Energy & Utilities
Coalition to develop world’s cleanest passenger train
May 22, 2012 12:57 pm | News | CommentsPlans to create the world's first carbon-neutral higher-speed locomotive were unveiled this week by the Coalition for Sustainable Rail, which has the goal of proving the viability of solid biofuel—torrefied biomass—and modern steam locomotive technology. The first step in those plans is to break the world speed record for steam trains.
Oxygen-separation membranes could aid in carbon dioxide reduction
May 21, 2012 3:34 am | by Jennifer Chu, MIT News Office | News | CommentsResearchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology are evaluating a system that efficiently eliminates nitrogen from the combustion process, delivering a pure stream of carbon dioxide after removing other combustion byproducts such as water and other gases.
Research focused on underground solution to greenhouse gas challenges
May 18, 2012 4:44 am | News | CommentsWhile many are focusing on atmospheric solutions to reduce greenhouse gases, some researchers are setting their sights on the ground—deep underground. Li Li, an assistant professor of energy and mineral engineering at Penn State University, is investigating geologic carbon sequestration as a way to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
Sensor measures power consumption quickly, easily
May 16, 2012 10:57 am | News | CommentsThanks to new energy taxation regulations taking effect in Germany, electrical engineers there have invented a space-saving energy usage metering unit that can be simply clipped onto a power cable like a laundry peg, without having to disconnect the load. The device is based on a magnetic field sensor originally developed for use in washing machines, where it monitors the position and orientation of the rotating drum.
Argonne, universities partner to design advanced materials
May 16, 2012 9:24 am | News | CommentsArgonne National Laboratory announced major new efforts with Northwestern University and the University of Chicago to advance the research and development of new materials to help solve the nation’s challenges in the fields of energy, health, and security.
NIST hydrogen test facility starts delivering data
May 16, 2012 4:03 am | News | CommentsResearchers at NIST have published their first archival paper based on data from the institute's new hydrogen test facility. The paper examines the embrittling effect of pressurized hydrogen gas on three different types of pipeline steel, an important factor for the design of future hydrogen transportation and delivery systems.
NREL simulates shade conditions in repeatable test for solar arrays
May 15, 2012 8:25 am | News | CommentsThe National Renewable Energy Laboratory has released a new repeatable test protocol that simulates real shade conditions and can predict with much greater precision the effects of shade on a solar array. The new test demonstrated that under heavy shading conditions the use of microinverters instead of typical string inverters can help mitigate the impacts of shade by improving system performance by more than 12%.
A new look at prolonged radiation exposure
May 15, 2012 3:42 am | by Anne Trafton, MIT News Office | News | CommentsA new study from Massachusetts Institute of Technology scientists suggests that the guidelines governments use to determine when to evacuate people following a nuclear accident may be too conservative. The study found that when mice were exposed to radiation doses about 400 times greater than background levels for five weeks, no DNA damage could be detected.
Web tool helps determine best energy storage options
May 11, 2012 4:06 am | News | CommentsSandia National Laboratories and the U.S. Department of Energy have released a new tool to help utilities, developers, and regulators identify the energy storage options that best meet their needs. Partnering with DNV KEMA, Sandia is releasing Energy Storage Select, or ES-Select, software under a public license to the company.
Georgia Tech receives $3.1 M for nuclear energy research, education
May 10, 2012 8:13 am | News | CommentsGeorgia Institute of Technology has been awarded $3.1 million from the U.S. Department of Energy for research and scholarships focused on nuclear energy. The money will go to three research projects focused on developing new and advanced nuclear reactor designs and technologies, while addressing their cost, safety, and security.
From soil microbe to super-efficient biofuel factory?
May 3, 2012 9:20 am | News | CommentsLawrence Berkeley National Laboratory scientists are exploring whether a common soil bacterium can be engineered to produce liquid transportation fuels much more efficiently than the ways in which advanced biofuels are made today. The process would be powered only by hydrogen and electricity. The goal is a biofuel—or electrofuel, as this new approach is called—that doesn’t require photosynthesis.
Study: Clean energy scale-up needs reality check
May 1, 2012 5:30 pm | by Mark Golden, Precourt Institute for Energy at Stanford University | News | CommentsIn a post-Solyndra, budget-constrained world, the transition to a decarbonized energy system faces great hurdles. Overcoming these hurdles will require smarter and more focused policies. Two Stanford writers outline their visions in a pair of analyses.
Study: America's clean energy policies need a reality check
May 1, 2012 12:28 pm | by Mark Golden, Stanford University | News | CommentsIn a post-Solyndra, budget-constrained world, the transition to a decarbonized energy system faces great hurdles. Overcoming these hurdles will require smarter and more focused policies. Two Stanford University writers outline their visions in a pair of high-profile analyses.
Student-devised process would prep Chinese shale gas for sale
May 1, 2012 7:18 am | News | CommentsA team of Rice University students recently fulfilled a challenge to economically turn shale gas produced in China into a range of useful, profitable and environmentally friendly products. In building its plan, the team had to deal not only with processing what's known as "sour gas" straight out of the wellhead, but also had to come up with a solid budget for the construction and profitable operation of the plant as well as a strategy to protect the environment.
Scientists find night-warming effect over Texas wind farms
April 30, 2012 9:32 am | News | CommentsAccording to recent research into how wind turbines affect local weather, large wind farms in certain areas in the United States appear to affect local land surface temperatures, especially at night. The warming trend was spatially matched to the locations of wind farms, and caused warming by nearly three-quarters of a degree Celsius.
Researchers develop path to liquid solar cells
April 26, 2012 9:34 am | News | CommentsScientists at the University of Southern California have developed a potential pathway to cheap, stable solar cells made from nanocrystals so small they can exist as a liquid ink and be painted or printed onto clear surfaces.
New harvesting approach boosts energy output from bacteria
April 26, 2012 5:29 am | News | CommentsA team of scientists from University of Colorado Denver has developed a novel energy system that increases the amount of energy harvested from microbial fuel cells by more than 70 times. The new approach also greatly improves energy efficiency.
Solar panels cause clashes with homeowner groups
April 25, 2012 8:37 am | by Ray Henry, Associated Press | News | CommentsThe government wants you to install solar panels at your house, and will even give you a tax break to do it. But your neighbors? Maybe not. Homeowners associations around the country have banned or severely restricted the installation of solar panels, and the solar industry has pushed back to halt the practice.
Purdue scientists, engineers team up on smart turbine wind energy project
April 25, 2012 7:59 am | News | CommentsA team of Purdue University researchers will use a $1.6 million federal grant to advance sensor technology and computer simulation tools for tracking and improving the performance and reliability of "smart" wind turbines and wind farms.
Study: Fracking requires a minimum distance from sensitive rock strata
April 25, 2012 6:23 am | News | CommentsAccording to new research in the U.K. that looked at data from thousands of fracking operations in the United States, the chance of rogue fractures due to shale gas fracking operations decreases significantly beyond a certain distance from the injection source. This, the first analysis of its kind, could be used as a starting point for separating aquifers and fracking.
Climate change may create price volatility in the corn market
April 23, 2012 12:21 pm | by Rob Jordan, Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment | News | CommentsIn a study from Stanford University and Purdue University, researchers have shown for the first time that climate change may force the U.S. corn belt to move north in the next 10 years, escaping devastating heat waves. In turn, this will bring substantial price swings to the corn market, adversely affecting industries like food and biofuels.
Scientists propose solution to critical barrier to fusion
April 23, 2012 11:16 am | News | CommentsPhysicists have discovered a possible solution to a mystery that has long baffled researchers working to harness fusion. If confirmed by experiment, the finding could help scientists eliminate a major impediment to the development of fusion as a clean and abundant source of energy for producing electric power.
Manhattan Project scientist Cowan dies at 92
April 23, 2012 8:29 am | by Susan Montoya Bryan, Associated Press | News | CommentsOne of the few people to know the various components of the first atomic bombs, George Cowan would become one of the leading nuclear researchers in the country and a fixture at Los Alamos National Laboratory for nearly 40 years. Still working with nonprofit science institute he helped found, he died Friday as the result of a fall at his home.
Chemists explain the molecular workings of promising fuel cell electrolyte
April 23, 2012 8:19 am | News | CommentsResearchers from New York University and the Max Planck Institute in Stuttgart reveal how protons move in phosphoric acid in a study that sheds new light on the workings of a promising fuel cell electrolyte.
Optimizing biofuel supply chain is a competitive game
April 20, 2012 11:22 am | News | CommentsAs biofuel production has increased—particularly ethanol derived from corn—a hotly contested competition for feedstock supplies has emerged between the agricultural grain markets and biofuel refineries. This competition has sparked concern for the more fundamental issue of allocating limited farmland resources, which has far-reaching implications for food security, energy security, and environmental sustainability.
