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The holy grail of bio-fuel researchers is to develop a self-sustaining process that converts waste from sewage, food crops, algae and other renewable carbon sources into fuels, while keeping waste carbon out of our atmosphere and water. Much progress has been made in converting such waste to useful fuel but completing the cycle using clean …

A future powered by sustainable energy sources could save the world from devastating climate change and reduce energy bills. But renewable energy has an intermittency problem — the sun provides no power at night, while winds can stop suddenly. In addition, power grids must keep supply and demand in balance or risk surges and blackouts. …

All-polymer blend solar cells are expected to play an important role in the transition to clean energy technologies because they can be easily produced in large-scale flexible sheets. However, their performance has lagged behind that of more traditional silicon alternatives, as well as other organic solar cells. All-polymer blend solar cells are formed by combining …

As the world’s energy demands increase, so does our consumption of fossil fuels. The result is a massive rise in greenhouse gases emissions with severely adverse environmental effects. To address this, scientists have been searching for alternative, renewable sources of energy. A main candidate is hydrogen produced from organic waste, or “biomass,” of plants and …

Through analysis of ice cores from Greenland and Antarctica, a research team led by Lund University in Sweden has found evidence of an extreme solar storm that occurred about 9,200 years ago. What puzzles the researchers is that the storm took place during one of the sun’s more quiet phases — during which it is …

Decommissioning and clean-up are ongoing at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (FDNPP); however, many difficult problems remain unaddressed. Chief amongst these problems is the retrieval and management of fuel debris. Fuel debris is the name given to the solidified mixture of melted nuclear fuel and other materials that now lie at the base of …

A team of researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS) has set a new record in the power conversion efficiency of solar cells made using perovskite and organic materials. This technological breakthrough paves the way for flexible, light-weight, low cost and ultra-thin photovoltaic cells which are ideal for powering vehicles, boats, blinds and other …

The climate crisis requires ramping up usage of renewable energy sources like solar and wind, but with intermittent availability, scalable energy storage is a challenge. Hydrogen — especially carbon-free green hydrogen — has emerged as a promising clean energy carrier and storage option for renewable energy such as solar and wind. It adds no carbon …

Scientists have found that adding a common household cleaning agent — the mineral boron contained in such cleaners as Borax — can vastly improve the ability of some fusion energy devices to contain the heat required to produce fusion reactions on Earth the way the sun and stars do. Physicists at the U.S. Department of …

Two new studies led by a North Carolina State University researcher offer a preview of what electricity consumers on the West Coast could experience under two different future scenarios: one where excessive heat due to climate change strains power supplies, and one where the grid shifts toward renewable energy while the climate follows historic trends. …

With new major spending packages investing billions of dollars in electric vehicles in the U.S., some analysts have raised concerns over how green the electric vehicle industry actually is, focusing particularly on indirect emissions caused within the supply chains of the vehicle components and the fuels used to power electricity that charges the vehicles. But …

Many bats die at wind turbines when colliding with the spinning blades. Currently it is unclear whether all age cohorts or sexes are equally vulnerable. A comparison of age, sex and geographic origin of Nathusius’ pipistrelles killed at wind turbines and living conspecifics from nearby populations now reveals that juveniles are killed more frequently than …

Metal halide perovskites have been under intense investigation over the last decade, due to the remarkable rise in their performance in optoelectronic devices such as solar cells or light-emitting diodes. The most efficient devices, fabricated in the so called ‘standard architecture’ commonly include processing steps performed at high temperature, thus increasing their energy payback time …

The state of Georgia could dramatically reduce its greenhouse gas emissions, while creating new jobs and a healthier public, if more of its energy-intensive industries and commercial buildings were to utilize combined heat and power (CHP), according to the latest research from Georgia Tech’s School of Public Policy. The paper, digitally available now and in …

Researchers at Northern Illinois University and the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, Colorado, are reporting a potential breakthrough that could help speed commercialization of highly promising perovskite solar cells (PSCs) for use in solar panels. In an Oct. 28 brief communication to the journal Nature Sustainability, the scientists …

A small guest molecule in the right place makes it possible to produce energy-efficient organic solar cells using eco-friendly solvents. A record efficiency over 17% is demonstrated. In addition, solar cells with larger areas can be produced. “This is a major step towards large-scale industrial manufacture of efficient and stable organic solar cells,” says Feng …

Given its environmental toxicity, ammonia is removed during wastewater purification and then used for fertilizers or fuel. However, this process is very energy and chemical intensive. Now, researchers have shown that the application of an external electric field can greatly enhance the efficiency of ammonia removal from wastewater, making it more energy- and cost-effective. Ammonia …

Alternative-energy research at Oregon State University is charting a path toward the mass adoption of clean cars powered by direct-ethanol fuel cells. Zhenxing Feng of the OSU College of Engineering helped lead the development of a catalyst that solves three key problems long associated with DEFC, as the cells are known: low efficiency, the cost …

The World Climate Conference in Glasgow has just ended, and the question is whether the goal of maximum global heating of 1.5°C can still be achieved. In a model calculation, researchers show how the energy transition could lead to the lowest possible cumulative emissions: Instead of slowly cutting back emissions, we should quickly push ahead …

Acetogens are a group of bacteria that can metabolise formate. For example, they form acetic acid — an important basic chemical. If these bacteria were manipulated to produce ethanol or lactic acid, a comprehensive circular economy for the greenhouse gas CO2 could be realised. To ensure that the process is sustainable, the CO2 is extracted …

Technology using a new generation of hybrid solar cells is one step closer to mass-production, thanks to Newcastle University-led research. An international team of scientists have identified a new process using coordination materials that can accelerate the use of low-cost, Earth-abundant materials with the potential to transform the energy sector by replacing silicone-based solar panels. …

A new electrocatalyst called a-CuTi@Cu converts carbon dioxide (CO2 ) into liquid fuels. As reported by a team of Chinese researchers in the journal Angewandte Chemie, active copper centered on an amorphous copper/titanium alloy produces ethanol, acetone, and n-butanol with high efficiency. Most of our global energy demands are still being met by burning fossil …

As electric vehicle production revs up across the globe, an inherent consequence will be the mutually growing number of retired lithium-ion batteries that, unlike traditional lead-acid car batteries, are difficult to dispose of. A new Cornell University-led study identifies several keys to sustainably managing the influx, with an emphasis on battery chemistry, second-life applications and …

New research from Texas A&M University scientists could help in boosting the efficiency of nuclear power plants in the near future. By using a combination of physics-based modeling and advanced simulations, they found the key underlying factors that cause radiation damage to nuclear reactors, which could then provide insight into designing more radiation-tolerant, high-performance materials. …

New modelling, on a scale ranging from individual structures through to neighbourhoods and an entire city, has shown that buildings in the City of Melbourne could provide 74% of their own electricity needs if solar technology is fully integrated into roofs, walls and windows. Published in the journal Solar Energy, the research, led by members …

One of the major challenges the world faces is how to provide sustainable sources of energy that meet societal needs as the global population continues to grow. Bioenergy crops have garnered increasing attention as a renewable energy source, but their productivity has not yet been fully realized. In a recent study, published in GCB Bioenergy, …

With the eyes of the world on the United Nations COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland, strategies for decarbonizing energy infrastructure are a trending topic. Yet critics of renewables question the dependability of systems that rely on intermittent resources. A recent study led by researchers at the University of California, Irvine tackles the reliability question …