1) Two companies, AmSty and Agilyx, have announced the certified circular recycling pathway for polystyrene for recycling has been cleared. Polystyrene waste is currently being transformed from solid form to its liquid feedstock called recycled styrene monomer (RSM) at their joint venture facility, to produce circular recycled products. These products can now be put back into the marketplace with original quality. This is the major advancement in recycling polystyrene waste in a world being overrun by plastic waste.
2) QuantumScape, the solid-state battery company, debuted its stock which soared up 256% in less than a month, but then plunged 60% from the high. The solid-state battery is lighter, has greater energy density, therefore more range, lower cost and faster recharge times. But solid-state battery packs for cars are far from ready. They do away with the liquid electrolyte that makes conventional lithium-ion batteries heavy, as well as being dangerous at high temperatures. Getting solid-state batteries to the market is difficult and will take some time, so battery packs for cars are far from ready. Two things sent the company stock down. First is a January 4 report saying that QuantumScape’s batteries are small and unproven, smaller than an iWatch battery and never tested outside a lab. A few days later, the law firm Gainey McKenna and Egleston announced a class-action lawsuit against QuantumScape on behalf of investors, noting a 40 percent drop in the stock price after the story ran. QuantumScape has made clear the batteries are still in the development stage, with results from testing small prototypes instead of full power packs. Other companies, such as Toyota, General Motors, Samsung, Ford and Hyundai are working and investing in the new battery technology. The solid-state space energy storage field has been dormant for many years but now it is heating up.
3) It’s reported that China has stolen personal data from 80% of Americans using their Chinese hackers. On the news show 60 Minutes on CBS the former director of the US National Counterintelligence and Security Center disclosed that 80% of American adults have had some amount of their personally identifiable information stolen by the Communist Party of China. Furthermore, there are concerns that the Chinese regime is taking all that information about Americans, such as what we eat, how we live, when we exercise and sleep, and combining it with our DNA data. With information about heredity and environment, suddenly they know more about us than we know about ourselves.
4) Stock market closings for – 3 FEB 21:
Dow 30,723.60 up by 36.12
Nasdaq 13,610.54 down by 2.23
S&P 500 3,830.17 up by 3.86
10 Year Yield: up at 1.13%
Oil: down at $55.95