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Open Source for a Global 'Energiewende'
Computer models are essential for achieving energy turnaround also known as 'Energiewende. Free and open-source simulations can help in the planning of capacities for generating, transporting, and storing energy, taking into account dynamic parameters such as the weather and energy consumption.
August 3, 2020 Read more
New smartphone game lets you solve real-world ecological puzzles (w/video)
EcoBuilder, which is downloadable now on smartphones and tablets, teaches players how ecosystems work and aims to crowdsource solutions to unsolved ecological puzzles.
July 31, 2020 Read more
Solar energy converter creates power and heat for cheap
The hybrid solar energy converter uses an approach that more fully captures the whole spectrum of sunlight. It generates electricity from high efficiency multi-junction solar cells that also redirect infrared rays of sunlight to a thermal receiver, which converts those rays to thermal energy.
July 28, 2020 Read more
Scientists use photonics to make wastewater eco-friendly
Wastewater will soon become cleaner and less harmful to plants and animals thanks to a new, ultra-sensitive water sensor being developed by scientists to detect tiny amounts of toxic substances with light.
July 28, 2020 Read more
Make your own greenhouse gas logger
Facilitating the use of low-cost methane sensors in flux chambers - calibration, data processing, and an open-source make-it-yourself logger.
July 27, 2020 Read more
Chemists make tough plastics recyclable
New method for producing thermoset plastics allows them to be broken down more easily after use.
July 23, 2020 Read more
E-waste eating protein creates rare earth elements
Researchers have designed a new process, based on a naturally occurring protein, that could extract and purify rare earth elements (REE) from low-grade sources. It could offer a new avenue toward a more diversified and sustainable REE sector.
July 15, 2020 Read more
Scaled-up perovskite solar cells achieve highest recorded power conversion
Researchers have created a perovskite solar mini module that has recorded the highest power conversion efficiency of any perovskite-based device larger than 10 square centimeters.
July 14, 2020 Read more
What comes after the lithium-ion battery?
The demand for batteries to store renewable energy will grow drastically in the coming years. Could we develop more sustainable technologies to save precious natural resources, besides the familiar lithium-ion batteries?
July 13, 2020 Read more
Five must-read novels on the environment and climate crisis
Since the start of lockdown, more of us have taken to our bicycles, grown our own vegetables and baked our own bread. So it's not surprising it has been suggested we should use this experience to rethink our approach to the climate crisis. Reading some environmental literature can also give us the opportunity to think about the world around us in different ways.
July 10, 2020 Read more
Using electricity to break down pollutants left over after wastewater treatment
Pesticides, pharmaceutical products, and endocrine disruptors are some of the emerging contaminants often found in treated domestic wastewater, even after secondary treatment. Researchers have tested the effectiveness of a tertiary treatment process using electricity.
July 9, 2020 Read more
Carbon-loving materials designed to reduce industrial emissions
Researchers are advancing gas membrane materials to expand practical technology options for reducing industrial carbon emissions.
July 3, 2020 Read more
Unorthodox desalination method could transform global water management
Engineers apply their pioneering technique to attain energy-efficient zero-liquid discharge - the last frontier of desalination - of ultrahigh salinity brines.
July 1, 2020 Read more
Semiconductors could transform how we disinfect surfaces, spaces, PPE
Materials scientists work on the semiconductors that could transform how we disinfect surfaces, spaces, personal protective equipment - even the air we breathe.
June 25, 2020 Read more
Efficient laser technique can convert cellulose into biofuel
Scientists developed a novel laser-based strategy for the effective degradation of cellulose into useful products.
June 23, 2020 Read more
Research in land plants shows nanoplastics accumulating in tissues
As concern grows among environmentalists and consumers about micro- and nanoplastics in the oceans and in seafood, they are increasingly studied in marine environments.
June 22, 2020 Read more
The exhaust gas from a power plant can be recovered and used as a raw reaction material
Energy-saving CO2 capture technology with H2 gas is developed by integrating the CO2 separation and conversion process.
June 19, 2020 Read more
Water vapor in the atmosphere may be prime renewable energy source
Electricity generated by interactions between water molecules and metals may be turned into a source of energy.
June 9, 2020 Read more