Chemistry: Biochemistry Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Fossil Fuels Energy: Technology Environmental: General
Published

Hydrogen battery: Storing hydrogen in coal may help power clean energy economy      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The quest to develop hydrogen as a clean energy source that could curb our dependence on fossil fuels may lead to an unexpected place -- coal. Scientists have found that coal may represent a potential way to store hydrogen gas, much like batteries store energy for future use, addressing a major hurdle in developing a clean energy supply chain.

Energy: Fossil Fuels Energy: Technology Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Researchers examine cooling power plants with brackish groundwater      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Nontraditional water sources can be deployed to help cope with climate-induced water risks and tackle the increasing water demand for decarbonization of fossil fuel-fired power plants, but that could increase the cost of electricity generation by 8 percent to 10 percent.

Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Fossil Fuels Energy: Nuclear Energy: Technology Physics: General
Published

Demystifying vortex rings in nuclear fusion, supernovae      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Better understanding the formation of swirling, ring-shaped disturbances -- known as vortex rings -- could help nuclear fusion researchers compress fuel more efficiently, bringing it closer to becoming a viable energy source. A mathematical model linking these vortices with more pedestrian types, like smoke rings, could help engineers control their behavior in power generation and more.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular Chemistry: General Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Fossil Fuels Energy: Technology Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Watch these cells rapidly create protrusions for exploration and movement      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

In order to move, cells must be able to rapidly change shape. A team of researchers show that cells achieve this by storing extra 'skin' in folds and bumps on their surface. This cell surface excess can be rapidly deployed to cover temporary protrusions and then folded away for next time.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Fossil Fuels Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

'Improved' cookstoves emit more ultrafine particles than conventional stoves      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Improved cookstoves, which are widely used for cooking in developing countries, produce twice as many harmful ultrafine air pollution particles (PM0.1) as conventional stoves, according to a new study.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Fossil Fuels Energy: Technology Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry Physics: Optics
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Unlocking the power of photosynthesis for clean energy production      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers are embarking on a groundbreaking project to mimic the natural process of photosynthesis using bacteria to deliver electrons to a nanocrystal semiconductor photocatalyst. By leveraging the unique properties of microorganisms and nanomaterials, the system has the potential to replace current approaches that derive hydrogen from fossil fuels, revolutionizing the way hydrogen fuel is produced and unlocking a powerful source of renewable energy.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Energy: Fossil Fuels Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
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CO2 recycling: What is the role of the electrolyte?      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The greenhouse gas carbon dioxide can be converted into useful hydrocarbons by electrolysis. The design of the electrolysis cell is crucial in this process. The so-called zero-gap cell is particularly suitable for industrial processes. But there are still problems: The cathodes clog up quickly.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Energy: Fossil Fuels Energy: Nuclear Energy: Technology Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Shutting down nuclear power could increase air pollution      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study shows that if U.S. nuclear power plants are retired, the burning of coal, oil, and natural gas to fill the energy gap could cause more than 5,000 premature deaths.

Energy: Fossil Fuels Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography
Published

Moving towards 3 degrees of warming -- the phasing out of coal is too slow      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The use of coal power is not decreasing fast enough. The Paris Agreement's target of a maximum of 2 degrees of warming appear to be missed, and the world is moving towards a temperature increase of 2.5 -- 3 degrees. At the same time it is feasible to avoid higher warming.

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

Sailing cargo ships can benefit from new aerodynamic tech      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A research team has demonstrated a unique method that reduces the aerodynamic resistance of ships by 7.5 per cent. This opens the way for large cargo ships borne across the oceans by wind alone, as wind-powered ships are more affected by aerodynamic drag than fossil-fueled ones.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: Encryption Engineering: Robotics Research
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New cyber software can verify how much knowledge AI really knows      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

With a growing interest in generative artificial intelligence (AI) systems worldwide, researchers have created software that is able to verify how much information an AI farmed from an organization's digital database.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Fossil Fuels Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
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Team uses natural catalysts to develop low-cost way of producing green hydrogen      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers have developed a practical way to produce green hydrogen using sustainable catalysts and say their work is a major step towards production simpler, more affordable and more scalable.

Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Fossil Fuels Engineering: Nanotechnology
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Probe where the protons go to develop better fuel cells      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have uncovered the chemical inner-workings of an electrolyte they developed for a new generation of solid oxide fuel cells. To uncover the location of the proton-introduction reaction, the team studied extensively the hydration reaction of their scandium-substituted barium zirconate perovskite through a combination of synchrotron radiation analysis, large-scale simulations, machine learning, and thermogravimetric analysis. The new data has the potential to accelerate the development of more efficient fuel cells.

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

Public acceptance of fossil fuel subsidy removal could be improved in developing countries      (via sciencedaily.com) 

People might be more positive to the removal of fuel subsidies if told where the money would be spent instead. This has been shown in a study which investigated attitudes towards removing fossil fuel subsidies in five developing countries.

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

Rsearchers examine combined effects of two combustion technologies on the emission of coal-fired boilers      (via sciencedaily.com) 

There is currently a large dependence on coal for power generation. As coal-fired plants cause environmental and health hazards, technologies such as swirl flow and air staging have been proposed to mitigate the pollutants in their emissions. However, it is unclear how effective these technologies are in reducing the environmental costs of these plants. Now, researchers have provided insights on this front in a new study, delineating their efficacies with experiments and simulations.

Chemistry: General Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Fossil Fuels Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
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Switching to hydrogen fuel could prolong the methane problem      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Hydrogen is often heralded as the clean fuel of the future, but new research suggests that leaky hydrogen infrastructure could end up increasing atmospheric methane levels, which would cause decades-long climate consequences.

Computer Science: Encryption Offbeat: Computers and Math
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New breakthrough enables perfectly secure digital communications      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers have achieved a breakthrough to enable 'perfectly secure' hidden communications for the first time. The method uses new advances in information theory methods to conceal one piece of content inside another in a way that cannot be detected. This may have strong implications for information security, besides further applications in data compression and storage.

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

Plastic upcycling to close the carbon cycle      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new method to convert waste plastic to fuel and raw materials promises to help close the carbon cycle at mild temperature and with high yield.