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Published

Renewable grid: Recovering electricity from heat storage hits 44% efficiency      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Closing in on the theoretical maximum efficiency, devices for turning heat into electricity are edging closer to being practical for use on the grid, according to new research.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Engineering: Nanotechnology Offbeat: General Physics: General Physics: Quantum Computing
Published

Strings that can vibrate forever (kind of)      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have engineered string-like resonators capable of vibrating longer at ambient temperature than any previously known solid-state object -- approaching what is currently only achievable near absolute zero temperatures. Their study pushes the edge of nanotechnology and machine learning to make some of the world's most sensitive mechanical sensors.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Technology Engineering: Nanotechnology
Published

Powering wearable devices with high-performing carbon nanotube yarns      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Carbon nanotube (CNT) yarns are promising for flexible and fabric-type wearable materials that can convert waste heat into thermoelectricity. To improve the thermoelectric properties of CNT yarns, researchers dispersed CNT filaments in a highly viscous glycerol, enabling the production of CNT yarn with highly aligned bundles together with surfactants that prevent increased thermal conductivity. This innovative approach can significantly improve carbon nanotube-based thermoelectric materials, making it possible to power wearable devices using just body heat.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Energy: Alternative Fuels Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

New data-driven model rapidly predicts dehydrogenation barriers in solid-state materials      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have developed a groundbreaking data-driven model to predict the dehydrogenation barriers of magnesium hydride, a promising material for solid-state hydrogen storage. This advancement holds significant potential for enhancing hydrogen storage technologies, a crucial component in the transition to sustainable energy solutions.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: Thermodynamics
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A powerful tool speeds success in achieving highly efficient thermoelectric materials      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Thermoelectric materials could play an important role in the clean energy transition, as they can produce electricity from sources of heat that would otherwise go to waste. Researchers report a new approach to efficiently predict when thermoelectric materials will have improved performance in converting heat into electricity.

Chemistry: General Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Technology Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Wind farms can offset their emissions within two years      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

After spinning for under two years, a wind farm can offset the carbon emissions generated across its entire 30-year lifespan, when compared to thermal power plants.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Energy: Alternative Fuels Physics: General
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Shedding light on perovskite hydrides using a new deposition technique      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Perovskite hydrides are promising materials for various emerging energy technologies, but measuring their intrinsic hydride-ion conductivity is difficult. In a recent study, researchers address this issue using a novel laser deposition technique in an H-radical atmosphere. Using this approach, they grew thin-film single crystals of two different perovskite hydrides and characterized their hydride-ion conductivity. These efforts will bolster research on hydrogen-related materials.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Technology Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Using AI to improve building energy use and comfort      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have developed a new method that can lead to significant energy savings in buildings. The team identified 28 major heat loss regions in a multi-unit residential building with the most severe ones being at wall intersections and around windows. A potential energy savings of 25 per cent is expected if 70 per cent of the discovered regions are fixed.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Energy: Alternative Fuels Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Promising new development in solar cell technology      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers who contributed to the development of record-breaking solar cells a few years ago, expanded their invention. The self-assembled monolayers can now be applied not only in inverted but also in regular structure perovskite solar cells.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Alternative Fuels Environmental: General
Published

Scientists generate heat over 1,000 degrees Celsius with solar power instead of fossil fuel      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Instead of burning fossil fuels to smelt steel and cook cement, researchers in Switzerland want to use heat from the sun. The proof-of-concept study uses synthetic quartz to trap solar energy at temperatures over 1,000 C (1,832 F), demonstrating the method's potential role in providing clean energy for carbon-intensive industries.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Computer Science: General Physics: General
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Using artificial intelligence to speed up and improve the most computationally-intensive aspects of plasma physics in fusion      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers are using artificial intelligence to perfect the design of the vessels surrounding the super-hot plasma, optimize heating methods and maintain stable control of the reaction for increasingly long periods. A new article explains how a researcher team used machine learning to avoid magnetic perturbations, or disruptions, which destabilize fusion plasma.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Technology
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Exceptionally large transverse thermoelectric effect produced by combining thermoelectric and magnetic materials      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A research team has demonstrated that a simple stack of thermoelectric and magnetic material layers can exhibit a substantially larger transverse thermoelectric effect -- energy conversion between electric and heat currents that flow orthogonally to each other within it -- than existing magnetic materials capable of exhibiting the anomalous Nernst effect. This mechanism may be used to develop new types of thermoelectric devices useful in energy harvesting and heat flux sensing.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: Thermodynamics Computer Science: General Mathematics: Modeling Mathematics: Statistics Physics: General
Published

New work extends the thermodynamic theory of computation      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Physicists and computer scientists have recently expanded the modern theory of the thermodynamics of computation. By combining approaches from statistical physics and computer science, the researchers introduce mathematical equations that reveal the minimum and maximum predicted energy cost of computational processes that depend on randomness, which is a powerful tool in modern computers.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Technology Engineering: Nanotechnology
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Transforming common soft magnets into a next-generation thermoelectric conversion materials by 3 minutes heat treatment      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A research team has demonstrated that an iron-based amorphous alloy, widely used as a soft magnetic material in transformers and motors, can be transformed into a 'transverse' thermoelectric conversion material that converts electric and thermal currents in orthogonal directions, with just a short period of heat treatment. This is the first example that highlights the importance of microstructure engineering in the development of transverse thermoelectric conversion materials, and provides new design guidelines for materials development to realize environmentally friendly power generation and thermal management technologies using magnetic materials.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Energy: Alternative Fuels Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues
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Manganese sprinkled with iridium: a quantum leap in green hydrogen production      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers report a new method that reduces the amount of iridium needed to produce hydrogen from water by 95%, without altering the rate of hydrogen production. This breakthrough could revolutionize our ability to produce ecologically friendly hydrogen and help usher in a carbon-neutral hydrogen economy.

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Efficacy of solar panels boosted      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Solar energy is a crucial asset in the fight against climate change, and researchers have now devised a smart approach to optimize its effectiveness. Their innovative method includes incorporating artificial ground reflectors, a simple yet powerful enhancement.

Energy: Alternative Fuels Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Low-energy process for high-performance solar cells      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Finding reliable, eco-friendly power sources is crucial as our world grapples with increasing energy needs and the urgent call to combat climate change. Solar energy offers one solution, with scientists devising ever more efficient materials for capturing sunlight.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Energy: Alternative Fuels Environmental: General Physics: Optics
Published

Path to easier recycling of solar modules      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The use of femtosecond lasers to form glass-to-glass welds for solar modules would make the panels easier to recycle, according to a proof-of-concept study.