Energy and Resources News

October 14, 2016

Nano-Spike Catalysts Convert CO2 Into Ethanol

Manufacturing More Efficient Solar Cells

More Efficient Way to Split Water; Make Hydrogen

Thermal Metamaterial: Waste-Heat Harvesting

Latest Headlines

updated 8:43am EDT

Wave Energy Researchers Dive Deep to Advance Clean Energy Source

Oct. 13, 2016 — One of the biggest untapped clean energy sources on the planet — wave energy — could one day power millions of homes across the U.S. But more than a century after the ... read more

New 3D Design for Mobile Microbatteries

Oct. 11, 2016 — In the race towards miniaturization, a research team has succeeded in improving the energy density of a rechargeable battery without increasing its size (limited to a few square millimeters in mobile ... read more

Better View of Synthetic Fuel Production

Sep. 23, 2016 — Synthetic fuel is cleaner than natural oil, but its production process needs to be more efficient. Now for the first time, physicists have directly observed the molecules produced in the chemical ... read more

Brewery Wastewater Transformed Into Energy Storage

Oct. 7, 2016 — Engineers have developed an innovative bio-manufacturing process that uses a biological organism cultivated in brewery wastewater to create the carbon-based materials needed to make energy storage ... read more

Innovative Molten Silicon-Based Energy Storage System

Oct. 7, 2016 — A novel system has been created that allows the storage energy in molten silicon which is the most abundant element in Earth's crust. The system has patent pending status in the United States, and ... read more

Shale Gas, Not EPA Rules, Has Pushed Decline in Coal-Generated Electricity, Study Confirms

Oct. 7, 2016 — Cheap shale gas produced by fracking has driven the decline in coal production in the United States during the last decade, ... read more

Efficient Organic Solar Cells With Very Low Driving Force

Oct. 6, 2016 — Organic solar cells have now been developed with a significantly lower driving force and faster charge separation than previous cells, ... read more

Harnessing Algae for the Creation of Clean Energy

Oct. 6, 2016 — Researchers have revealed how microalgae produce hydrogen, a clean fuel of the future, and suggest a possible mechanism to jumpstart mass production of this environmentally-friendly energy ... read more

Organic Semiconducting Polymers Can Harvest Sunlight to Split CO2 Into Alcohol Fuels

Oct. 6, 2016 — Chemists have been the first to demonstrate that an organic semiconductor polymer called polyaniline is a promising photocathode material for the ... read more

Non-Toxic Solvent Removes Barrier to Commercialization of Perovskite Solar Cells

Oct. 5, 2016 — Scientists have developed a solvent system with reduced toxicity that can be used in the manufacture of perovskite solar cells, clearing one of the ... read more

CA Farmers Use Advanced Drone Tech to Save Water

The Range Of Electric Vehicles Isn't As Big A Problem As You'd Think

The Thai Village Using Cow Dung to Power Homes

Shell: Big Oil Struggles as Profits Dive

Achieving Ultra-Low Friction Without Oil Additives

Oct. 11, 2016 — A new process for treating metal surfaces has been developed that has the potential to improve efficiency in piston engines and a range of other ... read more

Hydrogen-Powered Passenger Ferry in San Francisco Bay Is Possible, Says Study

Oct. 10, 2016 — Researchers set out to answer one not-so-simple question: Is it feasible to build and operate a high-speed passenger ferry solely powered by hydrogen fuel cells? The answer is ... read more

Optimizing Fuel Filters Via Simulations

Oct. 10, 2016 — Filters developed for cars have to meet stricter and stricter requirements, yet they also need to be ready for the market in ever shorter periods of time. Designers caught between these two demands ... read more

Physicists Elucidate Reactions Underlying Positive Ion Beams Hitting Molecular Targets Relevant in Proton Therapy

Oct. 7, 2016 — Ion-molecule reactions are ubiquitous. They are important in the emergence of primordial life as solar wind falls onto chemicals turning them into the prebiotic building blocks of life. Ion-molecule ... read more

Catalyst Structure Identified in an Operating Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell

Oct. 7, 2016 — The structure of the palladium catalyst for hydrogen oxidation in proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells has been revealed by scientists. Contrary to current views the results, obtained by ... read more

New Advances in Solar Cell Technology

Oct. 5, 2016 — With the high environmental cost of conventional energy sources and the finite supply of fossil fuels, the importance of renewable energy sources has become much more apparent in recent years. ... read more

Water Vapor Sets Some Oxides Aflutter

Oct. 3, 2016 — A team of scientists has discovered a phenomenon that could have practical applications in solar cells, rechargeable battery electrodes, and water-splitting ... read more

Advance in Low-Cost Clean Energy Generation

Oct. 3, 2016 — A substantial advance in generating electricity has now been realized through a combination of concentrating solar power and thermoelectric materials. By combining concentrating solar power -- which ... read more

Catalyst for Green Biodiesel Production from Unrefined Feedstock

Oct. 3, 2016 — A durable catalyst for green biodiesel production from low grade feedstock through one-step catalysis has been developed, report ... read more

Toward 'Greener,' Inexpensive Solar Cells

Sep. 28, 2016 — Solar panels are proliferating across the globe to help reduce the world's dependency on fossil fuels. But conventional panels are not without environmental costs, too. Now scientists report a ... read more

New Steel for Better Electric Motors Under Development

Sep. 28, 2016 — A new kind of steel for the motors in electric vehicles is now under development. The new steel would help make the motors smaller, lighter, more powerful and more cost ... read more

Way Found to Make Alane a Better Hydrogen Fuel Option for Vehicles

Sep. 27, 2016 — A less-expensive, more energy-efficient way has been found to produce alane – aluminum trihydride – a hydrogen source widely considered to be a technological dead-end for use in automotive ... read more

Marriage Made in Sunlight: Invention Merges Solar With Liquid Battery

Sep. 22, 2016 — As solar cells produce a greater proportion of total electric power, a fundamental limitation remains: the dark of night when solar cells go to sleep. Lithium-ion batteries are too expensive a ... read more

Popeye Was Right: There’s Energy in That Spinach

Sep. 22, 2016 — Using a simple membrane extract from spinach leaves, researchers have developed a cell that produces electricity and hydrogen from water using sunlight. Based on photosynthesis, and technology paves ... read more

Not All Bioplastics Are Created Equal

Sep. 21, 2016 — Conventional plastics are seen as environmentally unfriendly because they're made from fossil fuels. As plastic production grows -- it's expected to double over the next 20 years -- ... read more

Making Catalysts Smarter

Sep. 20, 2016 — The industrial catalysts of the future won’t just speed up reactions, they’ll control how chemical processes work and determine how much of a particular product is ... read more

Discovery Could Lead to Safer, Cheaper Production of Amine-Boranes

Sep. 20, 2016 — A newway to produce amine-boranes has been created that promises to be safer and cheaper, and could lead to new uses in medicine, energy storage, rocket propulsion and other technologies. ... read more

Inexpensive Semiconducting Organic Polymers Can Harvest Sunlight to Split Carbon Dioxide Into Alcohol Fuels

Sep. 20, 2016 — Chemists have been the first to demonstrate that an organic semiconductor polymer called polyaniline is a promising photocathode material for the conversion of carbon dioxide into alcohol fuels ... read more

Nine Innovative Approaches That Utilities Are Using to Plan for Increased Rooftop Solar

Sep. 20, 2016 — A new report surveys utility planning practices from roughly 30 studies across the United States. The rapid growth of rooftop solar has not been distributed equally across U.S. utility territories, ... read more

New Anode Material Set to Boost Lithium-Ion Battery Capacity

Sep. 19, 2016 — A team of researchersclaims to have made yet another step towards finding a solution to accelerate the commercialization of silicon anode for Lithium-ion ... read more

Tuesday, October 11, 2016