New Low-Cost Nuclear Reactor Barrier Could’ve Withstood Chernobyl and Fukushima
In the aftermath of the notorious accidents in the history of nuclear energy at Three Mile Island (1979), Chernobyl (1986) and Fukushima (2011), where all…
Energy
“Big Surprise” Discovery Increases Perovskite Solar Cell Efficiency
Discovery means simpler and cheaper manufacturing methods are actually beneficial for the material’s use in next-generation solar cells or LED lighting. Scientists at the University…
Turning Waste Heat Into Hydrogen Fuel Using Reverse Electrodialysis
Using waste heat helps cut cost of producing hydrogen. Hydrogen as an energy carrier can help us move away from fossil fuels, but only if…
T-Shirt Generates Electricity From Body Temperature Difference to Surroundings
The ‘e-textile’ prototype uses sustainable and low-cost materials like tomato skin. Researchers of the Faculty of Science of the University of Malaga (UMA) have designed…
New Hybrid Device Efficiently Captures and Stores Solar Energy
Device offers a new avenue for capitalizing on abundant solar energy. Researchers from the University of Houston have reported a new device that can both…
Direct Thermal Charging Cell Converts Waste Heat Into Usable Electricity
Dr. Tony Shien-Ping Feng of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) and his team invented a Direct Thermal Charging…
Harvesting Hot Electrons Without Tricks Could Increase Solar Panel Efficiency
The efficiency of solar panels is hampered by a ‘Goldilocks’ problem: the light needs to have just the right amount of energy to be converted…
Remarkable New Material Turns Heat Into Electricity at World Record Rate
A new type of material generates electrical current very efficiently from temperature differences. This allows sensors and small processors to supply themselves with energy wirelessly….
Converting Fat and Sewage Into Natural Gas More Efficiently
North Carolina State University researchers have developed what is, to date, the most efficient means of converting sewage sludge and restaurant grease into methane. After…
New Organic Solar Cells Set Efficiency World Record
A research team from Nuremberg and Erlangen has set a new record for the power conversion efficiency of organic photovoltaic modules (OPV). The scientists from…
Mountain Gravity Energy Storage – Environmental Long-Term Energy Storage
The storage of energy for long periods of time is subject to special challenges. An IIASA researcher proposes using a combination of Mountain Gravity Energy…
Solving a Riddle That Would Provide the World With Entirely Clean, Renewable Energy
Scientists from Trinity College Dublin have taken a giant stride towards solving a riddle that would provide the world with entirely renewable, clean energy from…
California’s Switch to Solar, Wind Energy Preserves Groundwater for Drought, Agriculture
California’s switch to solar, wind energy reduced reliance on hydropower, natural gas. Solar and wind farms are popping up around the country to lower carbon…
Post-Lithium Technology: High-Energy-Density Next-Generation Rechargeable Batteries
High-energy-density polymeric cathode for fast-charge sodium- and multivalent-ion batteries. Next-generation batteries will probably see the replacement of lithium ions by more abundant and environmentally benign…
Perovskite Nanocrystal Breakthrough Could Lead to a Better, Cheaper Solar Cells
Scientific instrument made at McGill reveals liquid-like properties of a solid substance. McGill University researchers have gained tantalizing new insights into the properties of perovskites,…
Swarms of Microrobots Quickly Clean Up Radioactive Waste [Video]
According to some experts, nuclear power holds great promise for meeting the world’s growing energy demands without generating greenhouse gases. But scientists need to find…
Latest Advances in Ionic Channels for Efficient Electrochemical Energy Storage
The rapid development of electronic devices and power equipment, such as new-energy vehicles and robots, has sparked extensive demand for portable power sources. Electrochemical energy…
Innovative Hydrogen Boride Nanosheets: Huge Potential As Hydrogen Carrier
Researchers at Tokyo Institute of Technology, University of Tsukuba, and colleagues in Japan report a promising hydrogen carrier in the form of hydrogen boride nanosheets[1]….