Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Fossil Fuels
Published

Revolutionary technique to generate hydrogen more efficiently from water      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers have made a serendipitous scientific discovery that could potentially revolutionize the way water is broken down to release hydrogen gas -- an element crucial to many industrial processes. The team found that light can trigger a new mechanism in a catalytic material used extensively in water electrolysis, where water is broken down into hydrogen and oxygen. The result is a more energy-efficient method of obtaining hydrogen.

Energy: Alternative Fuels
Published

One-stop hydrogen shop: Reducing the cost of a future energy carrier      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers have demonstrated a proof-of-concept for a novel molecular hydrogen production method that bypasses the need for expensive purification steps. They developed a system where hydrogen is separated and stored in liquid organic hydrogen carriers by catalysis of triaryl boranes in one seamless process. The results of this work will help facilitate the transition to a hydrogen-based economy that is necessary for a more sustainable future.

Energy: Alternative Fuels
Published

Global collaboration saved countries $67 billion in solar panel production costs      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A new study quantifies for the first time the historical and future cost savings to the solar industry from globalized supply chains.

Energy: Alternative Fuels
Published

Nano-sized islands open possibilities for application of single-atom catalysts      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A new method to anchor single atoms of platinum-group metals on nanometer-sized islands allows for efficiently using these expensive metals as catalysts for a wide variety of applications. Researchers showed that platinum atoms could be confined on small cerium-oxide islands within a porous material to catalyze reactions without sticking to each other, which has been a major stumbling block for their use.

Energy: Alternative Fuels
Published

Dye-sensitized solar cells achieve a new record      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Scientists have increased the power conversion efficiency of dye-sensitized solar cells beyond 15% in direct sunlight and 30% in ambient light conditions.

Energy: Alternative Fuels
Published

Tandem solar cells with perovskite: Nanostructures help in many ways      (via sciencedaily.com) 

By the end of 2021, scientists had presented perovskite silicon tandem solar cells with an efficiency close to 30 percent. This value was a world record for eight months, a long time for this hotly contested field of research. Scientists now describe how they achieved this record value with nanooptical structuring and reflective coatings.

Energy: Alternative Fuels
Published

Improving light absorption in perovskite/Si tandem solar cells      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Engineers have achieved a power conversion efficiency of 23.50% in a perovskite-silicon tandem solar cell built with a special textured anti-reflective coating (ARC) polymeric film.

Energy: Alternative Fuels
Published

Durable, inexpensive catalyst reduces carbon footprint of ammonia production      (via sciencedaily.com) 

To reduce the energy requirements of the Haber-Bosch process, which converts nitrogen and hydrogen to ammonia, researchers have developed a metal nitride catalyst containing an active metal (Ni) on a lanthanum nitride support that is stable in presence of moisture. Since the catalyst doesn't contain ruthenium, it presents an inexpensive option for reducing the carbon footprint of ammonia production.

Energy: Alternative Fuels Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Storing hydrogen fuel in salts -- a step toward 'cleaner' energy production      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Hydrogen gas could someday replace fossil fuels as a 'clean' energy source, producing only water and energy. However, handling large quantities of gaseous hydrogen is cumbersome, and converting it to a liquid requires vessels that can withstand extremely high pressures. Now, researchers have developed a method to store and release highly pure hydrogen with salts in the presence of amino acids.

Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Batteries
Published

Scientists develop inexpensive device that can harvest energy from a light breeze and store it as electricity      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Scientists have developed a low-cost device that can harness energy from wind as gentle as a light breeze and store it as electricity.

Energy: Alternative Fuels
Published

Driving high? Chemists make strides toward a marijuana breath analyzer      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Chemists have developed a fuel cell sensor that they hope to develop into a handheld analyzer to detect THC on a person's breath. When THC is introduced into their laboratory-scale device it oxidizes, creating an electric current whose strength indicates how much of the psychoactive compound is present.

Energy: Alternative Fuels
Published

Keeping planes and wind turbines ice-free      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Engineers have made a significant breakthrough in de-icing technology. New research examines a smart, hybrid -- meaning passive and also active -- de-icing system that works by combining an interfacial coating with an ice-detecting microwave sensor.

Energy: Alternative Fuels
Published

Solar harvesting system has potential to generate solar power 24/7      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A professor is reporting on a new type of solar energy harvesting system that breaks the efficiency record of all existing technologies. And no less important, it clears the way to use solar power 24/7.

Energy: Alternative Fuels
Published

Artificial enzyme splits water      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Progress has been made on the path to sunlight-driven production of hydrogen. Chemists present a new enzyme-like molecular catalyst for water oxidation.

Energy: Alternative Fuels
Published

Clean hydrogen: A long-awaited solution for hard-to-abate sectors?      (via sciencedaily.com) 

One of the world's biggest climate challenges is decarbonizing fossil energy uses that cannot be directly electrified using renewable power. Among so-called 'hard-to-abate' (HTA) sectors are major industries that rely on fossil fuels, either for high-temperature energy or for chemical feedstocks. New research examines how China -- by far the largest producer of iron, steel, cement, and building materials -- can potentially utilize clean hydrogen ('green' and 'blue' hydrogen) to decarbonize HTA sectors, and aid in achieving its 2030 and 2060 decarbonization pledges.

Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Batteries
Published

More reasons to go solar when gearing up for a greener drive      (via sciencedaily.com) 

With electric vehicles sales soaring worldwide, potential buyers are not just weighing up the price tag, but also the logistics and expense of charging the planet-friendly cars. A new study shows households with solar panels and batteries will be the big winners.

Energy: Alternative Fuels
Published

New research can help electric utilities account for climate change      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers have devised a method to determine the impact of climate change on the supply and variability of local renewable energy. An increase in unusual weather patterns related to climate change means the demand for power and the availability of solar, hydro and wind energy can all become more variable.

Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Fossil Fuels
Published

Catalytic process with lignin could enable 100% sustainable aviation fuel      (via sciencedaily.com) 

An underutilized natural resource could be just what the airline industry needs to curb carbon emissions. Researchers report success in using lignin as a path toward a drop-in 100% sustainable aviation fuel. Lignin makes up the rigid parts of the cell walls of plants. Other parts of plants are used for biofuels, but lignin has been largely overlooked because of the difficulties in breaking it down chemically and converting it into useful products.

Energy: Alternative Fuels
Published

Casting shadows on solar cells connected in series      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Even small objects, such as dust and leaves, can block sunlight from reaching solar cells, and understanding how the loss of incoming radiation affects power output is essential for optimizing photovoltaic technology. Researchers explore how different shade conditions impact performance of single solar cells and two-cell systems connected in series and parallel. They found that the decrease in output current of a single cell or two cells connected in parallel was nearly identical to the ratio of shade to sunlight. However, for two cells running in series, there was excess power loss.

Energy: Alternative Fuels
Published

Researchers create single-crystal organometallic perovskite optical fibers      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Due to their very high efficiency in transporting electric charges from light, perovskites are known as the next generation material for solar panels and LED displays. A team have now invented a brand-new application of perovskites as optical fibers.