Daily Quiz: UPSC Prelims Marathon (Science and Technology) – April 9, 2020

Recently, IIT Kharagpur has developed Hydrothermal Carbonisation technology which can generate energy from solid waste with high moisture content. The technology is aimed at conversion of wet biomass into hydro-char (a coal like fuel) under suitable temperature and pressure conditions. The hydro-char, rich in carbon and high calorific content, can be utilized as fuel, as an alternative for coal, as feedstock for gasification, as a soil additive for nutrient enrichment, or as an adsorbent for activated carbon. It’s by-products include ash which can be applied as a plant nutrient enhancer because of its phosphorus content, and also a potassium loaded liquid that can be used for watering plants.

Sodium Sulphur Battery is a high-temperature battery which operates at 300°C and utilises a solid electrolyte, making it unique among the common secondary cells (rechargeable batteries). It has a high-power density and is suitable for large-scale energy storage and space applications. As electrodes are solid are room temperature and therefore inactive when cold and the battery can be stored for more than 50 years in that state. The battery must be activated with a heat source and the electrodes become liquid. The biggest advantage of sodium is in the cost area, as it is a far more common material than lithium and is much more widely available. However, the safety concerns greatly inhibit their widespread adoption.

South Asia’s first proton therapy centre was launched in Chennai. Apollo Proton Cancer Centre, equipped with the path-breaking pencil beam technology, offers hope to cancer patients from India and abroad. It is a type of radiation therapy which uses protons rather than x-rays to treat cancer. It is considered as one of the most advanced forms of external beam radiation therapy for cancer treatment in the world. It is also known as Proton Beam Therapy and offers high levels of precision as compared to other treatment options.

A harpoon designed to capture orbital junk has been successfully tested in space for the first time as part of the active debris-removal demonstration mission called RemoveDebris. The pen-size titanium harpoon developed by Airbus engineers in the U.K. was fired into an aluminum target, which extended from the spacecraft attached to a carbon-fiber boom. During the test, it successfully snagged the target out of orbit and reeled it back to the main spacecraft.

‘Agni-II’, an intermediate range ballistic missile (IRBM) has already been inducted into the armed forces. The 20-metre long two stage ballistic missile has a launch weight of 17 tonnes and can carry a payload of 1000 kg over a distance of 2000 km. The two stage missile equipped with advanced high accuracy navigation system was guided by a novel state-of- the-art command and control system and propelled by solid rocket propellant system. The 2000 plus km range surface to surface missile has already been inducted and is part of countries arsenal for strategic deterrence.