Energy – Lifeboat News: The Blog

Jun 18
2016

Ultrafast dynamics of semiconductor nanocrystals

Spectroscopy studies of charge transfer from cadmium selenide quantum dots to molecular nickel catalysts reveal unexpectedly fast electron transfer, enabling exceptional photocatalytic hydrogen production.

A key challenge facing the US is the harvesting, production, storage, and distribution of energy to support economic prosperity with responsible environmental management. Currently, fossil fuels provide more than 80% of the energy consumed in the US (even when significant increases in the use of alternative sources of energy in recent years are accounted for).¹ For the US Department of Defense in particular, volatility in the price and availability of fossil fuels leads to significant short- and long-term financial, operational, and strategic risks.² There is, therefore, clearly a need for new alternative sources of energy.

Jun 17
2016

Startup creates renewable hydrogen energy out of sunlight and water

California startup HyperSolar and University of Iowa researchers have teamed up to make renewable energy in a way that draws inspiration from plants. Using water and sunlight, they are able to make renewable hydrogen energy. At the end of May, HyperSolar announced a “breakthrough” in efficiency, and the University of Iowa just renewed a year-long research agreement with the startup.

Jun 16
2016

Aggressive, sparkplug-free gasoline auto engines with high efficiency

Researchers at Sandia National Laboratories’ Combustion Research Facility are helping to develop sparkplug-free engines that will help meet ambitious automotive fuel economy targets of 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025.

They are working on low-temperature gasoline combustion (LTGC) operating strategies for affordable, high-efficiency engines that will meet stringent air-quality standards.

Sandia researchers Isaac Ekoto and Benjamin Wolk said the goal of the LTGC project is an engine in which chemically controlled ignition initiates the combustion of dilute charge mixtures.

Jun 11
2016

Tech Tuesday: Shell uses 3D printing in Stones deepwater project

Although this article came out in April; I wanted to share because it highlights even how energy companies are using 3D printers.

Shell is using 3D printing technology to make the design and construction of equipment used in oil and gas production faster and more efficient.

The printing technology allows the oil giant to create accurate scale prototypes in material like plastic, which it tests and uses to improve designs and construction process.

“Digital design and 3D printing offer scope to build more efficient prototypes, which we transform into products in their full physical form,” says Shawn Darrah, Shell Innovations Adviser.

Jun 10
2016

Bluetooth 5 will be announced next week with four times the speed and double the range

The next version of the Bluetooth standard is called Bluetooth 5, and will be formally announced next week, Bluetooth Special Interest Group executive director Mark Powell has revealed. Bluetooth 5 is expected to be a significant upgrade over the current version of the wireless standard, offering double the range and four times the speed of current low-energy Bluetooth transmissions, but the Bluetooth SIG says it will also offer much more support for connectionless services — things like beacons that can help people navigate inside buildings or out in the open.

The roadmap for the next version of Bluetooth was sketched out last year, but the SIG — which has tech giants like Apple, Intel, and Microsoft as backers — will officially lift the lid on Bluetooth 5 on June 16th in London. The group explains that it chose the name to simplify its marketing and make the wireless standard easier to understand for users. That change should be beneficial as our homes get smarter and more connected, with many Internet-of-Things devices relying on Bluetooth to connect to your control devices, and each other.

Jun 8
2016

Origami Ninja star inspires new battery design

Seokheun “Sean” Choi, assistant professor of computer and electrical engineering at Binghamton University, along with two of his students, developed the device, a microbial fuel cell that runs on the bacteria available in a few drops of dirty water. They report on their invention in a new paper published online in the journal Biosensors and Bioelectronics (“A disposable power source in resource-limited environments: A paper-based biobattery generating electricity from wastewater”).

A new disposable battery that folds like an origami ninja star could power biosensors and other small devices for use in challenging field conditions.

Jun 7
2016

Meet THOR—a Lightweight Mini-Plane Fresh out of the 3D Printer

Airbus introduces the aviation world to a mini-plane called THOR (Test of High-tech Objectives in Reality). It is the first aircraft to be produced using 3D printing technology.

Airbus, a leading aircraft manufacturer, has just unleashed THOR—Test of High-tech Objectives in Reality—a miniature aircraft constructed from 3D printing technology. The windowless, pilotless, and propeller-driven THOR weighs in at 21 kg, and measures less than 4 m long.

Though it is much smaller than a regular jet, THOR is capable of stable flight and even promises to save on time, fuel and money.

Jun 7
2016

A Big Leap for an Artificial Leaf

A new system for making liquid fuel from sunlight, water, and air is a promising step for solar fuels.

Jun 2
2016

Tiny lasers enable next-gen microprocessors to run faster, less power-hungry

More energy efficient, high performance microprocessors on the way.

Abstract: Tiny high-performance lasers grown directly on silicon wafers solve a decades-old semiconductor industry challenge that, until now, has held back the integration of photonics with electronics on the silicon platform,

A group of scientists from Hong Kong University of Science and Technology; the University of California, Santa Barbara; Sandia National Laboratories and Harvard University were able to fabricate tiny lasers directly on silicon — a huge breakthrough for the semiconductor industry and well beyond.

For more than 30 years, the crystal lattice of silicon and of typical laser materials could not match up, making it impossible to integrate the two materials — until now.

Jun 2
2016

New nanotech fabric dissolves odor and stains whenever it’s exposed to bright light

Not a big fan of laundry day? Well what if you could wash your clothes just by stepping into the sunshine? Thanks to researchers at RMIT University in Melbourne, a self-cleaning textile could make that possible in the very near future. With the help of special nanostructures grown directly into the fabric, these new textiles could degrade organic matter like dirt, dust, and sweat when exposed to a concentrated light source.

To achieve this effect, the nanostructures used by the RMIT University team are made copper and silver. These metals are great at absorbing visible light, and when they’re exposed to light from the sun or even a light bulb, the nanostructures react with increased energy that creates “hot electrons”.