Tech
Eco-friendly composite fibers offer durable, multifunctional air filtration for industry
As industries including coal chemical processing, oil and gas refining, and semiconductor manufacturing undergo technological upgrading, the demand for advanced air filtration technologies and materials has surged—driven by the dual need to safeguard production processes and support environmental sustainability.
Key requirements include the synergistic removal of fine particulate matter (PM) and harmful gases, as well as the development of new filtration materials that combine environmental friendliness with multifunctional performance.
Traditional cellulose paper-based filtration materials, however, face critical limitations: insufficient mechanical strength and stability, which restrict their application in demanding industrial settings.
To address this gap, researchers from the Xinjiang Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have explored combining cellulose with inorganic rigid fibers, and they have developed environmentally friendly and multifunctional air filtration materials. Their study is published in the Journal of Hazardous Materials.
The team used Lyocell fibers (a type of natural biomass fiber) and basalt fibers (a mineral-based fiber) as raw materials, fabricating a series of composite fiber filtration materials through a wet-laid process—an adhesive-free manufacturing method that enhances the materials’ environmental compatibility.
Testing showed the composite materials have two key advantages over pure cellulose fiber-based alternatives: first, the incorporation of basalt fibers significantly enhances their burst strength and tear strength, solving the fragility issue of traditional cellulose filters; second, despite containing rigid basalt fibers, the composites still maintain high flexibility, allowing them to adapt to different filtration equipment and installation scenarios.
To further enhance the materials’ air purification capabilities, the researchers grew zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8)—a type of metal-organic framework with high adsorption capacity—in-situ on the surface of the composite fibers.
Additionally, the basalt fiber component imparted excellent heat resistance to the composites. Even at temperatures as high as 250 °C—common in coal chemical and oil refining processes—the materials maintained stable filtration performance, outperforming traditional cellulose filters that degrade at high temperatures.
These materials provide an efficient, multifunctional, and sustainable solution for air filtration in complex industrial environments, the researchers noted.
More information:
Ze-Xin Chen et al, Highly flexible and multifunctional lyocell-basalt fiber filter media for high-performance air filtration, Journal of Hazardous Materials (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2025.139221
Citation:
Eco-friendly composite fibers offer durable, multifunctional air filtration for industry (2025, August 26)
retrieved 26 August 2025
from https://techxplore.com/news/2025-08-eco-friendly-composite-fibers-durable.html
This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no
part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.
Alongside its price-friendly iPhone 17e and M4 iPad Air yesterday, Apple just announced a few updates to the MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, and its rarely-refreshed desktop display line.
The MacBook Air has now been updated to the latest M5 chip. It’s a fairly modest upgrade, but it brings it up to speed with Apple’s latest processor that debuted in the MacBook Pro last fall. There are no other major hardware changes—it now comes with 512 GB of starting storage with “faster SSD technology”—but you can still get the Air in either a 13- or 15-inch screen size.
This laptop also features Apple’s N1 wireless chip, which includes Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 for the latest connectivity standards. It still comes with the standard 16 GB of RAM, and sadly, there’s a $100 price bump to account for the extra storage. It now starts at $1,099 for the 13-inch model and $1,299 for the 15-inch model. Apple says you can preorder it tomorrow, with sales kicking off on March 11.
More interestingly, Apple is expanding the M5 chip series with the M5 Pro and M5 Max, now available in the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro. Like previous generations of Apple silicon, the “Pro” and “Max” configurations add significantly improved multi-core CPU and graphics performance.
The M5 Pro and M5 Max can be configured with up to 18 CPU cores (12 performance cores and 6 “super” cores), up from 16 on the M4 Max. The M5 Pro can scale up to 20 GPU cores, while the M5 Max extends up to 40 GPU cores. Thanks to higher memory bandwidth, more efficient Neural Engine, and improved GPU architecture, Apple says the M5 Pro and M5 Max have “over 4X the peak CPU compute for AI” compared to the last generation and offer 20 percent better GPU performance.
The new MacBook Pros don’t include any other hardware changes; things have stayed largely the same since 2021—same port selection, Mini-LED display, speakers, and webcam. Even the claimed 24-hour battery life hasn’t changed from the M4 models, which came out in late 2024. Interestingly, as recently as last week, Bloomberg reported that Apple plans to launch a more significant update to the MacBook Pro later this fall, which will reportedly debut the M6 chip, an OLED touchscreen, and a thinner chassis.
Like the MacBook Air, all versions of the M5 Pro or M5 Max MacBook Pros come with twice the storage and a slightly higher starting price. Coming with 1 TB, the 14-inch M5 Pro now starts at $2,199, and the 16-inch model at $2,699. That’s $200 more than last year’s machines. Meanwhile, M5 Max prices start at $3,599.
Vendor or supplier lock-in has been a longstanding topic of discussion, as far back as my first days in IT all the way back in 2002, and probably before. It was a common complaint of many large enterprises who felt penalised by multi-year managed service contracts that didn’t quite deliver on all the things they were promised, yet had no real means to do anything about it.
This was also an issue during the formative years of hyperscale cloud. People didn’t forget the pain they had experienced. As a result many discussions have focused on how to prevent vendor lock-in, concerned by the lack of interoperability to pick and choose solutions which were largely limited by the cloud providers’ ecosystem and service offerings.
Platformisation faces the same challenges, where financial efficiencies are weighed against functional and innovation limitations. Having worked for a hyperscale cloud company previously, the general consensus was “multi-cloud lowers capabilities to the lowest common denominator”, while customers complained “make it easier for us to do multi-cloud”. So where does the happy medium sit between these two ideas?
This is where open standards play such an important and pivotal role. Open standards are the common language that allow different software systems, hardware, and platforms to talk to one another without needing a translator. They are the antithesis of vendor lock-in and are critical for cross-platform integration for several key reasons:
- Interoperability: Open standards (like IPSIE or Oauth) operate across vendors and allow customers to pick and choose which solutions they can use, without being limited to a single vendor or technology stack. Developers don’t have to reverse-engineer how a proprietary system works. If a platform supports an open standard (like Oauth for logging in), the integration path is already documented and understood.
- Future-proofing and longevity: Proprietary integrations are fragile. If a vendor changes their internal code or goes out of business, the integration breaks. Open standards bring stability. Open standards are maintained by independent bodies (like the OpenID Foundation for IPSIE). They evolve slowly and deliberately, ensuring backward compatibility.
- Avoiding the ‘translation tax’: Without open standards, every integration requires a custom translation layer. When two platforms speak the same open standard (e.g., two email servers using SMTP), they communicate directly. You avoid the processing overhead and potential for errors that come with converting data from one proprietary format to another constantly.
- Innovation and competition: Open standards lower the barrier to entry for new competitors, which benefits the ecosystem as a whole. You can build a best-in-class tech stack. You might use a CRM from Salesforce, email from Google, and a database from Amazon. They all support open standards (like RESTful APIs), so you can stitch them together into a unified workflow.
Open standards are the fundamental bedrock of modern platformisation strategies. They shift the architectural paradigm from monolithic silos – where one vendor does everything – to modular ecosystems (where distinct, best-in-class tools connect seamlessly). This allows organisations to grow and adapt their technology stack when needed and ensures platformisation is not a one-way decision.
Stephen McDermid is EMEA CSO at Okta
Read more on Cloud security
L.L. Bean is infamous for its outdoorsy appeal, ranging from outerwear and supplies to withstand the elements to laid-back lifestyle products. The company was established in 1912 by Leon Leonwood Bean in Maine. It remains headquartered there today, continually rolling out revered classics and updated essentials for today’s nature lovers. Take the Bean Boots: what started as L.L. Bean’s premier product ultimately helped shape the brand into what it is today. This definitive shoe, which can be worn on hiking trails and rain-slicked city streets alike, has remained true to the original version. If you’ve ever wanted to capture the essence of being a rugged Mainer or recreate a cozy cabin at home, here are plenty of L.L. Bean promo code options at your fingertips.
Get 10% Off Your First Order With an L.L.Bean Promo Code
You may bemoan email updates, but in terms of sales, this L.L. Bean coupon is a pretty low lift. Sign up for email updates from the company, and you get 10% off your first order. This offer is valid only once per email address, so choose your purchase wisely.
Take Up to 75% Off Outdoor Gear in the L.L.Bean Sale Section
Sales mean stocking up, especially on outdoor equipment and camping supplies ahead of your next adventure. Whether you’re about to take up fishing and need supplies, or have Noah Kahan concert tickets in sight and want extras from his L.L. Bean collaboration collection for the event, all of that is available to you. You can save 75% off these L.L. Bean sale items, no promo code needed.
This is a different sort of two-for-one special: twice a day, L.L. Bean posts new sales at 6 AM and 2 PM sharp, Eastern time. While the two-a-day daily markdown is not super expansive in terms of inventory up for grabs, what is posted for sale usually comes at a heavily discounted price akin to deals you’d see on Black Friday.
This L.L. Bean sale is like an online treasure hunt. The daily markdown sale involves a new deal posted daily from 6 AM to midnight Eastern time. Inventory leans toward gear, such as backpacks, blankets, and shoes.
Score Free Shipping on Orders Over $75
We’ve all abandoned our online shopping carts at one point or another once we saw how much shipping was going to cost. Shipping usually costs $8 for a standard L.L. Bean order—that is, if you are under $75. If you hit that threshold or more, you immediately score free shipping on your order.
Military, First Responders, Medical Workers, and Students Can Save an Additional 10%
Being in the medical field or a first responder can often be a tough, thankless job. But, there’s a special L.L. Bean sale for medical workers and first responders so that you can stock up on supplies for when you rest and recharge in your down time. Use the L.L. Bean first responder discount for 10% off—be sure to verify your license status through SheerID.
L.L. Bean military discount offers 10% for military personnel, current or former. This discount also applies to family members—if you or a family member would like to partake, verify your status via SheerID.
Teachers deserve their (wild)flowers. To make sure you have what you need for your next outdoor adventure and say thanks, you can get 10% off with the special L.L. Bean teacher discount. College students, there’s also the L.L. Bean student discount where you 10% off, too. To redeem either of these discounts, make sure to verify your teaching or student (or both!) status via SheerID.
Earn 20% Off With the L.L.Bean Mastercard
If you’re hunting for a potential credit card candidate, and already are an avid L.L. Bean fan, this is the opportunity for you. You can earn 20% off once approved for an L.L. Bean Mastercard, along with free shipping on all orders when you use it—no minimum purchase necessary.
Polyester filament prices jump in India as crude spikes
Reeves says her plan is working as growth forecast cut for this year
Luke Grimes reveals tough call he made before ‘Yellowstone’ spinoff
-
Politics5 days agoWhat are Iran’s ballistic missile capabilities?
-
Politics5 days agoUS arrests ex-Air Force pilot for ‘training’ Chinese military
-
Business7 days agoHouseholds set for lower energy bills amid price cap shake-up
-
Sports1 week agoTop 50 USMNT players of 2026, ranked by club form: USMNT Player Performance Index returns
-
Sports5 days agoSri Lanka’s Shanaka says constant criticism has affected players’ mental health
-
Business7 days agoLucid widely misses earnings expectations, forecasts continued EV growth in 2026
-
Fashion5 days agoPolicy easing drives Argentina’s garment import surge in 2025
-
Sports1 week agoSouth Africa thrash India by 76 runs in T20 World Cup Super 8 – SUCH TV