Most recent 40 articles: PHYS.ORG - Technology
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Heat wave swells Asia's appetite for air-conditioning - PHYS.ORG - Technology (May 3) |
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May 3 · A record-breaking heat wave is broiling parts of Asia, helping drive surging demand for cooling options, including air-conditioning.
AC exhaust units are a common feature of urban landscapes in many parts of Asia, clinging like limpets to towering apartment blocks in Hong Kong or tucked in a cross formation between the windows of a building in Cambodia.
They offer relief from temperatures that have toppled records in recent weeks, with many countries in the region hitting 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) or higher.
Scientists have long warned that human-induced climate change will produce more frequent, longer and more intense heat waves.
Only 15 percent ... Read more ...
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A laser immersion probe for smart inline monitoring of water and wastewater - PHYS.ORG - Technology (May 2) |
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May 2 · The 2D fluorescence measurement method generates spectroscopic data directly on site in the clarifier. In conjunction with intelligent evaluation software, this process is the key to energy- and resource-efficient water treatment.
It will be presented to the public for the first time at IFAT 2024, the world's leading trade fair for water, sewage, waste and raw materials management in Munich.
In order to monitor water treatment processes in wastewater treatment plants, operators have so far relied on 24-hour composite samples. These are collected continuously throughout the day and then analyzed in the laboratory for sum parameters, such as the total amount of organic ... Read more ...
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Cost-effective, high-capacity and cyclable lithium-ion battery cathodes - PHYS.ORG - Technology (May 2) |
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May 2 · The energy capacity and charge-recharge cycling (cyclability) of lithium-iron-oxide, a cost-effective cathode material for rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, is improved by adding small amounts of abundant elements. The development, achieved by researchers at Hokkaido University, Tohoku University, and Nagoya Institute of Technology, is reported in the journal ACS Materials Letters.
Lithium-ion batteries have become indispensable in modern life, used in a multitude of applications including mobile phones, electric vehicles, and large power storage systems.
A constant research effort is underway to increase their capacity, efficiency, and sustainability. A major ... Read more ...
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Electricity from farm waste: How biogas could help Malawians with no power - PHYS.ORG - Technology (May 2) |
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May 2 · Decentralized household and community scale renewable energy systems like biogas plants may provide a solution. Ehiaze Ehimen and Thomas Robin study energy efficiency and energy poverty in marginalized communities. They unpack what they found in their research into the potential role of small biogas plants in meeting rural energy needs.
Why are biogas plants such a good idea?
Biogas plants are easy to set up and can be relatively inexpensive. They use readily available materials such as manure and vegetable waste, and can be built with cement and bricks. They could potentially be used to meet the electricity needs of households and small communities, especially in rural ... Read more ...
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How green cities could remove CO2 from the atmosphere - PHYS.ORG - Technology (May 2) |
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May 2 · Technically speaking, urban removals of this most important greenhouse gas could capture up to one gigatonne (i.e., 1,000 million metric tons) per year by mid-century. The study was conducted by the Berlin-based climate research institute MCC (Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change) and published in Nature Cities.
"The potential for carbon removals in cities is significant, but ultimately, it is also limited," says Quirina Rodriguez Mendez, Ph.D. student at MCC and lead author of the study. "From a global perspective, one gigatonne is only around a fifth of the urban CO2 emissions expected for 2050—urban net zero by the middle of the century is ... Read more ...
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Leveraging robots to help make wind turbine blades - PHYS.ORG - Technology (May 2) |
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May 2 · Although robots have been used by the wind energy industry to paint and polish blades, automation has not been widely adopted. Research at the laboratory demonstrates the ability of a robot to trim, grind, and sand blades. Those necessary steps occur after the two sides of the blade are made using a mold and then bonded together.
"I would consider it a success," said Hunter Huth, a robotics engineer at NREL and lead author of a newly published paper detailing the work. "Not everything operated as well as we wanted it to, but we learned all the lessons we think we need to make it meet or exceed our expectations."
The paper, "Toolpath Generation for Automated Wind Turbine ... Read more ...
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Light, flexible, efficient: Perovskite-based tandem solar cells - PHYS.ORG - Technology (May 2) |
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May 2 · Roof tiles are becoming a thing of the past: Today, more and more Swiss roofs boast large black and blue rectangles that convert sunlight into electricity. The blueish color comes from silicon crystals, as the majority of solar cells available today are based on this semiconductor material. But silicon is not the only way to make a solar cell - and possibly not even the best.
Silicon-based photovoltaic cells have been perfected so far that they are reaching the limits of their efficiency. Although a few percentage points of improvement could still be gained, the theoretical upper limit for the efficiency of a single silicon cell is 33%. In practice, it is somewhat lower, as ... Read more ...
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Microsoft makes renewable energy deal with Canada's Brookfield - PHYS.ORG - Technology (May 2) |
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May 2 · Microsoft and Canada's Brookfield Asset Management have struck an agreement for the development of renewable energy that could make one of the biggest corporate purchases of green energy to date, the companies said on Tuesday.
Under the "first of its kind" agreement, Brookfield said it plans to develop over 10.5 gigawatts of new wind and solar farms for Microsoft as the tech giant looks to power its data centers and operations globally with carbon-free electricity by 2030.
The deal underscores how some of the world's biggest companies are making major investments in clean energy to meet climate goals while also remaining competitive in the race to roll out artificial ... Read more ...
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Researchers find use of olivine in cement production could result in carbon negative concrete - PHYS.ORG - Technology (May 2) |
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May 2 · A small team of materials scientists and environmental engineers at Imperial College London has found that using olivine in cement could result in carbon-negative concrete. In their study, published in the journal Royal Society Open Science, the group conducted experiments with cement mixing that resulted in a way to produce it in a more climate-friendly manner.
In their work, the research team extracted silica and magnesium sulfate from olivine samples by dissolving them in sulfuric acid. They then bubbled CO2 through a batch of the slurry that resulted, which in turn led to the formation of a mineral called nesquehonite during cooling and resulted in sequestration of the ... Read more ...
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States rethink data centers as 'electricity hogs' strain the grid - PHYS.ORG - Technology (May 2) |
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May 2 · State Sen. Norm Needleman championed the 2021 legislation designed to lure major data centers to Connecticut.
The Democratic lawmaker hoped to better compete with nearby states, bring in a growing industry, and provide paychecks for workers tasked with building the sprawling server farms.
But this legislative session, he's wondering if those tax breaks are appropriate for all data centers, especially those with the potential to disrupt the state's clean energy supply.
Particularly concerning to him are plans for a mega data center on the site of the state's only nuclear power plant. The developer is proposing an arrangement that would give it priority access to ... Read more ...
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Electric vehicles are usually safer for their occupants - but not necessarily for everyone else, says researcher - PHYS.ORG - Technology (May 1) |
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May 1 · Public opinion about EV crash safety often hinges on a few high-profile fire incidents. Those safety concerns are arguably misplaced, and the actual safety of EVs is more nuanced.
EVs and internal combustion vehicles undergo the same crash-testing procedures to evaluate their crashworthiness and occupant protection. These tests are conducted by the National Highway Safety Administration's New Car Assessment Program and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
These analyses use crash test dummies representing midsize male and small female occupants to evaluate the risk of injuries. The tests can evaluate fire hazard either caused by thermal runaway—when ... Read more ...
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A new roadmap to close the carbon cycle - PHYS.ORG - Technology (May 1) |
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May 1 · Led by chemist Wendy Shaw of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), a multi-institutional effort has produced a new roadmap to reducing emissions in hard-to-electrify segments of the economy. The multifaceted approach includes developing non-carbon fuels, finding non-fossil sources of carbon, and keeping carbon in play once it enters the cycle, ideally resulting in multiple uses of each carbon atom.
Single-use carbon can no longer be widespread, the roadmap authors assert. The carbon must be kept in play through a circular economy where each carbon atom is used numerous times. The carbon can be reused within the same industrial sector or act as a feedstock for a new ... Read more ...
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Amazon reports strong 1Q results driven by its cloud-computing unit and Prime Video ad dollars - PHYS.ORG - Technology (May 1) |
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May 1 · Amazon on Tuesday reported strong results for the first quarter, driven by growth in its cloud-computing unit and new advertising dollars from its Prime Video streaming service.
The Seattle-based e-commerce giant said it brought in $143.31 billion in revenue in the first three months of this year, a 13% jump compared to the same period last year. Net income came out to $10.43 billion, or 98 cents per share. That soundly beat Wall Street analysts' expectations for 84 cents a share, according to FactSet.
"It was a good start to the year across the business, and you can see that in both our customer experience improvements and financial results," Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said ... Read more ...
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Is bioenergy ever truly green? It depends on five key questions - PHYS.ORG - Technology (May 1) |
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May 1 · But is it environmentally sound? The annoying answer is: it depends.
Trees and other plants soak up carbon from the atmosphere and store it as biomass. When they are burnt for electricity production the same carbon is released. This would suggest bioenergy is "carbon-neutral."
But it's not that simple. Many things can change the environmental credentials of a bioenergy project. Every project is unique and must be considered independently.
So let's break down the five key questions we should ask about every bioenergy project.
1. What is the source of the biomass?
The bewildering array of plants on our planet means a huge amount of biomass "feedstock" is ... Read more ...
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Methane emissions from landfill could be turned into sustainable jet fuel with plasma-driven process - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 30) |
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Apr 30 · Methane is a far more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide (CO2). According to the International Energy Agency, the concentration of methane in the atmosphere is currently around two-and-a-half times greater than pre-industrial levels and is increasing steadily, with waste emissions and the burning of fossil fuels accounting for a significant proportion.
Australia recently joined the international methane mitigation agreement with the United States, the European Union, Japan and the Republic of Korea.
Lead author Professor PJ Cullen from the University of Sydney's School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and Net Zero Initiative said, "Globally, landfills are ... Read more ...
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Electric cars pile up at European ports as Chinese firms struggle to find buyers - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 30) |
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Apr 30 · However, Chinese cars are facing difficulties in finding buyers in Europe. Imported cars, many of which are Chinese electric vehicles, are piling up at European ports, with some spending up to 18 months in port car parks as manufacturers struggle to get them onto people's driveways.
Why is this, though? Chinese electric vehicles in particular are getting positive reviews. Having driven them myself, I can attest to them matching, or even exceeding, the well-known European brands in range, quality and technology.
But entering an established market as a challenger is a complex operation. Chinese makers will have to contend with buyer wariness, a lack of brand image, trade ... Read more ...
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New model estimates cultivable space at photovoltaic plants for combining agricultural and photovoltaic production - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 30) |
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Apr 30 · In Alcarras de Carla Simón, the Solé family glimpses the end of its traditional and not-very-profitable peach plantation due to the arrival of solar panels. The conflict between land use for sustainable energy vs. agricultural production is a hot topic that is reflected in cultural products, and also in research.
Agrivoltaics, which is defined as the shared use of land for agricultural and photovoltaic production, is presented as a strategy to resolve this conflict, and the TEP215-Physics for Renewable Energies research group at the University of Cordoba seeks to promote these types of plants through its research.
In one of their latest works, they have ... Read more ...
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New sodium-ion battery tech boosts green energy storage affordability - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 30) |
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Apr 30 · The rising demand for renewable energy underscores the need for effective and affordable energy-storage solutions. Solid-state sodium batteries (SSSBs) offer notable cost and safety advantages, especially for large-scale grid applications.
However, their widespread adoption is hindered by challenges in achieving high ionic conductivity in solid-state electrolytes, a crucial factor for efficient energy transfer and storage, and a key focus in advanced battery technology research.
A recent study, published in the journal eScience, introduces a novel solid-state electrolyte, Na4.92Y0.92Zr0.08Si4O12 (NYZS), demonstrating exceptional ionic conductivity and electrochemical ... Read more ...
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Report finds e-bike incentives are worth the investment - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 30) |
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Apr 30 · Are new cycling habits sustainable? Who benefits most from these incentives? And are they worth the cost?
The Saanich program, available in 2021 and 2022, offered three different rebates to offset the cost of new e-bikes, depending on one's income. The basic rebate amounted to $350, while the lowest-income households could receive up to $1,600.
Results showed a significant surge in e-bike adoption, with 93% of users being new to e-bikes, and 60% new to cycling altogether.
One year after purchase, users continued to be satisfied with their e-bikes, integrating them into their routines for three to four days a week. They reduced weekly car travel by an average of 48 ... Read more ...
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Research team improves voltage of aqueous rechargeable batteries in the quest for safer, cheaper options - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 30) |
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Apr 30 · Professor Sun said aqueous batteries had been used for more than a hundred years, mainly as non-rechargeable batteries.
"Improving the low voltage of rechargeable aqueous batteries is one of the biggest hurdles facing their wide-spread implementation for many uses," Professor Sun said.
"In common rechargeable batteries, organic electrolytes are used to fill the space between the anode and cathode, which are expensive, and most importantly, highly flammable.
"The use of aqueous electrolytes could address the safety issue of Lithium-ion batteries, as the aqueous electrolyte is much cheaper and safer.
"But the use of aqueous electrolyte in rechargeable batteries ... Read more ...
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Researchers develop improved power pole insulation materials to prevent power pole-top fires - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 30) |
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Apr 30 · Pole-top fires pose significant challenges to power providers and communities worldwide. In March, pole-top fires cut power from 40,000 homes and businesses in Perth.
The 2020 Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements found that power outages experienced by 280,000 customers from various energy providers during Black Summer fires were mainly triggered by events involving insulators and poles.
RMIT University Vice-Chancellor's Postdoctoral Fellow Dr. Tariq Nazir said these fires can occur when consecutive hot, dry and windy days are followed by damp and misty conditions.
"Dust and pollution builds up on power-line insulators, which enables ... Read more ...
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Samsung says Q1 operating profits soar nearly tenfold on-year - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 30) |
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Apr 30 · Samsung Electronics said Tuesday that its first-quarter operating profits had risen nearly tenfold year-on-year amid recovering chip prices and growing demand, notably for generative AI.
The firm is the flagship subsidiary of South Korean giant Samsung Group, by far the largest of the family-controlled conglomerates that dominate business in Asia's fourth-largest economy.
"Operating profit increased to KRW 6.61 trillion ($4.85 billion) as the Memory Business returned to profit by addressing demand for high value-added products," it said in a statement.
Strong smartphone sales, higher prices for semiconductors plus a focus on high-value-added products including HBM ... Read more ...
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Tesla to cut hundreds more jobs in Musk cost push: Report - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 30) |
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Apr 30 · Tesla plans hundreds of additional job cuts beyond a recent company-wide layoff as it cracks down on costs in a tough electric vehicle market, according to a US media report.
Elon Musk's EV company, which moved earlier this month to cut more than 10 percent of its 140,000 employees, will disband two departments and lay off most of the employees from the groups, reported the Information late Monday.
The online technology publication quoted from a Musk email in which he vowed to be "absolutely hard core about headcount and cost reduction."
Musk will seek to oust any executive "who retains more than three people who don't obviously pass the excellent, necessary and ... Read more ...
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Turning up the heat on data storage: New memory device paves the way for AI computing in extreme environments - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 30) |
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Apr 30 · As temperatures climb, the electrons that store data become unstable and begin to escape, leading to device failure and loss of information. But what if gadgets could withstand not just a hot summer day but the searing conditions of a jet engine or the harsh surface of Venus?
In a paper published in the journal Nature Electronics, Deep Jariwala and Roy Olsson of the University of Pennsylvania and their teams at the School of Engineering and Applied Science demonstrated memory technology capable of enduring temperatures as high as 600° Celsius—more than twice the tolerance of any commercial drives on the market—and these characteristics were maintained for more ... Read more ...
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Analysis of future EV load using real-world data shows major upgrade needed for California in the coming decades - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 29) |
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Apr 29 · In their paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Yanning Li and Alan Jenn describe their analysis of California's electrical grid and how it will have to be changed to support the expected number of EVs running on its roads in the coming decades.
In 2022, California became the first state in the U.S. to ban the sale of gasoline-powered vehicles—the ban will be implemented in a stepwise fashion, with a complete ban taking place by 2035—cars already on the road will be allowed to continue to use gasoline with no restrictions.
For this new study, the research pair looked at the capacity of the state's current grid system and then ... Read more ...
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Electric vehicle drivers can estimate their personalized fuel savings with new Argonne tool - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 29) |
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Apr 29 · The tool, Driving Electric: Local Fuel Savings Calculator, is freely available to the public. Drivers can enter their ZIP code or state, as well as any information they have about their vehicle size, model year, tank size, fuel economy and annual mileage. The tool then generates estimates of how much drivers can save.
"Driving a plug-in electric vehicle rather than a conventionally fueled vehicle results in fuel cost savings and reduced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in more than 99% of U.S. ZIP codes," said Yan (Joann) Zhou, principal transportation systems analyst in the Energy Systems and Infrastructure Analysis (ESIA) division at Argonne.
"With this new tool, drivers ... Read more ...
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How artificial intelligence can transform U.S. energy infrastructure - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 29) |
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Apr 29 · It is an exceptionally complex and daunting challenge. But it is not impossible if we harness the transformative capabilities of artificial intelligence (AI) to help, according to a groundbreaking new report issued by leading energy researchers and scientists from across America's national laboratories. The report is titled AI for Energy. It provides a bold framework for how the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) can use AI to accelerate the nation's clean energy transformation.
"AI can manage complexity and make connections across multiple scientific and engineering disciplines, multiple model and data types, and multiple outcome priorities. This can enable AI to create ... Read more ...
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Just 1,200 square kilometers of land could fulfill Australia's solar and wind energy needs - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 29) |
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Apr 29 · So how much land is needed to fully decarbonize energy in Australia? When we switch completely to solar and wind, do we have the space for all the panels, turbines and power lines?
I've done the sums. All we need is 1,200 square kilometers. That's not much. The area devoted to agriculture is about 3,500 times larger at 4.2 million square kilometers. The area of land that would be taken away from agriculture works out at about 45 square meters per person—about the size of a large living room.
We can ditch fossil fuels and reduce greenhouse emissions with negligible impact on agriculture. And in many cases, farmers can be paid for hosting renewable energy ... Read more ...
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NASA uses small engine to enhance sustainable jet research - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 29) |
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Apr 29 · Located inside a high-tech NASA laboratory in Cleveland is something you could almost miss at first glance: a small-scale, fully operational jet engine to test new technology that could make aviation more sustainable.
The engine's smaller size and modestly equipped test stand means researchers and engineers can try out newly designed engine components less expensively compared to using a more costly full-scale jet engine test rig.
Named DGEN380 Aero-Propulsion Research Turbofan, or DART, the engine is tiny enough to fit on a kitchen table, measuring at just 4.3 feet (1.3 meters) long. That's about half the length of engines used on single-aisle airliners.
DART - ... Read more ...
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Scientists harness the wind as a tool to move objects - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 29) |
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Apr 29 · "Airflow or wind is everywhere in our living environment, moving around objects like pollen, pathogens, droplets, seeds and leaves. Wind has also been actively used in industry and in our everyday lives—for example, in leaf blowers to clean leaves. But so far, we can't control the direction the leaves move—we can only blow them together into a pile," says Professor Quan Zhou from Aalto University, who led the study.
The first step in manipulating objects with wind is understanding how objects move in the airflow. To that end, a research team at Aalto University recorded thousands of sample movements in an artificially generated airflow and used these to build ... Read more ...
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Tesla founder Musk visits China as competitors show off new electric vehicles at Beijing auto show - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 29) |
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Apr 29 · Tesla founder and CEO Elon Musk met with a top government leader in the Chinese capital Sunday, just as the nation's carmakers are showing off their latest electric vehicle models at the Beijing auto show.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang told Musk that he hopes the U.S. will work more with China on "win-win" cooperation, citing Tesla's operations in China as a successful example of economic cooperation, China's state broadcaster CCTV said on its main evening news program.
For China, Musk is a welcome antidote to the tough talk from U.S. officials, which played out most recently during a visit by Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Li's remarks also reflect China's efforts to ... Read more ...
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Tesla's stock leaps on reports of Chinese approval for the company's driving software - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 29) |
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Apr 29 · Musk met with a senior government official in the Chinese capital Sunday, just as the nation's carmakers are showing off their latest electric vehicle models at the Beijing auto show.
According to The Wall Street Journal, which cited anonymous sources familiar with the matter, Chinese officials told Tesla that Beijing has tentatively approved the automaker's plan to launch its "Full Self-Driving," or FSD, software feature in the country.
Although it's called FSD, the software still requires human supervision. On Friday the U.S. government's auto safety agency said it is investigating whether last year's recall of Tesla's Autopilot driving system did enough to make sure ... Read more ...
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US Supreme Court declines to hear Musk appeal over Tesla posts - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 29) |
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Apr 29 · The US Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear an appeal by Elon Musk of a settlement that requires the billionaire to have some of his social media posts about Tesla pre-approved by a company lawyer.
The nation's highest court rejected the Tesla and X owner's appeal without comment.
Musk was seeking to overturn restrictions imposed on him by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) following a 2018 post on Twitter, now X.
In the tweet, Musk said he had acquired funding to take Tesla private, which caused a spike in the company's stock price, but he did not provide any proof or file paperwork with the SEC.
The tweet was ruled to be "false and misleading" ... Read more ...
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A strategy to boost the efficiency of perovskite/organic solar cells - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 28) |
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Apr 28 · So far, organic solar cells have achieved a maximum certified power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 19.4%, which is lower than that exhibited by silicon solar cells. A proposed strategy to boost their efficiency and stability entails combining these cells with cells based on mixed halide wide-bandgap perovskites, creating perovskite/organic tandem solar cells.
While perovskite/organic tandem solar cells could theoretically achieve high PCEs and stabilities, their performance is hindered by a process known as phase segregation. This process degrades the performance of wide-bandgap perovskite cells and in turn adversely affects recombination processes at the tandem solar cells' ... Read more ...
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Scientists are shaking up lithium extraction with a different kind of chemistry - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 27) |
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Apr 27 · When people think of chemistry, the image that typically comes to mind is a variety of colored liquids in beakers, flasks, and test tubes in a lab. But in actual practice, chemistry can involve materials in all states: liquids, gases, and even solids.
Scientists at the Critical Materials Innovation (CMI) Hub, led by the U.S. Department of Energy's Ames National Laboratory, are using a subdiscipline of chemistry called mechanochemistry that literally shakes up the conventional understanding of chemical reactions, using mechanical forces that agitate, tumble, and smash solids to initiate chemical reactions. Their new process, mechanochemical extraction of lithium at low ... Read more ...
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A framework to compare lithium battery testing data and results during operation - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 26) |
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Apr 26 · Existing methods to estimate the amount of Li in batteries rely on capacity measurements, describing how much charge a battery can hold, and coulombic efficiency values, which indicate how much charge a battery retains during cycles. Yet these measurements are not always accurate, as they do not account for unpredictable side reactions, self-discharge, and other effects affecting a battery's performance.
"The primary objective of our study was to find a reliable methodology to compare battery testing data and operating results from various sources and conditions, as this could help to advance battery technology and development," Boryann Liaw, co-author of the paper, told Tech ... Read more ...
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California battery storage increasing rapidly, but not enough to end blackouts, Gov. Newsom says - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 26) |
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Apr 26 · Gov. Gavin Newsom said on April 25 that California continued to rapidly add the battery storage that is crucial to the transition to cleaner energy, but admitted it was still not enough to avoid blackouts during heat waves.
Standing in the middle of a solar farm in Yolo County, Newsom announced the state now had battery storage systems with the capacity of more than 10,000 megawatts - about 20% of the 52,000 megawatts the state says is needed to meet its climate goals.
"This is critical to how we achieve 100% clean energy by 2045," Newsom said. "Batteries allow us to use clean energy captured by solar and other renewable sources at all times of the day, especially when ... Read more ...
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Cat hides in Amazon return package - then ends up in California 700 miles from home - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 26) |
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Apr 26 · A cat went missing after hiding in an Amazon return package. Then her Utah owner got a call - from hundreds of miles away - that "changed everything."
On April 10, Galena the kitty "vanished" from her home in Lehi, her owner, Carrie Stevens Clark, said in an April 21 Facebook post.
Clark said she searched "every nook and cranny" in the home before flooding the neighborhood, a suburb of Salt Lake City, with fliers and posting on social media.
"Nothing made sense!!," Clark said.
Then came an unexpected breakthrough. Seven days later, Clark got a call saying Galena had been found in California and identified with her microchip, she said.
Galena, it turned ... Read more ...
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New approach could make reusing captured carbon far cheaper, less energy-intensive - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 26) |
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Apr 26 · Their approach dramatically reduces the cost and energy required for these direct air capture (DAC) systems, helping improve the economics of a process the researchers said will be critical to addressing climate change.
The key is a new kind of catalyst and electrochemical reactor design that can be easily integrated into existing DAC systems to produce useful carbon monoxide (CO) gas. It's one of the most efficient such design ever described in scientific literature, according to lead researcher Marta Hatzell and her team. They have published the details in Energy & Environmental Science.
"All of my team's research projects focus on decarbonization, which I care about ... Read more ...
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Proof of concept study shows path to easier recycling of solar modules - PHYS.ORG - Technology (Apr 26) |
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Apr 26 · The welds would eliminate the need for plastic polymer sheets that are now laminated into solar modules but make recycling more difficult. At the end of their useful lifespan, the modules made with the laser welds can be shattered. The glass and metal wires running through the solar cells can be easily recycled and the silicon can be reused.
"Most recyclers will confirm that the polymers are the main issue in terms of inhibiting the process of recycling," said David Young, senior scientist and group manager for the High-Efficiency Crystalline Photovoltaics group in the Chemistry and Nanoscience department at NREL. Young is lead author of a new paper outlining the use of laser ... Read more ...
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