Alternative Energy
Solar Plane Completes Second Leg of Trip
May 23, 2013 11:51 am | by Associated Press | News | CommentsA solar-powered plane has landed in Texas, completing the second leg of a trip across the U.S.
Transparent Electrode Key to Flexible Solar Cells
May 23, 2013 7:00 am | by Purdue Univ. | News | CommentsResearchers have created a new type of transparent electrode that might find uses in solar cells, flexible displays for computers and consumer electronics and future "optoelectronic" circuits for sensors and information processing.
New Method Produces Clean Hydrogen
May 22, 2013 7:00 am | by Duke Univ. | News | CommentsEngineers have developed a novel method for producing clean hydrogen, which could prove essential to weaning society off of fossil fuels and their environmental implications.
U.S. Can Grow Copious Amounts of Pond Scum for Fuel
May 22, 2013 7:00 am | by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory | News | CommentsA new analysis shows that the nation's land and water resources could likely support the growth of enough algae to produce up to 25 billion gallons of algae-based fuel a year.
Seabed Pebbles are So Loud They Interfere with Experiments
May 21, 2013 12:15 pm | by Inside Science News Service, Joel Shurkin | News | CommentsSince there is increasing interest in harnessing the currents and tides for energy, scientists need to know as much about the environment as they can, but the noise of gravel on the seafloor is so loud it's getting in the way of studies.
Compressed Air Stores Green Energy
May 21, 2013 7:00 am | by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory | News | CommentsCompressed air energy storage plants could help save the Northwest's abundant wind power— which is often produced at night when winds are strong and energy demand is low— for later, when demand is high and power supplies are more strained.
Researchers Make 3D Images Without a Camera
May 21, 2013 7:00 am | by Univ. of Glasgow | Videos | CommentsPhysicists have found a way to make sophisticated 3D images without using conventional digital cameras. Their system uses simple, cheap detectors that have just a single pixel to sense light instead of the millions of pixels used in the imaging sensors of digital cameras.
Artificial Forest Splits Water
May 17, 2013 7:00 am | by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory | News | CommentsResearchers have reported the first fully integrated nanosystem for artificial photosynthesis.
Symmetry Produces Efficient Photosynthesis
May 15, 2013 12:07 pm | by MIT, David Chandler | News | CommentsResearchers have found that the key to purple bacteria’s light-harvesting prowess lies in highly symmetrical molecules.
Wind Farms Never Prosecuted for Eagle Deaths
May 14, 2013 12:38 pm | by Associated Press, Dina Cappiello | News | CommentsThe government has prosecuted oil companies when birds drown in their waste pits, power companies when birds are electrocuted by their power lines but has never fined or prosecuted a wind-energy company when birds hit their fans.
Researchers Watch Real-Time Charging of a Lithium-Air Battery
May 14, 2013 7:00 am | by MIT, David Chandler | News | CommentsImaging revealed what happens during battery charging and could lead to improved batteries for electric cars.
NASA to Get 'Green' Spacecraft Propellant
May 8, 2013 8:12 am | by Air Force Office of Scientific Research | News | CommentsIn 2015, NASA will, for the first time, fly a space mission utilizing a radically different propellant— one which has reduced toxicity and is environmentally benign.
Cleaner Energy May Cause Warmer Climate
May 7, 2013 12:26 pm | by MIT, Vicki Ekstrom | News | CommentsWhat unintended consequences could cleaner energy sources have on the changing climate?
Low-Grade Silicon Improves Solar Energy
May 7, 2013 7:00 am | by Univ. of New South Wales | News | CommentsSolar engineers have developed an innovative method to dramatically improve the quality of low-grade silicon, promising to significantly improve electrical efficiency and reduce the cost of solar panels.
Microwave Makes Solar Cell Material
May 6, 2013 11:25 am | by Univ. of Utah | News | CommentsMetallurgists used an old microwave oven to produce a nanocrystal semiconductor rapidly using cheap, abundant and less toxic metals than other semiconductors.
New Technology Aids Old Energy
May 6, 2013 11:22 am | News | CommentsIn the race to conquer energy technology, old energy is beating green energy. Oil companies have used technology to find a bounty of oil and natural gas so large that worries about running out have melted away.
Universal Modern Energy is Possible
May 3, 2013 12:19 pm | by Institute of Physics | News | CommentsUniversal access to modern energy could be achieved with an investment of between 65 and 86 billion U.S. dollars a year up until 2030.
Investors Shift Focus to Cleaner Drilling
May 3, 2013 7:00 am | by Associated Press | News | CommentsIn a tough economy clean technology investment funds are no longer trying to replace the fossil fuel industry, they're trying to help it by financing companies that can make mining and drilling less dirty.
Plant Discoveries Could Ease Global Food, Fuel Demands
May 2, 2013 7:00 am | by UC San Diego | News | CommentsThe way plants transport important substances across their biological membranes, increase salt and drought tolerance, control water loss and store sugar can have profound implications for increasing the supply of food and energy around the world.
‘Superlattice’ Can Boost to Oxygen Reaction in Fuel Cells
April 30, 2013 11:48 am | by MIT, David Chandler | News | CommentsNew research could dramatically improve the efficiency of fuel cells, which are considered a promising alternative to batteries for powering everything from electronic devices to cars and homes.
Fusion Reactor Experiments Reveal Details of Cooling Process
April 30, 2013 7:00 am | by MIT, David Chandler | Videos | CommentsNew experiments in a tokamak fusion reactor revealed details of a cooling process, potentially bringing practical fusion closer.
Changing Cellulose Formation Increases Biofuel Potential
April 29, 2013 7:00 am | by Penn State Univ. | News | CommentsChanging the way a plant forms cellulose may lead to more efficient, less expensive biofuel production.
Inorganic Nanosheets Enhance Batteries
April 26, 2013 12:03 pm | by Univ. of Science and Technology of China | News | CommentsA graphene inspired electrode material that could help batteries hold more power has been developed.
Storage System Lets Wind Farms Deliver Power on Windless Days
April 25, 2013 12:42 pm | by MIT, David Chandler | News | CommentsInnovative storage system could enable offshore wind farms to deliver power whenever it’s needed.
Low-Cost, Effective Catalyst Aids Hydrogen Production
April 25, 2013 7:00 am | by Brookhaven National Laboratory | News | CommentsA catalyst, made from renewable soybeans and abundant molybdenum metal, produces hydrogen in an environmentally friendly, cost-effective manner, potentially increasing the use of this clean energy source.
