Agricultural labor shortages and the drive for ever-higher productivity to control costs and keep prices low is driving the development of apple harvesters that rely on vacuum systems. These systems have been under development for several years, with promised introduction in 2018. Will this be the year that vacuum-driven automation reaches the orchards? Equipment developers [...]
Recently, several climbers have harnessed the power of vacuum to scale massive skyscrapers. Although we might not always realize it, vacuum plays a role in countless aspects of our everyday lives. In this series, we take a closer look at just how much we rely on vacuum, from the way we breathe to our bicycle [...]
Vacuum…It’s everywhere: Smog-free cities? Dutch inventors are working hard at using vacuum to create smog free cities. In recent years, two projects have taken root in the Netherlands to build giant vacuum cleaners that will suck in air polluted with micro particulates, capture them, and release clean air. The targets of these technologies are fine and [...]
“For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.” So says Newton’s Third Law of Thermodynamics. The principle is fundamental to space travel, as the combustion of propellant exhausted from the rear of the spacecraft imparts forward motion. But what if a rocket could be designed without reliance on Newton’s Third Law, and could travel [...]
Wine spoilage. A nice bottle of wine is a pretty common house gift for those invited to a holiday gathering. But what happens if the bottle is opened for a taste, but much of it remains when your guests leave? You know that, once the cork is pulled, the air will cause the wine to degrade. [...]
Without vacuum technology, scientists would not have been able to measure the speed of light.
Scientists have recently created a nanoscale version of vacuum tube technology that may offer a 1000-fold performance increase over semiconductors for electronic devices.
Vacuum could be the key to replacement of fossil fuels in our energy mix.
The device most people associate with the word "vacuum" has recently passed its hundredth birthday.
Vacuum food storage revolutionized the way people store and use food products.
