industrial applications – Lightsources.org

CNPEM study reveals novel enzyme mechanism with potential for biofuels and biotechnology

2026/04/082026/04/16

The new discovery will aid in the development of more efficient and sustainable technologies for bioenergy generation

A study led by researchers from the Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM), located in Campinas (SP), has identified a novel molecular mechanism that explains how enzymes degrade beta-glucans, a class of carbohydrates found in fungi, algae, and plants, with great relevance for industrial and energy applications. The research involved approximately 18 collaborators from the LNBR (Brazilian Biorenewables National Laboratory) and the LNLS (Brazilian Synchrotron Light Laboratory), both part of CNPEM, in addition to external researchers from Unicamp and universities in Spain and Canada.

Published in the scientific journal Nature Communications, the work describes, for the first time, a process called processive catalysis applied to the breakdown of these compounds. In this mechanism, the enzyme acts continuously on the same molecular chain, without detaching itself after each stage of the reaction, which makes the process more efficient.

According to researcher Mariana Morais, one of the study coordinators, the work utilized various techniques and equipment at CNPEM, including directed mutagenesis techniques and kinetic analyses. The research also included high-resolution X-ray crystallography experiments conducted at Sirius, CNPEM’s particle accelerator, as well as computer simulations carried out on the Santos Dumont supercomputer, at the National Laboratory for Scientific Computing (LNCC).

“This integration allowed for the observation, at the atomic level, of all stages of the enzymatic process, from substrate recognition to product release and the restart of the catalytic cycle”, says Morais.

Read more on the CNPEM website

Image: Representation of the enzyme forming a catalytic tunnel that enables interaction with the beta-glucan chain and its continuous processing

NSRRC Users honoured at MOE 2025 National Awards Ceremony

2026/04/022026/04/02

On March 23, the Ministry of Education (MOE) held the award ceremony for the 2025 National Chair Professorships, National Award for Distinguished Contribution to Industry-Academia Cooperation, and Academic Awards. Five NSRRC users were among the recipients.

Prof. Hsin-Lung Chen, Distinguished Chair in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Tsing Hua University (NTHU), received the National Chair Professorship in Engineering and Applied Sciences. A leading scholar in polymer physics, he has long contributed to theoretical development, textbook writing, and industry-academia collaboration. His research has been widely applied in critical materials and industrial technologies, enhancing the international impact of Taiwan’s materials research.

Prof. Bing-Joe Hwang, Chair Professor in the Department Chemical Engineering at the National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, founder and director of the Sustainable Electrochemical Energy Development Center, and NSRRC board member and adjunct scientist, received the National Award for Distinguished Contribution to Industry-Academic Cooperation in Engineering. He pioneered the “anode-free lithium battery,” developed high-energy-density and high-safety technologies, and promoted high-value hydrogen electrolysis, with extensive industrial applications and patents.

Two NSRRC users were awarded the Academic Award in Mathematics and Natural Sciences. Prof. Chen-Wei Liu, Chair Professor in the Department of Chemistry at National Dong Hwa University, is an international pioneer in metal cluster chemistry. His research combines fundamental innovation with practical application, offering forwarded-looking contributions to catalysis and carbon-reduction technologies. Prof. Ying-Hao Chu, Chair Professor and Department Chair of Materials Science and Engineering at NTHU, specializes in oxide heterostructures and flexible mica-based electronic components, with highly cited work that lays a critical foundation for next-generation electronic devices. In Engineering and Applied Sciences, Prof. Chih-Huang Lai, Chair Professor and Vice Dean of the Institute of Semiconductor at NTHU, was recognized for his research in spintronics and magnetic materials, including advanced memory devices and thin-film solar technologies, as well as Taiwan’s first 12-inch MRAM production line.

Read more on the NSRRC website

Shining a light on the Australian Synchrotron’s $100M BRIGHT beamlines

2022/12/122022/12/15

A special inaugural event held by ANSTO at its Australian Synchrotron for more than 30 funding organisations has showcased the first of the $100 million BRIGHT Program’s brand new, state-of-the-art beamlines.

The event, at the Clayton facility in Melbourne on Friday 9 December, also marked the official welcoming of the BRIGHT Program’s latest funding partnership with the University of South Australia as the 32^nd contributor to provide additional capital funding for the construction of new beamlines.

Since 2018, the BRIGHT Program has received joint funding from leading Australian universities and medical research institutes, New Zealand government, universities and crown research institutes, via the New Zealand Synchrotron Group, and the Australian government through the CSIRO, Defence Science and Technology Group, and ANSTO.

The program is enabling the design, installation, and commissioning of eight new beamlines at the Australian Synchrotron to meet the growing demand of these sophisticated technologies by Australian and international researchers and industry partners.

Read more on the ANSTO website

Image: Prof Michael James, Senior Principal Scientist , Australian Synchrotron and Prof Enzo Lombi of the University of South Australia. UniSA has announced funding support for the program.

Experiment reveals new options for synchrotron light sources

2021/02/242021/02/25

An international team has shown through a sensational experiment how diverse the possibilities for employing synchrotron light sources are. Accelerator experts from the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB), the German federal metrology institute Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB), and Tsinghua University in Beijing have used a laser to manipulate electron bunches at PTB’s Metrology Light Source so that they emitted intense light pulses having a laser-like character. Using this method, specialised synchrotron radiation sources would potentially be able to fill a gap in the arsenal of available light sources and offer a prototype for industrial applications. The work was published on 24 February 2021 in the leading scientific publication Nature.

The most modern light sources for research are based on particle accelerators. These are large facilities in which electrons are accelerated to almost the speed of light, and then emit light pulses of a special character. In storage-ring-based synchrotron radiation sources, the electron bunches travel in the ring for billions of revolutions, then generate a rapid succession of very bright light pulses in the deflecting magnets. In contrast, the electron bunches in free-electron lasers (FELs) are accelerated linearly and then emit a single super-bright flash of laser-like light. Storage ring sources as well as FEL sources have facilitated advances in many fields in recent years, from deep insights into biological and medical questions to materials research, technology development, and quantum physics.

Combining the virtues of both systems

Now a Sino-German team has shown that a pattern of pulses can be generated in a synchrotron radiation source that combines the advantages of both systems. The synchrotron source delivers short, intense microbunches of electrons that produce radiation pulses having a laser-like character (as with FELs), but which can also follow each other closely in sequence (as with synchrotron light sources).

Read more on the HZB website