Best of the week — the five most popular stories among readers, September 15 – September 19, 2025

What were the five biggest stories of the week? Here’s what visitors to @AuManufacturing were reading. 5) Green Gravity says former Wollongong Resources coal mine to host world’s first demo deployment of “breakthrough technology” Green Gravity and Wollongong Resources have announced execution of a binding agreement for gravitational energy storage trials at the Russell Vale mine. The pair…

Scientists create ‘magic’ material that pulls drinking water from thin air

Australian scientists have developed a revolutionary nanomaterial that can extract clean drinking water from air humidity, potentially helping millions of people without access to safe water. The “light as a feather” material can hold more than three times its weight in water and works far faster than existing commercial technologies, researchers from UNSW announced this…

Monash scientists develop filter to remove “forever chemicals” from water

Monash University researchers have created an innovative water filtration membrane that effectively removes small PFAS molecules, a significant advance over traditional filters that struggle with these persistent pollutants. PFAS, dubbed “forever chemicals,” are widely used in industrial and consumer products and pose potential health risks due to their environmental persistence. Their presence in Australian drinking…