Electricity
Agreement will lead to grid-friendly electric vehicle charging
March 7, 2013 3:16 pm | News | Comments
A technology that will allow widespread adoption of plug-in electric vehicles without negatively impacting the electrical grid is the subject of a commercial license agreement between Battelle and AeroVironment, Inc., of Monrovia, Calif. The technology may also ultimately result in lower costs for plug-in electric vehicle owners.
Small electric UAV shatters endurance record
May 10, 2013 12:53 pm | News | Comments
Researchers at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) recently flew their fuel cell...
Composite thermoelectric outperforms constituent materials
May 6, 2013 1:05 pm | News | Comments
A team led by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Materials Sciences Division’s Jeffrey Urban...
Tortuous paths hamper ion transport
April 9, 2013 5:15 am | News | Comments
Researchers in Switzerland have used X-ray tomography to screen lithium-ion battery...
Retiring coal-fired plants in Nevada passes Senate
May 22, 2013 5:09 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsThe Nevada Senate has endorsed NV Energy Inc.'s plan to retire its coal-fired plants and pave the way for the state's biggest electrical utility to transition to more renewable sources. After several revisions, SB123 was approved unanimously Wednesday and now moves to the Assembly.
Atomic-scale investigations solve key puzzle of LED efficiency
May 22, 2013 7:58 am | News | CommentsFrom the high-resolution glow of flat screen televisions to light bulbs that last for years, light-emitting diodes (LEDs) continue to transform technology. Their full potential, however, remains untapped. A contentious controversy surrounds the high intensity of indium gallium nitride, with experts split on whether or not indium-rich clusters within the material provide the LED's remarkable efficiency.
Researchers estimate a cost for universal access to energy
May 3, 2013 7:54 am | News | CommentsNew research reports that universal access to modern energy could be achieved with an investment of between $65 and 86 billion a year up until 2030. The proposed investments are higher than previous estimates but equate to just 3 to 4% of current investments in the global energy system.
Cause of LED efficiency droop finally revealed
April 23, 2013 9:56 am | News | CommentsResearchers at University of California, Santa Barbara in collaboration with colleagues at the École Polytechnique in France, have conclusively identified Auger recombination as the mechanism that causes light-emitting diodes (LEDs) to be less efficient at high drive currents.
Researchers develop device to mitigate blackouts, prevent equipment damage
April 19, 2013 7:54 am | News | CommentsA local power failure in Ohio ten years ago caused a series of cascading power failures that resulted in a massive blackout. Such blackouts could be prevented in the future, thanks to a new piece of equipment developed by engineering researchers at the University of Arkansas. The device regulates or limits the amount of excess current that moves through the power grid when a surge occurs.
A solar booster shot for natural gas power plants
April 11, 2013 12:58 pm | News | CommentsNatural gas power plants can use about 20% less fuel when the sun is shining by injecting solar energy into natural gas with a new system being developed by the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. The system converts natural gas and sunlight into a more energy-rich fuel called syngas, which power plants can burn to make electricity.
Fully renewable electricity could be competitive
April 3, 2013 9:21 am | News | CommentsA carbon price of between $50 and $100 per ton of carbon dioxide would make coal-fired and gas-fired power less economical than renewable electricity, a University of New South Wales study shows. The study shows that fossil-fueled power stations in Australia’s National Electricity Market could be phased out and replaced economically and reliably with commercially available renewable energy technologies by increasing the carbon price to this “medium” level.
Japan moves to revamp troubled power industry
April 2, 2013 4:35 am | by ELAINE KURTENBACH - Associated Press - Associated Press | News | CommentsJapan's Cabinet has approved a proposal to revamp its troubled electricity industry and foster more competition by obliging utilities to split power generation and distribution into separate businesses. The plan is meant to encourage more innovation and modernization of the power grid as the country grapples with its energy policy following the shut-downs of almost all its nuclear power plants after the March 2011 tsunami disaster at the Fukushima Dai-Ichi plant.
Fake Shewanella reveals how bacteria breathe iron
March 26, 2013 8:13 am | News | CommentsCertain bacteria can breathe iron like we breathe oxygen. Understanding how they do so will help researchers use the microbes for cleaning up soil contaminants, for trapping carbon dioxide, or for making batteries out of bacteria. Now, a team of researchers report that proteins on the surface of bacteria produce an electric current by simply touching a mineral surface, allowing them to breathe the iron in the rock.
Sandia's new fiber optic network is world's largest
February 28, 2013 8:50 am | News | CommentsSandia National Laboratories has become a pioneer in large-scale passive optical networks, building the largest fiber optical local area network in the world. The network pulls together 265 buildings and 13,000 computer network ports and brings high-speed communication to some of the laboratories' most remote technical areas for the first time.
Turning waste heat into electricity on the nanoscale
February 14, 2013 7:50 am | News | CommentsA new type of nanoscale engine has been proposed that would use quantum dots to generate electricity from waste heat, potentially making microcircuits more efficient. The engines would be microscopic in size, and have no moving parts. Each would only produce a tiny amount of power. But by combining millions of the engines in a layered structure, a device that was a square inch in area could produce about a watt of power for every one degree difference in temperature.
New guide will allow electric utilities to develop green button Web tools
February 7, 2013 9:30 am | News | CommentsA new guide for Web developers recently released by NIST will make it easier for electric utilities and vendors to give customers convenient, electronic access to their energy usage data with tools and applications developed as part of the new "Green Button" initiative.
PNNL smart grid management technology licensed to Calico
January 29, 2013 3:33 pm | News | CommentsThe U.S. Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) and Calico Energy Services announced that Calico has licensed a portfolio of advanced energy management intellectual property developed by PNNL. The technology was licensed by Battelle, which manages PNNL for the DOE.
Cross-arms could speed connection of electricity supplies
January 22, 2013 9:23 am | News | CommentsA device developed by engineers at The University of Manchester and EPL Composite Solutions Ltd. could increase the capacity of the U.K.'s electricity network, enabling rapid increases in renewable generation and lower bills for consumers.
New material for warm-white LEDs
January 18, 2013 8:09 am | News | CommentsLight-emitting diodes (LEDs) are known for their energy efficiency and durability, but the bluish, cold light of current white LEDs has precluded their widespread use for indoor lighting. Now, University of Georgia scientists have fabricated what is thought to be the world's first LED that emits a warm white light using a single light-emitting material, or phosphor, with a single emitting center for illumination.
NREL launches interactive tool for developing a cleaner energy future
January 15, 2013 2:20 pm | News | CommentsThe U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory has created an energy analysis tool to help individuals and educators experiment with future energy use scenarios. The interactive Buildings, Industry, Transportation, Electricity, and Transportation Scenarios (BITES) allows users to explore how changes in energy demand and supply can impact carbon dioxide emissions and the current U.S. energy trajectory.
A closer examination of electric vehicles and the power grid
December 12, 2012 3:32 pm | News | CommentsAs plug-in electric vehicles become an ever-more central part of America's daily life, University of Notre Dame researchers are anticipating what that development will mean for the nation's power grid. Under funding from the National Science Foundation's Cyber-Physical Systems Program, a research group is attempting to develop mathematical algorithms to help guide the integration of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles into the power grid.
Georgia Tech collaborates with GE, Ford on alternative fuel vehicle research
November 26, 2012 8:35 am | News | CommentsResearchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology are partnering with GE and Ford Motor Co. to study ways to add greater efficiencies to electric driving and charging performance.
Physics team demonstrates new power generation technique
November 12, 2012 1:24 pm | News | CommentsA University of Texas at Arlington physics professor has helped create a hybrid nanomaterial that can be used to convert light and thermal energy into electrical current, surpassing earlier methods that used either light or thermal energy, but not both. The team has synthesized a combination of copper sulfide nanoparticles and single-walled carbon nanotubes to construct the thermoelectric generator.
Researchers develop new design for concentrator solar cell
November 8, 2012 9:02 am | News | CommentsEngineers in Israel have created a radically new design for a concentrator solar cell that, when irradiated from the side, generates solar conversion efficiencies which rival, and may eventually surpass, the most efficient photovoltaics. The design, the developers say, can exceed 40% conversion efficiency at intensities of 10,000 suns.
Dealing with power outages more efficiently
November 7, 2012 2:58 pm | News | CommentsThe recent hurricane that struck the Northeast of the U.S. forced utility companies, public officials, and emergency services to work together quickly. But we aren’t alone in suffering widespread outages. Researchers in Germany have created a new planning software product that they believe will enable all participants responding to outages in that country be better prepared for emergency situations.
New device could allow your heartbeat to power pacemaker
November 5, 2012 3:29 pm | News | CommentsAn experimental device invented at the University of Michigan is able to convert energy from a beating heart, enough to provide electricity to power a pacemaker. The innovation, which relies on piezoelectricity, could eliminate the need for surgeries to replace pacemakers with depleted batteries.
A better way to shed water
October 22, 2012 7:43 am | by David L. Chandler, MIT News Office | News | CommentsCondensers are a crucial part of today's power generation systems: About 80% of all the world's power plants use them to turn steam back to water after it comes out of the turbines that turn generators. They are also a key element in desalination plants. Now, a new surface architecture designed by researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology holds the promise of boosting the performance of such condensers.
New class of power inverter developed
October 18, 2012 12:20 pm | News | CommentsWith a laboratory breakthrough once thought impossible, an Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis assistant professor has invented a new class of power inverter that could put cheaper and more efficient renewable energy products on the market.
NREL nanotechnology solar cell achieves 18.2% efficiency
October 15, 2012 8:18 am | News | CommentsScientists at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory have produced solar cells using nanotechnology techniques at an efficiency—18.2%—that is competitive. The breakthrough should be a step toward helping lower the cost of solar energy.
