Tiny robot tools powered by magnets could one day do brain surgery without cutting open the skull

By Changyan He, University of Newcastle Most brain surgery requires doctors to remove part of the skull to access hard-to-reach areas or tumours. It’s invasive, risky, and it takes a long time for the patient to recover. We have developed new, tiny robotic surgical tools that may let surgeons perform “keyhole surgery” on the brain.…

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Conflux Technology, AMSL Aero partner on long-range hydrogen EVTOL aircraft development

Electric vertical takeoff and landing (EVTOL) aircraft maker AMSL Aero and heat exchanger specialist Conflux Technology have shared details of a new partnership, the first phase of which saw Conflux develop hydrogen fuel cell cooling concepts for AMSL Aero’s Vertiia craft. In a statement on Wednesday, Conflux said they had developed “three innovative heat exchanger…

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Metal powder startup EntroMat gets $1 million investment from Swinburne University, Breakthrough Victoria

Breakthrough Victoria and Swinburne University of Technology are each investing $500,000 in EntroMat, a company specialising in High Entropy Materials (HEMs.) HEMs are made by combining five or more main elements and possess “unique chemical and microstructural complexity” and can have useful properties such as high strength and hardness, corrosion and wear resistance, and thermal…

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Manufacturing news briefs — stories you might have missed

Garage Beverage Manufacturing to buy Campari Australia’s factory Garage Beverage Manufacturing will buy Campari Australia’s manufacturing site located at Derrimut, Victoria, according to trade publication The Shout. Campari Australia’s Managing Director Jacopo Borsa is quoted as saying the sale is part of a broader strategy to focus on the sale and marketing of the company’s…

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ARENA grant fuels investor interest in Livium’s LFP battery technology

Livium’s wholly owned subsidiary VSPC has reported increased investor engagement following its recent A$30 million grant from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) for an LFP Demonstration Plant. The company announced on Tuesday that it is actively seeking to close the remaining A$30 million funding gap for the 250-tonne per annum demonstration facility, which will…

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Green hydrogen plans shelved at Port Pirie smelter site

A $750 million green hydrogen facility proposed for Port Pirie’s smelter has been cancelled, according to the South Australian state government. The project, which was announced in 2021 by the former Liberal government, reportedly “never proceeded beyond feasibility” and “has not progressed for some years”, according to a South Australian government spokesperson. The government spokesperson…

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Australian researchers advance eco-friendly perovskite solar cell manufacturing

A Macquarie University-led project has achieved significant breakthroughs in developing industrially viable manufacturing methods for next-generation perovskite solar cells (PSCs), overcoming key barriers to commercial adoption. The research team, headed by Professor Shujuan Huang and Dr Jincheol Kim, in collaboration with UNSW’s Dr DJ Kim, developed solar cell technology that addresses critical industry challenges while…

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New research examines lost opportunity from manufacturers throwing away whey

A University of Adelaide researcher has found that few cheese manufacturers, “across all production scales”, are upcycling the byproduct of whey, the liquid left over after milk is curdled and strained.  According to Jack Hetherington from the Centre for Global Food and Resources, “there is significant potential for widespread change in a relatively short period, particularly…

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