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Categories: Energy: Alternative Fuels, Energy: Batteries
Published New design for lithium-air battery could offer much longer driving range compared with the lithium-ion battery


Scientists have built and tested for a thousand cycles a lithium-air battery design that could one day be powering cars, domestic airplanes, long-haul trucks and more. Its energy storage capacity greatly surpasses that possible with lithium-ion batteries.
Published Ramping up domestic graphite production could aid the green energy transition


Given the growing importance of graphite in energy storage technologies, a team of esearchers has conducted a study exploring ways to reduce reliance on imports of the in high-demand mineral, which powers everything from electric vehicles (EVs) to cell phones.
Published New technology turns smartphones into RFID readers, saving costs and reducing waste


Imagine you can open your fridge, open an app on your phone and immediately know which items are expiring within a few days. This is one of the applications that a new technology would enable.
Published Salt could play key role in energy transition


A common ingredient -- salt -- could have a big role to play in the energy transition to lower carbon energy sources. A study describes how large underground salt deposits could serve as hydrogen holding tanks, conduct heat to geothermal plants, and influence CO2 storage. It also highlights how industries with existing salt expertise, such as solution mining, salt mining, and oil and gas exploration, could help.
Published Nanoparticles self-assemble to harvest solar energy


Researchers design a solar harvester with enhanced energy conversion capabilities. The device employs a quasiperiodic nanoscale pattern, meaning most of it is an alternating and consistent pattern, while the remaining portion contains random defects that do not affect its performance. The fabrication process makes use of self-assembling nanoparticles, which form an organized material structure based on their interactions with nearby particles without any external instructions. Thermal energy harvested by the device can be transformed to electricity using thermoelectric materials.
Published Perovskites, a 'dirt cheap' alternative to silicon, just got a lot more efficient


Researchers typically synthesize perovskites in a wet lab, and then apply the material as a film on a glass substrate and explore various applications. A team has instead proposes a novel, physics-based approach, using a substrate of either a layer of metal or alternating layers of metal and dielectric material -- rather than glass.
Published Physicists solve durability issue in next-generation solar cells


Physicists jumped a major hurdle standing in the way of the commercialization of solar cells created with halide perovskites as a lower-cost, higher-efficiency replacement for silicon when generating electricity from the sun.
Published How to make hydrogen straight from seawater -- no desalination required


Researchers have developed a cheaper and more energy-efficient way to make hydrogen directly from seawater, in a critical step towards a truly viable green hydrogen industry. The new method splits the seawater directly into hydrogen and oxygen -- skipping the need for desalination and its associated cost, energy consumption and carbon emissions.
Published Research reveals thermal instability of solar cells but offers a bright path forward


Researchers reveal the thermal instability that happens within the cells' interface layers, but also offers a path forward towards reliability and efficiency for halide perovskite solar technology.
Published Novel microscope developed to design better high-performance batteries


A research team has developed an operando reflection interference microscope (RIM) that provides a better understanding of how batteries work, which has significant implications for the next generation of batteries.
Published Beyond lithium: A promising cathode material for magnesium rechargeable batteries


Magnesium is a promising candidate as an energy carrier for next-generation batteries. However, the cycling performance and capacity of magnesium batteries need to improve if they are to replace lithium-ion batteries. To this end, a research team focused on a novel cathode material with a spinel structure. Following extensive characterization and electrochemical performance experiments, they have found a specific composition that could open doors to high-performance magnesium rechargeable batteries.
Published Controllable 'defects' improve performance of lithium-ion batteries


Some defects can be good. A new study shows that laser-induced defects in lithium-ion battery materials improve the performance of the battery.
Published 'Game-changing' findings for sustainable hydrogen production


Hydrogen fuel could be a more viable alternative to traditional fossil fuels, according to University of Surrey researchers who have found that a type of metal-free catalysts could contribute to the development of cost-effective and sustainable hydrogen production technologies.
Published New sodium, aluminum battery aims to integrate renewables for grid resiliency


A new sodium battery technology shows promise for helping integrate renewable energy into the electric grid. The battery uses Earth-abundant raw materials such as aluminum and sodium.
Published Passive radiative cooling can now be controlled electrically


Energy-efficient ways of cooling buildings and vehicles will be required in a changing climate. Researchers have now shown that electrical tuning of passive radiative cooling can be used to control temperatures of a material at ambient temperatures and air pressure.
Published Seawater split to produce 'green' hydrogen


Researchers have successfully split seawater without pre-treatment to produce green hydrogen.
Published Thin, lightweight layer provides radiation barrier for perovskites in space, protection from elements on Earth


An ultrathin protective coating proves sufficient to protect a perovskite solar cell from the harmful effects of space and harden it against environmental factors on Earth, according to newly published research.
Published Stability of perovskite solar cells reaches next milestone


Perovskite semiconductors promise highly efficient and low-cost solar cells. However, the semi-organic material is very sensitive to temperature differences, which can quickly lead to fatigue damage in normal outdoor use. Adding a dipolar polymer compound to the precursor perovskite solution helps to counteract this. The solar cells produced in this way achieve efficiencies of well above 24 %, which hardly drop under rapid temperature fluctuations between -60 and +80 Celsius over one hundred cycles. That corresponds to about one year of outdoor use.
Published Meteorites reveal likely origin of Earth's volatile chemicals


By analyzing meteorites, researchers have uncovered the likely far-flung origin of Earth's volatile chemicals, some of which form the building blocks of life.
Published Researchers decipher atomic-scale imperfections in lithium-ion batteries


Scientists have conducted a detailed examination of high-nickel-content layered cathodes, considered to be components of promise in next-generation lithium-ion batteries. Advanced electron microscopy and deep machine learning enabled the team to observe atomic-scale changes at the interface of materials that make up the batteries.