The International Energy Agency publishes the detailed, global energy data we all need, but its funders force it behind paywalls. Let’s ask them to change it.

To make the transition to low-carbon energy sources and address climate change we need open data on the global energy system. High-quality data already exists; it is published by the International Energy Agency. But despite being an international institution that is largely publicly funded, most IEA data is locked behind paywalls. This makes it unusable Read more about The International Energy Agency publishes the detailed, global energy data we all need, but its funders force it behind paywalls. Let’s ask them to change it.[…]

A French company is using enzymes to recycle one of the most common single-use plastics – PET

In late September, Carbios, a French startup, opened a demonstration plant in central France to test this idea. The facility will use enzymes to recycle PET, one of the most common single-use plastics and the material used to make most beverage bottles. […] Carbios’s new reactor measures 20 cubic meters—around the size of a cargo Read more about A French company is using enzymes to recycle one of the most common single-use plastics – PET[…]

A Tesla Big Battery Is Getting Sued Over Power Grid Failures In Australia for not providing promised backup

Tesla’s Big Battery, located in southern Australia, just got hit with a federal lawsuit for failing to provide the crucial grid support it once promised it could. Built by Tesla in 2017, the 150-megawatt battery supplies 189 megawatt-hours of storage and was designed to support the grid when it becomes overloaded. Now operated by French Read more about A Tesla Big Battery Is Getting Sued Over Power Grid Failures In Australia for not providing promised backup[…]

Wooden floors laced with silicon generate electricity from footsteps

Wooden floors infused with silicon and metal ions can generate enough electrical power from human footsteps to light LED bulbs. Researchers hope that they could provide a green energy source for homes. Some materials can generate an electrical charge when they come into contact with another such material and are then separated, due to a Read more about Wooden floors laced with silicon generate electricity from footsteps[…]

Dust-sized supercapacitor packs the same voltage as a AAA battery

By combining miniaturized electronics with some origami-inspired fabrication, scientists in Germany have developed what they say is the smallest microsupercapacitor in existence. Smaller than a speck of a dust but with a similar voltage to a AAA battery, the groundbreaking energy storage device is not only safe for use in the human body, but actually Read more about Dust-sized supercapacitor packs the same voltage as a AAA battery[…]

The world’s ‘most powerful’ tidal turbine is nearly ready to power on | Engadget

Earlier this week, a company Orbital Marine Power successfully launched its latest tidal turbine. Once it’s connected to the European Marine Energy Centre off the Orkney Islands, the two megawatt O2 will have the capacity to generate enough energy to power 2,000 UK households annually, making it one of the world’s most powerful tidal turbines Read more about The world’s ‘most powerful’ tidal turbine is nearly ready to power on | Engadget[…]

Nissan finds use for old LEAF batteries in their factory. Still no way to recycle them.

Nissan has found a second-life for old LEAF batteries inside mobile machines that help workers at Nissan factories worldwide. The old batteries are being used in automated guided vehicles or AGVs used for various tasks inside the manufacturing facilities, including delivering parts to workers on the assembly line. AGVs are used as robotic mail carriers Read more about Nissan finds use for old LEAF batteries in their factory. Still no way to recycle them.[…]

These researchers in Switzerland can get electricity by compressing wood

Researchers at ETH Zurich and Empa have chemically modified wood and made it more compressible, turning it into a mini-​generator. When compressed, it generates an electrical voltage. Such wood could serve as a biosensor or as a building material that harvests energy. Ingo Burgert and his team at public research university ETH Zurich and Swiss Read more about These researchers in Switzerland can get electricity by compressing wood[…]

‘Wearable microgrid’ uses the human body to sustainably power small gadgets using sweat and motion

Nanoengineers at the University of California San Diego have developed a “wearable microgrid” that harvests and stores energy from the human body to power small electronics. It consists of three main parts: sweat-powered biofuel cells, motion-powered devices called triboelectric generators, and energy-storing supercapacitors. All parts are flexible, washable and can be screen printed onto clothing. Read more about ‘Wearable microgrid’ uses the human body to sustainably power small gadgets using sweat and motion[…]

Two Companies are Turning Airborne CO2 into Diamonds

two companies are selling diamonds made in a laboratory from CO2 that once circled the Earth. […] Each carat of a diamond removes 20 tons of CO2. That, he said, is more invisible gas than the average person produces in a year. With the purchase of a 2-carat diamond, Shearman pointed out, “you’re essentially offsetting Read more about Two Companies are Turning Airborne CO2 into Diamonds[…]

Porsche says synthetic fuel can be as clean as EVs

In a recent interview with Evo magazine, Porsche VP of Motorsport and GT cars, Dr. Frank Walliser, says that synthetic fuels, also called eFuels, can reduce the carbon dioxide emissions of existing ICE cars by as much as 85 percent. And, he says, when you account for the wheel-to-well impact of manufacturing the EV, it’s Read more about Porsche says synthetic fuel can be as clean as EVs[…]

A Bug in Lenovo System Update Service is Driving Up CPU Usage and Prompting Fan Noise in Laptops and Desktops, Customers Say

Since late January, most users running a pre-installed Lenovo image of Windows 10 has been bitten by a bug in Lenovo’s System Update Service (SUService.exe) causing it to constantly occupy a CPU thread. This was noticed by many ThinkPad and IdeaPad users as an unexpected increase in fan noise, but many desktop users might not Read more about A Bug in Lenovo System Update Service is Driving Up CPU Usage and Prompting Fan Noise in Laptops and Desktops, Customers Say[…]

Solar material can ‘self-heal’ imperfections, new research shows

A material that can be used in technologies such as solar power has been found to self-heal, a new study shows.The findings—from the University of York—raise the prospect that it may be possible to engineer high-performance self-healing materials which could reduce costs and improve scalability, researchers say.The substance, called antimony selenide (Sb2Se3), is a solar Read more about Solar material can ‘self-heal’ imperfections, new research shows[…]

Elon Musk to offer $100 million prize for ‘best’ carbon capture tech

Elon Musk on Thursday took to Twitter to promise a $100 million prize for development of the “best” technology to capture carbon dioxide emissions. Capturing planet-warming emissions is becoming a critical part of many plans to keep climate change in check, but very little progress has been made on the technology to date, with efforts Read more about Elon Musk to offer $100 million prize for ‘best’ carbon capture tech[…]

Scientists turn CO2 into jet fuel

Researchers may have found a way to reduce the environmental impact of air travel in situations when electric aircraft and alternative fuels aren’t practical. Wired reports that Oxford University scientists have successfully turned CO2 into jet fuel, raising the possibility of conventionally-powered aircraft with net zero emissions. The technique effectively reverses the process of burning Read more about Scientists turn CO2 into jet fuel[…]

Korean artificial sun sets the new world record of 20-sec-long operation at 100 million degrees

The Korea Superconducting Tokamak Advanced Research (KSTAR), a superconducting fusion device also known as the Korean artificial sun, set the new world record as it succeeded in maintaining the high temperature plasma for 20 seconds with an ion temperature over 100 million degrees (Celsius). On November 24 (Tuesday), the KSTAR Research Center at the Korea Read more about Korean artificial sun sets the new world record of 20-sec-long operation at 100 million degrees[…]

Iron Powder Passes First Industrial Test as Renewable, Carbon Dioxide-Free Fuel

While setting fire to an iron ingot is probably more trouble than it’s worth, fine iron powder mixed with air is highly combustible. When you burn this mixture, you’re oxidizing the iron. Whereas a carbon fuel oxidizes into CO2, an iron fuel oxidizes into Fe2O3, which is just rust. The nice thing about rust is that Read more about Iron Powder Passes First Industrial Test as Renewable, Carbon Dioxide-Free Fuel[…]

“World’s fastest electrodes” triple the density of lithium batteries

French company Nawa technologies says it’s already in production on a new electrode design that can radically boost the performance of existing and future battery chemistries, delivering up to 3x the energy density, 10x the power, vastly faster charging and battery lifespans up to five times as long. Nawa is already known for its work Read more about “World’s fastest electrodes” triple the density of lithium batteries[…]

Ex-Tesla exec Straubel aims to build world’s top battery recycler – still nowhere near enough to compensate for the trash electric cars are putting out, but a start

Tesla co-founder J.B. Straubel wants to build his startup Redwood Materials into the world’s top battery recycling company and one of the largest battery materials companies, he said at a technology conference Wednesday. Straubel aims to leverage two partnerships, one with Panasonic Corp 6752.T, the Japanese battery manufacturer that is teamed with Tesla TSLA.O at Read more about Ex-Tesla exec Straubel aims to build world’s top battery recycler – still nowhere near enough to compensate for the trash electric cars are putting out, but a start[…]

Swedish Company Unveils A Wind-Powered Car Carrier Ship That Uses Wings, Not Sails

KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm and the maritime consultancy SSPA partnered with shipbuilders Wallenius Marine in Sweden to design a cargo ship capable of reducing the industry’s huge carbon footprint. Around three percent of today’s carbon dioxide emissions come from the shipping industry, a figure that accounts for the 90,000 ships responsible for Read more about Swedish Company Unveils A Wind-Powered Car Carrier Ship That Uses Wings, Not Sails[…]

Solar Panels Are Starting to Die, Leaving Behind Toxic Trash

By 2050, the International Renewable Energy Agency projects that up to 78 million metric tons of solar panels will have reached the end of their life, and that the world will be generating about 6 million metric tons of new solar e-waste annually. While the latter number is a small fraction of the total e-waste Read more about Solar Panels Are Starting to Die, Leaving Behind Toxic Trash[…]

Transparent solar panels for windows hit record 8% efficiency

In a step closer to skyscrapers that serve as power sources, a team led by University of Michigan researchers has set a new efficiency record for color-neutral, transparent solar cells. The team achieved 8.1% efficiency and 43.3% transparency with an organic, or carbon-based, design rather than conventional silicon. While the cells have a slight green Read more about Transparent solar panels for windows hit record 8% efficiency[…]