A team of Chinese scientists has developed a new method to recover and recycle salvageable materials from discarded solar panels. The novel technique uses a chemical compound known as dibasic ester to separate individual components from one another, without damaging and breaking the desired solar cells. In March 2023, the China Academy of Sciences-based research…
A Chinese consortium will construct a $650 million toll road in the Zambian Copperbelt province, after several years of delay amidst the Covid-19 pandemic. The proposed 327-kilometre-long roadway joins the Zambian capital, Lusaka, with the country’s third most populous city, Ndola. Once complete, the dual carriageway toll road will form a reliable trade route between…
Chinese automotive firm, BYD, will supply the Zimbabwean government with 18 electric vehicles (EVs). The country seeks to showcase green energy as the world gradually phases out the production of traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles. Zimbabwe’s Central Mechanical Equipment Department (CMED) is also enquiring about the purchase of electric buses for use in the…
Just months after its completion, Chinese officials have announced plans to expand the now-operational Tiangong Space Station. Currently consisting of three modules, Tiangong or ‘Sky Palace’, was completed in November 2022 and is the culmination of more than three decades of research and development by the Chinese National Space Administration (CNSA). Despite the station’s operational…
A woman in China’s remote far west has become the first person in the country’s history to have her gallbladder removed via robot-assisted remote surgery. In February 2023, the lengthy procedure was carried out by a surgeon more than 4 500 kilometres away by way of a four-arm laparoscopic robot. Advanced medicine is central to…
A team of Chinese researchers has unveiled a prototype quadcopter drone capable of flying and swimming. The TJ-FlyingFish, the autonomous drone, has four two-stage motors designed to operate in either aerial or underwater environments. Developed by scientists representing the Unmanned Systems Research Group at the University of Hong Kong and China’s Intelligent Autonomous Systems Research…
Chinese automotive player, Zhejiang Geely, recently announced it has successfully tested its electric vertical take-off and landing vehicle (eVTOL). Developed by Geely subsidiary, Aerofugia, the AE200 prototype eVTOL completed its maiden flight in early February, according to online publication Interesting Engineering. Aerofugia became the country’s first licensed eVTOL operator in 2022 and plans to make…
Hard on the heels of the hugely popular launch of the artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot, ChatGPT, several prominent Chinese tech giants, including Baidu and Alibaba, have opted to release their own AI-powered chatbots. Open AI’s Chat Generative Pre-Trained Transformer (ChatGPT) has rapidly become one of the most popular features on the internet since its launch…
Trade between Tanzania and its largest import-export partner, China, skyrocketed by nearly 25 per cent in 2022, as the two parties continue to reinforce diplomatic ties after 60 years of cooperation. Trade figures reached $8.32 billion in 2022, said Tanzanian ambassador to Beijing, Mbelwa Kairuki in February, addressing an audience in Hong Kong while promoting…
Chinese electric vehicle (EV) unicorn and Tesla rival, Xpeng, unveiled its new flagship models to several northern European countries, as it makes a pronounced international push in 2023. The Guangzhou-based startup launched its luxury P7 sedan and G9 sports utility vehicle (SUV) in Denmark, Sweden, Norway and the Netherlands in early February, according to the…