Top News of Last Week with ANA
Azad News Agency (ANA) published a number of scientific and technological news during the past week whose top ones are as follows:
Iranian Knowledge-Based Company Exports Micro-Capacitors to Regional Markets
A knowledge-based company located in the West Azerbaijan Science and Technology Park in the Western part of Iran exports its locally produced industrial durable micro-capacitors to the countries in the region.
“Based on the challenges that the oil industry faced in the field of capacitors, we carried out studies in this field,” Akbar Fathi Jalali, the managing director of the knowledge-based company, said, according to a report by Communication and Information Center of Iranian Vice Presidency's Science, Technology and Knowledge-Based Economy.
“The capacitors in the past used to last for a short period of time and this made it necessary to constantly replace them. In order to solve this problem, we started the production of industrial micro-capacitors in 2019, and it was then we could begin mass production of them."
Referring to acquiring the patent for a capacitor with three times being more durable than the lifespan of previous models used to be produced in 2016, Jalali said, “Changes in appearance and increasing the lifespan of capacitors are among the points that make the products of this company stand out among others. Meanwhile, the capacitors designed in this company are 10-15% cheaper than other capacitors.”
The managing director of the knowledge-based company further pointed out, “These advantages helped us to be able cooperate with 32 out of 128 cement factories in the country and 121 out of 480 steel factories to supply them with the needed capacitors. In addition, to meet the needs of smaller industries, we also provided capacitors for hospital electronic equipment, food and dairy industries, paper and cardboard, plastics, tiles and ceramics.”
Iran, First Regional Country to Implement Decadal Meteorological Forecasting Models
A member of the scientific board of the Climatology Research Institute of Iran’s Meteorology and Atmospheric Sciences Research Center announced that Iran is the first country in the region that has successfully implemented decadal meteorological forecasting models.
“The meteorological organization enjoys the capability and possibility to provide annual forecasts for a maximum of 10 years and Iran is the first country in the region to implement this model and other countries in the region have not yet achieved it,” Iman Babaeeian said.
“Our first experience with decadal forecasts shows that this new product has relatively good predictability and has forecasted the trends well in the 2021 model run for 2022,” he added.
Babaeeian noted that there is a good correlation between water surface temperature and solar radiation which can be used to predict ocean SST.
“At present, it is possible to predict the weather on a day to month and season scale with relatively good accuracy. Also, it is now possible to implement year, decade and century forecasts in the country's meteorological organization,” he underlined.
Iranian Female Researcher Receives Islamic World’s Environmental Award
Lobat Taghavi, a scientist from won the second prize in the Research, Achievements, and Successful Practices section of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Award for Environmental Management in the Islamic World (KSAAEM).
In the ‘Women’s Award for Research, Achievements and Successful Practices,’ the first place went to Hanan Al-Mahashir from Saudi Arabia, and the second place went to Dr. Lobat Taghavi from Iran.
The 9th Conference of Environment Ministers in the Islamic World, held by the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), and hosted by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, witnessed the awards ceremony of the third session of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Award for Environmental Management in the Islamic World, in which 22 winners from 18 countries received KSAAEM prizes.
This Iranian scientist was picked and awarded among 5,000 people who produce scientific articles in the environmental field, according to a report by the Iranian Department of Environment.
Iranian Student Develops New Solar-Powered Desalination System
A PhD student at the Iranian Babol Noshirvani University of Technology in Mazandaran has developed a solar-powered desalination system using membrane distillation (MD) method.
Membrane distillation (MD) is a promising technology for treating saline water and wastewater with high rejection factors, which cannot be accomplished by conventional technologies. MD is a thermally driven separation process in which only the vapor molecules pass through a microporous hydrophobic membrane.
Mojtabi Jahanshahi, a 29-year-old PhD student in mechanical engineering, energy conversion from Babol city, succeeded in making a solar water desalination machine using membrane distillation (MD) method.
In response to the question of “How did you come up with the idea of making a solar water desalination system?” he said,adding, “The idea of developing this device for the PhD thesis was based on the assessment of the needs for such a device in the country given water challenge and the need for optimal management of energy consumption.”
Iran-Made Device Adjusts Time, Speed of Sports Training
A wireless sound warning device which regulates time and speed of sports training courses was developed by an Iranian student at Islamic Azad University’s Orumiyeh branch.
The device which has been designed and made by Rasoul Sharafi, a master's student in physical education at Islamic Azad University’s Orumiyeh branch and the managing director of a knowledge-based company stationed at the incubator center of the university, was unveiled in a ceremony attended by the relevant officials.
“This device is used to automate the coaching work in record sports like skating, running and cycling,” said Head of Islamic Azad University in West Azarbaijan province Mohammad Reza Valilou, addressing the ceremony.
“By entering the information of the athletes, the coach can evaluate and compare the results obtained with other athletes and, based on the results, design the best and most suitable training plan for the athlete and implement the exercises by means of the hardware of the device,” he added.
Valilou said that the device is also able to separate members based on age groups, process group and individual data, analyze on-the-track training, and simulate the training opponent.
Loading Capacity of Iran's South Pars Gas Condensate Terminal Increased
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Iran Oil Terminals Company (IOTC) said with the technical and operational measures taken and relying on domestic capabilities, the loading capacity of the ground loading site of truck tankers in South Pars Gas Condensate Terminal was increased.
“The management and handling of the South Pars gas condensate ground loading facility were entrusted to this company from the beginning of July last year, and since then, the necessary measures to secure and improve the loading capacity up to 30,000 barrels was put on the agenda,” Abbas Gharibi, the CEO of the IOTC said.
“Due to the fact that four meters devices out of the total eight meters in this site were out of service, the loading capacity was about 16,000 barrels per day. But through planning and taking the necessary measures and relaying on domestic capabilities, the necessary measures to repair and fix the problems of the meters were prioritized,” he added.
“With a lot of effort and the use of domestically-manufactured parts, three meters out of a total of four out of service meters were fixed, overhauled and put back into service after performing relevant tests, and about 40% was added to the loading capacity of this site, and now the site is operating with 90% of its capacity,” Gharibi concluded.
Iranian Researchers Offer New Method to Revive Fire-Hit Pastures
The Tehran-based Tarbiat Modares University’s (TMU) researchers have offered a method for the recovery of native pastures after fire.
According to a report by the Iran National Science Foundation(INSF), Erfanzadeh, the executive director of the project carried out at TMU said, “Every year, many fires break out in the pastures across the country, which may cause the destruction of high-quality and viable fodder. Also, these fires erode the viable soil of pastures and inflict a lot of financial and environmental losses.”
He stated that severe fires in pastures may have harmful effects on the physical and chemical properties of the soil, adding that fire can also severely damage vegetation in the pastures, including hinder some ecosystem functions such as maintaining water resources and protecting soil against erosion, preventing food accumulation in the soil and biodiversity and plant life.
Erfanzadeh further said that in addition to the effect that fire has on the physical and chemical properties of soil, it can also affect the soil seed bank. Unfortunately, every year there are many reports of fire occurance in the country's pastures and forests, which cause the complete removal of a large amount of vegetation. One of the concerns is the recovery of vegetation after the fire.
Iranian Researchers Acquire Know-how to Produce Different Grades of Nano-Silica for Different Uses
A team of researchers at a technological company in Iran have achieved the know-how of producing silica nanoparticles in their different grades for use in a lot of industries.
According to a report by Iran Nanotechnology Innovation Council (INIC), Asghar Karami, the technical director of the technological company said that the company started its activity on the production of silica-nano materials in 2008, adding, “Finally, we succeeded in the mass production of colloidal silica, which is soluble in water. The main application of this nano material is in precision casting and ceramic tools, and currently 15 companies in this field are buying that product from us. The range of use of this substance is not limited to this field and it is used in areas such as paint, catalyst and water desalination.”
Colloidal silicas are suspensions of fine amorphous, nonporous, and typically spherical silica particles in a liquid phase. It may be produced by Stöber process from Tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS).
He said that the other product of their company is "precipitated silica" which is produced in the form of powder, adding, “The components of these materials are nanometers, but they stick together and create micron structures. This powder is used in cosmetics industry, tire filler, antiblocks and matting, and the industrial production of this material will start soon.”
Iranian Scientists Provide over 120 Million Doses of Acute Bird Flu Vaccine
Researchers at the Iranian knowledge-based companies have succeeded in providing over 120 million doses of acute bird flu vaccine in 3 years.
“Although no acute bird flu vaccine was imported to the country this year, a knowledge-based company which is a member of our association produced and distributed over 11 million doses of vaccine across the country,” said Abbas Jamali, a member of the Board of Directors of the Association of the Manufacturers and Exporters of Biotechnology Products of Iran.
He noted that since October 2020, over 120 million doses of the vaccine have been used in farms, egg-laying farms and turkey farms across the country, adding, “Fortunately, there have been no reports of complications or failure of the domestically-made vaccine to protect the herds so far.”
“No acute bird flu disease has been witnessed in these flocks,” Jamali said.
Iran-Made Software Significantly Evolves Educational, Research Services
A knowledge-based company in Iran has designed software that helps make laboratory equipment smart for physical sharing in the internet.
“The software provided by our company helps to make laboratory equipment smart and create a comprehensive smart platform for sharing laboratory and workshop equipment and supplies physically on the internet,” Ramin Azarpour, the managing director of the knowledge-based company based in Islamic Azad University’s Ilkhchi branch, told ANA.
Covering laboratory services at all stages from research to production, easy access for all specialists, students, professors and researchers to laboratory services on a 24-hour and live basis (online access to documents and resources), and maximum utilization of capacities, resources, and laboratory capabilities and their optimal and economic use are among the features of this software, he added.
“Providing the possibility of shared use of laboratory centers from each other's possibilities and maximizing the sharing and exploitation of scientific resources and capabilities (hardware and software), encouraging and inviting professors, researchers and experts to participate in research projects, access to educational content anytime and anywhere, creating equal educational opportunities, and saving time for students and researchers are other features of this software,” Azarpour said.
Identifying Authenticity of Documents with Iran-Made Smart Scanner
Researchers at a knowledge-based company in Iran have successfully developed an artificial intelligence system for recognizing documents.
According to a report by the Iranian Vice-Presidency for Science and Technology and Knowledge-Based Economy, Mehdi Hashemi, the managing director of this knowledge-based company pointed to the design, production and commercialization of smart scanners for identifying passports, national ID and other documents in their company and said, “Spending a lot of time to manually register documents information was a challenge in this field; therefore, we decided to design such a system. This device has the capability to read document data without user intervention and using artificial intelligence technology, and it can also recognize fake documents.”
“Speed, accuracy and security are the advantages of the smart scanner device, and the range of use of this device is so wide that in addition to hotels, it can be used in international traffic control, travel agencies, electronic visa issuance centers, traffic control systems, airports and commercial oil tankers,” Hasehmi added.
Iranian Specialists Make Device for Physical Purification of Olive Oil without Harmful Chemicals
A molecular distillation device was produced for the first time in Iran for the physical purification of olive oil without using harmful chemical solvents.
The molecular distillation device was designed and built for the first time in the country in the Iranian Research Organization for Science and Technology and it was used for physical purification (without the use of solvents) of Lampante olive oil and the separation of free fatty acids which is an important step in the process of industrial production of edible oils.
The device can be used to produce refined edible oil and extract compounds with high economic value like squalene and octacosanol which are applicable in cosmetics and health industries as by-products.
Mohammad Hassan Eekani, a member of the academic staff of the Research Institute of Chemical Technologies, was in charge of implementation of the project, and the development of this method was completed with the financial support of the Iranian Research Organization for Science and Technology, and Iran National Science Foundation.
European States Welcome 2 Iranian Animations at MIPCOM
Two animations of ‘Mewtoon’ and ‘Owl Family’, produced by an Iranian innovative company, were welcomed by the European countries at MIPCOM, the world’s most extensive entertainment content market in Cannes.
“Mewtoon animation gained significant success at this year's MIPCOM event, which was held late October, and we were able to sign contracts with investors during MIPCOM and MIPJUNIOR,” said Alireza Taheri, the managing director of ‘Qaaf’ creative filmmakers company.
“We are now in talks with 20 companies in the field of animation production and we have reached the stage of concluding a contract with seven of them and have finalized the contract with two companies,” he added.
"We have also held talks with five Indian companies and two Turkish companies on cooperation in production of animation and a number of agreements have been made," Taheri said.
"We have held negotiations with three broadcasting companies in the field of media from Europe, and in one case we were able to arrange an agreement for the release of two products, Mewtoon and Owly Family, and it was decided to broadcast them in Europe after the product was completed," he noted.
Iranian Knowledge-Based Firm Makes Simulator for Heavy, Light Vehicles
A group of technologists at a knowledge-based company in Iran produced driving simulators for light and heavy cars and motorcycles with the aim of providing training and assessment of driving skills.
“Driving simulators include two parts, software and hardware, which work together to create a virtual environment and finally convey the feeling of driving to the driver,” said Abdol Hadi, the managing director of the knowledge-based company.
He noted that the driving simulators include several parts like driver's platform, dashboard, driver's seat, pedals and pedal position sensors, a graphic model of the roads and the traffic area of drivers and pedestrians.
“We produce all types of light, heavy, special car and motorcycle simulators and we use real vehicle parts in the simulator system, the fastest processors in order to create a real-time interactive environment, an engine to create sound, a simulator which transfers forces and movements from the vehicle to the driver and 3D images with a suitable viewing angle along with a virtual or real mirror,” Abdol Hadi said.
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