A research team from Taiwan has developed a novel hybrid air-conditioning system integrating shallow geothermal energy and a desiccant wheel. Field tests confirm it significantly reduces energy consumption by up to 34.3% in hot and humid climates, offering a promising solution for net-zero buildings....
Read more
Researchers at the University of Sharjah have demonstrated that concrete can be reinforced using polymer plates instead of steel bars, with the new material showing superior strength, ductility, and energy dissipation. The details of their findings, published in the journal Construction and Building Materials, could pave the way for more...
Read more
Alkaline industrial wastewaters from steel or cement production are ideally suited to bind and sequester carbon dioxide (CO₂) chemically, safely, and for the long term. This is the result of a study conducted by the Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon. Until now, this wastewater has been disposed of into rivers without using its...
Read more
The world cannot have enough of the third element on the periodic table. From smartphones and laptops to state-of-the-art EVs, all are powered by lithium batteries. The demand for metal is only going to rise, and projected values suggest nearly a triple increase in demand by 2030. The traditional process...
Read more
Aside from oil, rare earth elements may be the most buzzworthy thing coming out of the ground these days. Headlines trumpet news about new partnerships to produce rare earths, warn of potential shortages and analyze steps to curb China's role in rare earth markets....
Read more
Perovskite solar cells are among the most promising technologies for making solar power cheaper and more efficient. Working with partners from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), DESY (Deutsches Elektronen-Synchroton), and the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, the team uncovered the microscopic mechanisms behind the deterioration of the...
Read more
Natural gas took center stage this week at the world's largest energy conference, as major market players discussed how to power the rise of artificial intelligence....
Read more
Perovskites are semiconducting materials that have rapidly transformed the field of optoelectronics, demonstrating outstanding performance in light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and photodiodes. For their unique properties, they have also gained attention in photovoltaics. After almost two decades of intensive research, this "wonder" class of materials could provide a cost-effective route to...
Read more
A team of Chinese researchers has modeled the potential global benefits of installing solar panels on outside building walls, a concept known as facade-integrated photovoltaics (FIPV). They found that solar panels installed on building facades not only generate substantial electricity but also reduce cooling demand, thereby reducing carbon emissions and...
Read more
Researchers at UNIST have unveiled a novel interface engineering technique that significantly improves both the performance and durability of perovskite/organic tandem solar cells (POTSCs). Published in Energy & Environmental Science, their study demonstrates how precise control of self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) at the molecular level can lead to more stable, high-efficiency...
Read more
Two stacked layers comprise tandem solar cells (TSCs), with each subcell absorbing different wavelengths of sunlight, which makes TSCs more efficient than single-layer solar cells. All-perovskite TSCs hold great promise for next-generation photovoltaics, with a theoretical efficiency exceeding 40%. However, their practical performance is hampered by mismatched crystallization kinetics between...
Read more
Six years ago, Google was confident that by 2030 it would power all operations with electricity generated from clean sources, including wind and solar power, and remove as much pollution as it produced. Today it calls those goals a "moonshot." Microsoft says it's still aiming to remove more carbon than...
Read more
A KAIST research team has solved the "solar cell dilemma," in which increasing efficiency shortens lifespan, while extending lifespan lowers efficiency. The team developed a technology to precisely control the internal structure of a surface passivation layer in perovskite solar cells, successfully achieving both high efficiency exceeding 25% and long-term...
Read more
As prices rise and the UK Government considers energy bill help once again, a new study warns that the country's approach to energy support is structurally geared toward short-term crisis response rather than long-term solutions....
Read more
On August 13, 2003, a single transmission line near Cleveland, Ohio, sags into an overgrown tree limb and short circuits. Within minutes, nearby lines overload and trip one after another, triggering cascading failures across grids already strained by an all-too-common convergence of high demand, inadequate maintenance and software bugs that...
Read more