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Categories: Chemistry: Thermodynamics, Energy: Alternative Fuels

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Achieving photochemical upconversion in a solid state is a step closer to reality, thanks to a new technique that could unlock vital innovations in renewable energy, water purification and advanced healthcare.

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A research team has made a significant breakthrough in thin film deposition technology.

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Researchers have found a way to harvest hydrogen from plastic waste using a low-emissions method that generates graphene as a by-product, which could help offset production costs.

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A research team has achieved significant breakthroughs in harnessing low-grade heat sources (<100 °C) for efficient energy conversion.

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Researchers have focused on the moisture present in the air as a potential source of drinking water for drought-stressed populations. They reached a significant breakthrough in their efforts to create drinkable water out of thin air: a molecularly engineered hydrogel that can create clean water using just the energy from sunlight.

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A new material that packs deadly heat for viruses on its outer surface while staying cool on the reverse side could be used to make sustainable, multiuse personal protective equipment.

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A research team has made a groundbreaking advancement in improving the efficiency of hydrogen fuel cells, which are gaining significant attention as eco-friendly next-generation energy sources.

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Scientists have devised an efficient method of recovering high-purity silicon from expired solar panels to produce lithium-ion batteries that could help meet the increasing global demand to power electric vehicles.

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Though a cornerstone of thermodynamics, entropy remains one of the most vexing concepts to teach budding physicists in the classroom. Physics teachers designed a hand-held model to demonstrate the concept of entropy for students. Using everyday materials, the approach allows students to confront the topic with new intuition -- one that takes specific aim at the confusion between entropy and disorder.

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A chemist envisions a future where every house is powered by renewable energy stored in batteries. He has created a new battery that could have profound implications for the large-scale energy storage needed by wind and solar farms.

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A recent study has unveiled a significant breakthrough in photoelectrode development.

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Researchers have mathematically derived the fundamental limit of heat current flowing into a quantum system comprising numerous quantum mechanical particles in relation to the particle count. Further, they established a clearer understanding of how the heat current rises with increasing particle count, shedding light on the performance constraints of potential future quantum thermal devices.

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Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) provide our portable devices like tablets and mobiles -- and increasingly also vehicles -- with power. As the share of volatile renewable energy needing electricity storage increases, more and more LIBs are needed, lithium prices rise, resources dwindle, and the amount of depleted batteries that contain toxic substances increases. Researchers introduce a novel approach for the recovery of lithium from used LIBs.

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Hydrogen spillover is exactly what it sounds like. Small metal nanoparticles anchored on a thermally stable oxide, like silica, comprise a major class of catalysts, which are substances used to accelerate chemical reactions without being consumed themselves. The catalytic reaction usually occurs on the reactive -- and expensive -- metal, but on some catalysts, hydrogen atom-like equivalents literally spill from the metal to the oxide. These hydrogen-on-oxide species are called 'hydrogen spillover.'

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Molecular photoswitches that can both convert and store energy could be used to make solar energy harvesting more efficient. A team of researchers has used a quantum computing method to find a particularly efficient molecular structure for this purpose. Their procedure was based on a dataset of more than 400,000 molecules, which they screened to find the optimum molecular structure for solar energy storage materials.

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Carbon capture is a promising method to help slow climate change. With this approach, carbon dioxide (CO¬¬2) is trapped before it escapes into the atmosphere, but the process requires a large amount of energy and equipment. Now, researchers have designed a capture system using an electrochemical cell that can easily grab and release CO2. The device operates at room temperature and requires less energy than conventional, amine-based carbon-capture systems.

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The Mpemba effect is originally referred to the non-monotonic initial temperature dependence of the freezing start time, but it has been observed in various systems -- including colloids -- and has also become known as a mysterious relaxation phenomenon that depends on initial conditions. However, very few have previously investigated the effect in quantum systems. Now, the temperature quantum Mpemba effect can be realized over a wide range of initial conditions.

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Methylcyclohexane is very promising as a hydrogen carrier that can safely and efficiently transport and store hydrogen. However, the dehydrogenation process using catalysts has issues due to its durability and large energy loss. Recently, researchers have succeeded in using solid oxide fuel cells to generate electricity directly from methylcyclohexane and recover toluene for reuse. This research is expected to not only reduce energy requirements but also explore new chemical synthesis by fuel cells.

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A team of researchers is designing novel systems to capture water vapor in the air and turn it into liquid. They have developed sponges or membranes with a large surface area that continually capture moisture from their surrounding environment.

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Mathematical modeling can show how to safely blend hydrogen with natural gas for transport in existing pipeline systems. A secure and reliable transition to hydrogen is one of the proposed solutions for the shift to a net-zero-carbon economy.