospital, with their weakened immune systems, are easy prey for pathogens that lurk on a wide variety of surfaces. Even careful disinfection can only partially prevent these hospital-acquired infections. One hope in the fight against the pathogenic bacteria are bacteriophages. Eawag researchers were able to show that they improve the removal of pathogens from surfaces, especially in combination with chemical disinfection.

Researchers from the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI, in a project led by scientists from the University of Sheffield, have developed a new simulation of the most dangerous radioactive debris from the Fukushima nuclear power plant. Their study could give an enormous boost to the cleanup effort. They are publishing their results today in Nature Materials Degradation.

EPFL researchers have developed a new type of printing process that involves removing material rather than depositing it. Their method could be particularly useful for printing banknotes and ID documents, for example.

Whether on top of a cappuccino or in the wake of waterfalls, foam is omnipresent. Until now, simulating foams realistically with a supercomputer has been almost impossible, but a method further developed by the research group of ETH and Harvard professor Petros Koumoutsakos has overcome the hurdles.

Barely any of Switzerland's solid and liquid animal manure is used to generate energy. Yet fermentation of manure and slurry has the potential to replace fossil fuels and make agriculture more climate-friendly. A publication by energy researchers from institutions including WSL and PSI aims to help government and industry professionals better exploit this valuable resource.