Traditional Energy news

• Tesla Tower in Central Texas?

  14-11-2018 06:15
  …deliver electrical power virtually anywhere in the world through the use of surface wave technologies…One of the broadcast engineers at KWTX* noticed the thing while coming back from Dallas, took a picture and brought it to the newsroom.Viziv Technologies, LLC, and Baylor University announce a new research partnership aimed at commercializing an entirely new means of delivering electrical energy wirelessly over long distances. Over four decades in development, Viziv’s system
  
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• ASU team throws new light on photosynthetic supercomplex structure

  28-05-2019 08:01
  A team of scientists from Arizona State University has taken a significant step closer to unlocking the secrets of photosynthesis, by determining the structure of a very large photosynthetic supercomplex.
  This important discovery is laid out in their paper published today in Nature Structural & Molecular Biology. The paper is titled “The structure of the stress induced photosystem I – IsiA antenna supercomplex.”Overall structure of the PSI-IsiA supercomplex.
  “Sup
  
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• Data science helps engineers discover new materials for solar cells and LEDs

  28-05-2019 06:48
  Engineers at the University of California San Diego have developed a high-throughput computational method to design new materials for next generation solar cells and LEDs. Their approach generated 13 new material candidates for solar cells and 23 new candidates for LEDs. Calculations predicted that these materials, called hybrid halide semiconductors, would be stable and exhibit excellent optoelectronic properties.
  The team published their findings on May 22, 2019 in the journal Energy &
  
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• ​3D Graphene/Carbon Nanotube Aerogels for Ultrahigh Volumetric-Energy-Density Li-S Batteries Developed

  28-05-2019 06:30
  A research group led by WU Zhongshuai from the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (DICP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences developed high volumetric-energy-density and long-life lithium sulfur (Li-S) batteries based on the free-standing, densely compact, and integrated cathode.
  These Li-S batteries are derived from three-dimensional (3D) interconnected porous graphene/CNT aerogels, simultaneously serving as sulfur host and interlayer. Their findings were published in Nano Energ
  
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• Superconductor films convert heat into electricity

  28-05-2019 05:54
  Films of a superconductor show excellent thermoelectric properties at very low film thicknessesWhen thinned down to a sheet a few atoms thick, the superconductor iron selenide (FeSe) can efficiently convert heat into electricity, researchers at RIKEN have discovered1. This opens up the possibility that similar multifunctionality may be lurking in other two-dimensional materials.
  Ultrathin films often behave quite differently from the same material in bulk form. For example, bulk FeSe superconduc
  
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• High energy textile lithium battery is highly flexible for wearable electronics

  28-05-2019 05:15
  Researchers at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) have developed a highly flexible, high-energy Textile Lithium Battery that offers more stable, durable and safe energy supply for wearable electronics with a myriad of applications, such as in healthcare monitoring, intelligent textiles, smartphones, Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking and Internet of Things (IoT)..PolyU’s novel lightweight Textile Lithium Battery demonstrates high energy density of more than 450 Wh
  
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• Major step forward in the production of ‘green’ Hydrogen

  28-05-2019 00:53
  The first thermodynamically-reversible chemical reactor capable of producing hydrogen as a pure product stream represents a “transformational” step forward in the chemical industryThe novel reactor, described today in the prestigious academic journal Nature Chemistry, avoids mixing reactant gases by transferring oxygen between reactant streams via a solid state oxygen reservoir.
  This reservoir is designed to remain close to equilibrium with the reacting gas streams as they follo
  
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• Charging into the future–novel rock salt for use in rechargeable magnesium batteries

  28-05-2019 00:40
  Rechargeable, high-energy density magnesium batteries with a novel rock-salt cathode synthesized by researchers at Tokyo University of Science
  Life today depends heavily on electricity. However, the unrelenting demand for electricity calls for increasingly greener and “portable” sources of energy. Although windmills and solar panels are promising alternatives, the fluctuation in output levels depending on external factors renders them as unreliable. Thus, from the viewpoint of resour
  
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• Geothermal energy’s earthquake problem – and possible solutions

  28-05-2019 00:23
  A geothermal energy project triggered a damaging earthquake in 2017 in South Korea. A new analysis suggests flaws in some of the most common ways of trying to minimize the risk of such quakes when harnessing Earth’s heat for energy.
  On a November afternoon in 2017, a magnitude 5.5 earthquake shook Pohang, South Korea, injuring dozens and forcing more than 1,700 of the city’s residents into emergency housing. Research now shows that development of a geothermal energy project shoulders
  
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• Australian rare-earth ore processor wants to build a plant in the US

  28-05-2019 00:14
  Rare-earth minerals are mostly processed in China, but a new project could change that
  This week, two rare-earth mineral-processing companies announced a new joint-venture whose aim will be to establish a rare-earth ore processing plant in Hondo, Texas..
  Construction takes place at the site of Lynas Corp.’s Advanced Materials Plant in the Gebeng Industrial Zone near Kuantan, Malaysia, on Thursday, April 19, 2012.
  .Lynas Corp., an Australian rare-earths processor, and Blue Line Corp., a che
  
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• Scientists Develop High-efficiency, Stable Thermoelectric Module Based on High-performance Liquid-like Materials

  26-05-2019 17:17
  Two Articles:
  Scientists Develop High-efficiency, Stable Thermoelectric Module Based on High-performance Liquid-like Materials
  Based on high-performance liquid-like materials, scientists from the Shanghai Institute of Ceramics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Northwestern University in US innovatively fabricated a Cu2Se/Yb0.3Co4Sb12 thermoelectric module with eight n-type Ni/Ti/Yb0.3Co4Sb12 legs and eight p-type Ni/Mo/Cu2Se legs.
  Their strategy goes beyond the normal design of TE
  
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• Waste not want not; empowered by heat: converting waste heat into electricity

  26-05-2019 16:01
  [This article from 2014 is about the thermoelectric material magnesium silicide. An RG article from January 2018 was about a similar use for ytterbium silicide. While both studies come from Japan, they are independent: one is from Osaka University and the other is from the Tokyo University of Science. Professor Iida from TUS was hoping for implementation of his technology for automotive applications by 2020, when tighter EU regulations for CO2 emissions take effect. His website currently states:
  
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• PixelGreen: A hybrid, green media wall for existing high-rise buildings

  25-05-2019 19:11
  Researchers at Deakin University and the University of Hong Kong have recently designed a hybrid green architectural wall system for high-rise buildings that integrates a vertical micro-farm and a media screen. They presented this wall, called PixelGreen, in a paper published on Research Gate. PIXEL GREEN is designed for integration into the wall surfaces of existing buildings, turning them into analogue media screens.
  “In this research, we explore the opportunity for new design possi
  
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• Need for rigorous procedures within electrochemical production of ammonia

  25-05-2019 18:50
  Many experimental studies of electrochemical synthesis of ammonia are flawed—a new study in Nature highlights the need for rigorous protocols moving forwardAmmonia (NH3) is one of the most widely produced chemicals, with a global output of 170 megatons per year. It is the key ingredient in the production of fertilizers and thus plays a critical role in sustaining the world’s population. However, more than 1 per cent of global energy is consumed by the production of ammonia
  
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• Learning magnets could lead to energy-efficient data processing

  25-05-2019 18:27
  The power consumption of data centres around the world is increasing. This creates a high demand for new technologies that could lead to energy-efficient computers. In a new study, physicists at Radboud University have demonstrated that this could also be achieved by using chips whose operation is inspired by that of the human brain. The study was published in the scientific journal Applied Physics Letters on 16 May.
  Compared to our current computers, the human brain uses a fraction of
  
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• Threat or promise? E-auto boom could cost industry jobs

  25-05-2019 18:16
  Over 115 years the auto industry in the east German town of Zwickau has lived through wrenching upheavals including World War II and the collapse of communism. Now the city’s 90,000 people are plunging headlong into another era of change: top employer Volkswagen’s total shift into electric cars at the local plant.
  The world’s largest carmaker is creating its first all-electric plant and phasing out production of the internal combustion-engine cars built by generations of local
  
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• Strain Enables New Applications of 2D Materials

  25-05-2019 18:00
  Superconductors’ never-ending flow of electrical current could provide new options for energy storage and superefficient electrical transmission and generation, to name just a few benefits. But the signature zero electrical resistance of superconductors is reached only below a certain critical temperature, hundreds of degrees Celsius below freezing, and is very expensive to achieve.
  Physicists from the University of Belgrade in Serbia believe they’ve found a way to manipulate superth
  
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• Zero-carbon electric transport is already in reach for small islands

  25-05-2019 17:47
  At a recent talk on the UK’s energy sector, the head of an electric utility company claimed that “the problem of decarbonising our electricity sector is fixed”. Eyebrows were raised at this, but his point quickly became clear. The technologies needed to decarbonise the UK’s electricity system now exist, he explained. Indeed, grid operators in the UK expect a zero carbon electricity system by 2025.
  But far greater challenges remain in the heat and transport secto
  
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• In-car technology: are we being sold a false sense of security?

  25-05-2019 17:31
  The retired football star David Beckham recently received a six-month driving ban after being photographed using his hand-held phone while driving. Unfortunately, Beckham is not alone in apparently thinking that time spent driving can also be usefully spent doing something else.
  But it isn’t just phones that can distract us while driving. Increasingly, vehicles come pre-installed with technology that promises to improve our lives and let us get that little bit more productivity o
  
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• Mathematically-designed graphene has improved electrocatalytic activity

  25-05-2019 17:19
  An international research group has improved graphene’s ability to catalyse the ‘hydrogen evolution reaction’, which releases hydrogen as a result of passing an electronic current through water. They designed a mathematically-predicted graphene electrocatalyst, and confirmed its performance using high resolution electrochemical microscopy and computational modelling. The findings were published in the journal Advanced Science.
  Akichika Kumatani of Tohoku University’s Adva
  
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• Why EU-funded E-ferry is set to electrify the passenger ship sector

  25-05-2019 17:05
  Danish operator Ærø Kommune’s all-electric ferry Ellen breaks several barriers: with its route covering a 22-nautical mile crossing, it will travel a greater distance than any other all-electric ferry and will have the largest battery pack installed at sea. It is also likely to be the first electric ferry to have no emergency back-up generator.
  Creating this E-ferry prototype Ellen, due for delivery in May, involved designing, building and demonstrating a f
  
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• Nearly 2D form of iron oxide with strong magnetic properties potentially useful for spintronic devices

  25-05-2019 16:24
  Rice University researchers have simplified the synthesis of a unique, nearly two-dimensional form of iron oxide with strong magnetic properties that is easy to stack atop other 2D materials.
  The material, epsilon iron(III) oxide, shows promise as a building block for exotic nanoscale structures that could be useful for spintronic devices, electronic or storage applications that take advantage of not only the charge of electrons but also their spin states.A microscope image s
  
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• Adding a carbon atom transforms 2D semiconducting material

  25-05-2019 16:01
  A technique that introduces carbon-hydrogen molecules into a single atomic layer of the semiconducting material tungsten disulfide dramatically changes the electronic properties of the material, according to Penn State researchers at Penn State who say they can create new types of components for energy-efficient photoelectric devices and electronic circuits with this material.
  “We have successfully introduced the carbon species into the monolayer of the semiconducting material,” said
  
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• Would you eat lab-created fish? This San Diego startup is carving new path in ‘alt-meat’ industry

  25-05-2019 05:44
  Two Articles
  Would you eat lab-created fish? This San Diego startup is carving new path in ‘alt-meat’ industry
  Local startup BlueNalu is developing seafood products like fish, crustaceans and mollusks — all designed in labs and grown in bioreactors
  It’s official: alternative meat has gone mainstream.
  Vegetarian creations like the Impossible Burger — which look and taste like real meat — are the big headliners, with companies like Beyond Meat and Impossible Foo
  
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• Finding the Cause of Capacity Loss in a Metal-Oxide Battery Material

  24-05-2019 20:12
  Scientists studying a lithium-ion battery with an iron-oxide electrode as it charged and discharged over 100 cycles found that the loss is due to a buildup of lithium oxide and decomposition of the medium through which lithium ions flow
  Because of their high energy-storage density, materials such as metal oxides, sulfides, and fluorides are promising electrode materials for lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles and other technologies. However, their capacity fades very rapidly. Now, scienti
  
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• Engineered bacteria could be missing link in energy storage

  24-05-2019 19:52
  One of the big issues with sustainable energy systems is how to store electricity that’s generated from wind, solar and waves. At present, no existing technology provides large-scale storage and energy retrieval for sustainable energy at a low financial and environmental cost.
  Engineered electroactive microbes could be part of the solution; these microbes are capable of borrowing an electron from solar or wind electricity and using the energy to break apart carbon dioxide molecules from th
  
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• Building a better salt trap: IU researchers synthesize a molecular ‘cage’ to trap chloride

  24-05-2019 19:42
  New molecule could help reduce growing level of salt contaminants flowing into freshwater streams and lakes across the U.S.
  Indiana University researchers have created a powerful new molecule for the extraction of salt from liquid. The work has the potential to help increase the amount of drinkable water on Earth.Yun Liu holds a 3D-printed model of the chloride-capture molecule. Photo by Fred Zwicky, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
  Built using chemical bonds previously regarded as too
  
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• 100% renewables doesn’t equal zero-carbon energy, and the difference is growing

  24-05-2019 19:23
  While 160 companies around the world have committed to use “100 percent renewable energy,” that does not mean “100 percent carbon-free energy.” The difference will grow as power grids become less reliant on fossil power, according to a new Stanford study published today in Joule. Entities committed to fighting climate change can and should measure the environmental benefits of their renewable strategies accurately, the authors write.Credit: CC0 Public Domain
  Current
  
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• Latest UMD Wood Technology Could Make Homes Cooler and More Energy Efficient

  24-05-2019 17:27
  Researchers at the University of Maryland and University of Colorado Boulder show in new research that the same tiny internal structures that trees use to carry water and nutrients can be used to create super-strong wood building materials able to passively take heat out of homes or offices.
  Published today in the journal Science, the research is the latest from UMD materials science and engineering Associate Professor Liangbing Hu and his team to exploit the natural properties of wood to create
  
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• Electrified methane reformer produces far less carbon dioxide

  24-05-2019 17:06
  A team of researchers from several institutions in Denmark, along with colleagues from Sintex and Haldor Topsoe, has developed an electrified methane reformer that produces far less CO2 than conventional steam-methane reformers. In their paper published in the journal Science, the group describes their new technology and how well it works. Kevin Van Geem, Vladimir Galvita and Guy Marin with the Laboratory for Chemical Technology and Center for Sustainable Chemistry in Ghent have publis
  
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