JTW Digest, April 5, 2024

Author

Eldar Syzdykov
April 05, 2024

 April 5

SIB Adopts Salesforce Commerce Cloud's Composable Storefront to Enhance IPSA's Official Website"

Shiseido Interactive Beauty (SIB), a joint venture between Shiseido and Accenture, has adopted the "Composable Storefront" technology from Salesforce Commerce Cloud to improve the customer experience (CX) on the official website of Shiseido's brand, IPSA. This move is part of Shiseido's digital transformation strategy to become a "Global No.1 Data-Driven Personal Skin Beauty & Wellness Company".

SIB chose Salesforce Commerce Cloud as the global standard for Shiseido's e-commerce site platform due to its high security, performance, and Salesforce's global expertise.

The composable storefront approach allows SIB to gradually transition to a headless commerce solution, enabling faster improvements to the website's user interface and user experience (UI/UX) without impacting the back-end.

This hybrid approach is expected to improve customer engagement and conversion rates, and SIB plans to further accelerate innovation using AI capabilities like Salesforce's Einstein.

SIB began implementing the composable storefront in August 2023 and launched it on the IPSA official website on January 30, 2024, with plans to expand it to other Shiseido brands in the future.

Photocatalytic Technology Converts Wastewater Nitrate into Useful Ammonia"

Researchers at Osaka University have developed a photocatalytic technology that can efficiently convert nitric acid (NO3-) in wastewater into ammonia (NH3) using sunlight and an iron-rust-based catalyst. 

Ammonia is an important chemical used as a raw material for fertilizers and as an energy carrier, but its conventional production requires high temperatures and pressures.

Nitric acid is a pollutant found in industrial wastewater that is typically neutralized and reduced to nitrogen gas before being discharged.

The researchers used a catalyst made of iron oxyhydroxide with surface oxygen defects (β-FeOOH(Cl)-OVs) that can selectively and stably convert nitrate to ammonia using water as a reducing agent when exposed to simulated sunlight.

The reaction mechanism involves the catalyst absorbing light to generate electron-hole pairs, with the holes oxidizing chloride ions to produce oxygen, while the excited electrons reduce the nitrate to ammonia.

This technology can enable the detoxification and recycling of wastewater by converting the nitrate pollutant into useful ammonia using renewable solar energy.

ISC Partners with U.S. Startup Ursa Major to Develop Reusable Rockets for Satellite Launches and Future Space Travel"

Japanese space startup Future Space Transportation Systems (ISC) has announced a collaboration with U.S. rocket engine developer Ursa Major Technologies (UM) to develop a reusable rocket called ASCA-1. This is the first partnership between Japanese and American rocket development ventures to work on reusable rocket technology.

The ASCA-1 project aims to commercialize a 100kg-class satellite launch service using reusable rockets around 2028.

ISC plans to further develop the ASCA rocket series, with the ASCA-2 enabling manned space transportation by 2032 and the ASCA-3 single-stage round trip space transportation system by 2040.

As part of the collaboration, ISC has purchased UM's "HADLEY" rocket engine and will conduct flight demonstration experiments in the U.S. to improve the engine and advance the space industry through Japanese-American cooperation.

ISC, founded in 2022, is a startup aiming to create a transportation system for space travel, starting with providing satellite launch services using reusable rockets.

The partnership is seen as an important step towards achieving ISC's ambitious goal of enabling frequent, large-scale, and low-cost space travel and transportation.

Innovative Carbon-Negative Bench Developed by Kajima and Kanazawa Institute of Technology"

Kajima Corporation and Kanazawa Institute of Technology have collaborated to produce a public bench that combines 3D printing technology and carbon dioxide (CO2)-absorbing concrete. This innovative bench is designed to help improve productivity and achieve carbon neutrality.

The bench is created by utilizing 3D printing technology, which allows for the creation of complex shapes without the need for formwork, and CO2-SUICOM, an environmentally friendly concrete that hardens by absorbing CO2 from the surface.

The bench legs are 3D printed in a pleated shape, increasing the surface area by approximately 1.7 times compared to a traditional flat-legged bench. This increased surface area enhances the contact with CO2, resulting in more than double the CO2 absorption rate.

The bench measures 5 meters long and 0.7 meters wide, and was installed in a park in Kanazawa City. The design incorporates the Yuzen nagashi motif, a traditional manufacturing process for Kaga Yuzen, which is associated with Kanazawa.

The bench's wavy seat surface is painted white, and the darkened legs are achieved by using brown-colored mortar, creating a visually appealing and cohesive design.

The collaboration between Kajima and Kanazawa Institute of Technology aims to further research and develop public objects that combine 3D printing and CO2-absorbing concrete technology, with the goal of improving productivity and achieving carbon neutrality through early social implementation.