Tribology, the study of friction, lubrication, and wear between two sliding surfaces, has been used for decades by the chemical and material engineering industries to determine the friction behaviour of various substances, such as lubricating oils and rubber.
Practical applications of this testing are relatively straightforward: lubricants that provide low amounts of friction between sliding steel surfaces are useful to reduce friction from surface-surface contact, such as in mechanical pivots or sliding pistons.
With 9.6 billion people forecast to inhabit the planet in 2050, scientists have warned that population growth could lead to an unsustainable increase in food production if consumption patterns persist.
Considering the rising world population and the scarce water and land resources, it is extremely important to find new and sustainable ways to produce food. Edible insects are particularly interesting due to their high protein content and lower environmental impacts compared to traditional livestock. They have been promoted as a source of nutrients able to contribute to the increasing need of animal protein in an environmentally sustainable fashion. In general, insects contain a considerable amount of protein with a well-balanced amino acid spectrum, a high amount of lipid, and a noteworthy content of micronutrients such as copper, zinc, and iron.
