Renewable Energy News

August 25, 2016

Converting Carbon Dioxide Gas Into Fuel

Biofuels Not as 'Green' as Many Think

Light-Driven Conversion: Greenhouse Gas to Fuel

Carbon Dioxide as Building Block for Fuels

Latest Headlines

updated 10:56pm EDT

An Effective and Low-Cost Solution for Storing Solar Energy

Aug. 25, 2016 — Solar energy can be stored by converting it into hydrogen. But current methods are too expensive and don't last long. Using commercially available solar cells and none of the ... read more

Pro-Nuclear Countries Making Slower Progress on Climate Targets

Aug. 22, 2016 — A strong national commitment to nuclear energy goes hand in hand with weak performance on climate change targets, researchers have ... read more

Wind Power Fiercer Than Expected

Aug. 11, 2016 — As the US' first wind farm is installed in Rhode Island this week, a new study shows offshore wind may be even more powerful and turbulent than expected in the Northeast. The findings could have ... read more

Strategies Needed for Light-Duty Vehicle Greenhouse Gas Reduction

Aug. 9, 2016 — Solutions including electric and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, vehicle connectivity, and automation are ... read more

A New Leaf: Scientists Turn Carbon Dioxide Back Into Fuel

July 30, 2016 — Researchers have found a way to convert carbon dioxide into a usable energy source. Produced by the burning of fossil fuels in power plants and car engines, carbon dioxide ... read more

Breakthrough Solar Cell Captures Carbon Dioxide and Sunlight, Produces Burnable Fuel

July 28, 2016 — Researchers have engineered a potentially game-changing solar cell that cheaply and efficiently converts atmospheric carbon ... read more

Molten Storage and Thermophotovoltaics Offer New Solar Power Pathway

July 27, 2016 — A new wrinkle on an old technology -- solid-state thermophotovoltaics (TPV) -- could provide a high-efficiency alternative for directly converting high-temperature heat from ... read more

Watering Solar Cells Makes Them Grow in Power

July 27, 2016 — Perovskite solar cells are the rising star in the photovoltaic landscape. Since their invention, less than ten years ago, their efficiency has doubled twice and it is now ... read more

Unlocking the Secret to Cheaper Solar Power

July 25, 2016 — As climate change garners more attention around the world, scientists have made critical advances in understanding the physical properties of an emerging class of solar cells that have the potential ... read more

Developing Reliable Renewable Energy Sources

July 25, 2016 — As the world’s population continues to grow, so does our consumption of natural resources. Many of these resources are non-renewable, so research into renewable sources of ... read more

Deadly Methane Gas Is Turned Into Energy in Rwanda

The Filling Station That Makes Its Own Fuel

Biofuels In One Easy Step: Just Add Modified E. Coli

GOP Defends Coal As Renewable Energy Surges

Saharan Dust: Reliable Forecasts for Photovoltaic Output

July 27, 2016 — A hazy sky and dirty cars are well-known consequences of Saharan dust carried to Europe by air currents. As part of the “PerduS” project, researchers are currently examining how dust – as haze ... read more

Perovskite Can Take the Heat

July 21, 2016 — Myth-busting research into a new alternative solar cell material could lead to cheaper solar ... read more

Modern Off-Grid Lighting Could Create 2 Million New Jobs in Developing World

July 19, 2016 — Many households in impoverished regions around the world are starting to shift away from inefficient and polluting fuel-based lighting -- such as candles, firewood, and kerosene lanterns -- to ... read more

Key Improvement for Fuel Cells: Work Improves Understanding of Process That Stops Reactions

July 18, 2016 — Researchers have determined a key step in improving solid oxide fuel cells, a promising clean energy technology that has struggled to gain wide acceptance in the marketplace. The researchers ... read more

New Discoveries About Photosynthesis May Lead to Solar Cells of the Future

July 18, 2016 — For the first time, researchers have successfully measured in detail the flow of solar energy, in and between different parts of a photosynthetic organism. The result is a first step in research that ... read more

The Future of Perovskite Solar Cells Has Just Got Brighter, Come Rain or Shine

July 18, 2016 — A team of researchers has found a new method to improve not only the efficiency, but stability and humidity tolerance of perovskite solar cells. The scientists have designed a hydrophobic conducting ... read more

Electricity Generated With Water, Salt and a 3-Atoms-Thick Membrane

July 13, 2016 — Proponents of clean energy will soon have a new source to add: osmotic power. Or more specifically, energy generated by a natural phenomenon occurring when fresh water comes into contact with ... read more

Modeling Predicts Which Counties Could Store More Carbon in Soil by Growing Bioenergy Crops

July 13, 2016 — To help stakeholders in government and business make smart decisions about the best types of land and local climates for planting bioenergy crops, researchers are using computational modeling to ... read more

Solar Panels Study Reveals Impact on Earth

July 13, 2016 — Researchers have produced the first detailed study of the impact of solar parks on the environment, opening the door to smarter forms of farming and better land ... read more

New Milestone in Printed Photovoltaic Technology

July 11, 2016 — Researchers have achieved an important milestone in the quest to develop efficient solar technology as an alternative to fossil fuels. They have investigated a new molecule that can be used to ... read more

Engineering E. Coli for Biofuel, Bioproduct Production

July 7, 2016 — Researchers developed an alternative fatty acid synthase (FAS) system in which enzymes from other organisms work with the native FAS in <i>E. coli</i> to improve the microbe’s capacity ... read more

How Solar Energy Can Be Transformed Into Fuel

July 7, 2016 — A new study look into the quest for sustainable fuel, and how solar energy can be transformed into exactly this. The new procedure uses the sun's thermal energy to convert carbon dioxide and ... read more

Flipping Crystals Triples Solar-Cell Performance

July 6, 2016 — In a step that could bring perovskite crystals closer to use in the burgeoning solar power industry, researchers have tweaked their crystal production method and developed a new type of ... read more

Neural Networks to Obtain Synthetic Petroleum

July 6, 2016 — A research group has made progress in obtaining bio-oils and raw materials from biomass using its patented reactor. Biomass is one of the main sources of energy and heat in the field of renewable ... read more

Saved by the Sun: Solar-Powered Oxygen Delivery System Helps Save Lives in Uganda

June 29, 2016 — A new twist on the use of renewable energy is saving children's lives in Africa. The innovation -- a solar-powered oxygen delivery system -- is providing concentrated oxygen in hospital for ... read more

Radioactive Cesium Fallout on Tokyo from Fukushima Mostly in Glass Microparticles

June 27, 2016 — New research shows that most of the radioactive fallout which landed on downtown Tokyo a few days after the Fukushima accident was concentrated and deposited in non-soluble glass microparticles, as a ... read more

'Flower Power': Photovoltaic Cells Replicate Rose Petals

June 24, 2016 — With a surface resembling that of plants, solar cells improve light-harvesting and thus generate more power. Scientists reproduced the epidermal cells of rose petals that have particularly good ... read more

Coal to Solar: Retraining the Energy Workforce

June 24, 2016 — As the solar industry booms, coal workers have the opportunity to pursue new work. A new study looks at what it takes to retrain underground skills for sunnier ... read more

Sweden's 100 Percent Carbon-Free Emissions Challenge

June 21, 2016 — The Swedish power supply is largely free of carbon emissions. Indeed, it is mainly based on a combination of hydroelectric and nuclear power combined with power exchange with neighboring Scandinavian ... read more

How China Can Ramp Up Wind Power

June 20, 2016 — China has an opportunity to massively increase its use of wind power -- if it properly integrates wind into its existing power system, according to a new study. The research forecasts that wind power ... read more

Wednesday, July 27, 2016