pressnews.MEDICINE · SCIENCE · EVIDENCE
RSSSearchMy library
The archive · since 2010
THE ORIGINAL COLLECTION · SINCE 2010

Energy
press releases.

Research announcements from universities, hospitals and scientific institutions. Explore the stories, people and discoveries behind the headlines.

Original publication datesPage 20
FIND A STORY

Find a past release.

Dates and source material belong to the original release.

Read our research explainers

Browse the collection · original publication order

Energy

Widespread use of high-assay low-enriched uranium raises significant nuclear security concerns

In a Policy Forum, R. Scott Kemp and colleagues argue that promoting new nuclear reactor technologies using high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) threatens the international system of controls that has prevented nuclear weapons proliferation for over 30 years. “Governments and others promoting the use of HALEU have not carefully considered the potential proliferation and terrorism risks that the wide adoption of this fuel creates,” write Kemp et al. The authors warn that if HALEU becomes a standard reactor ...

Read the release
Ferroelectric material is now fatigue-free
Energy

Ferroelectric material is now fatigue-free

Researchers at the Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering (NIMTE) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, in collaboration with research groups from the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China and Fudan University, have developed a fatigue-free ferroelectric material based on sliding ferroelectricity. The study was published in Science. Ferroelectric materials have switchable spontaneous polarization that can be reversed by an external electric field, which have been widely applied to non-volatile memory, sensing, and ...

Read the release
Energy

US public opinion on social media is warming to nuclear energy, but concerns remain

Images The U.S. public displays more positive than negative sentiment toward nuclear energy but concerns remain about waste, cost and safety, according to an analysis of 300,000 posts on X (formerly Twitter) by University of Michigan researchers. The study was recently published in Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. Identifying public concerns and misconceptions about nuclear energy can target efforts to bridge these gaps as nuclear energy will play a large role in goals to decarbonize ...

Read the release
Energy

Wayne State University partners with Great Lakes Water Authority to help train water pipeline managers of the future

DETROIT — The Great Lakes Water Authority (GLWA) has partnered with Wayne State University to develop its Workforce Development and Pipe Management Program, which will help recruit, teach and graduate the next generation of water pipeline managers. The two-year program will begin July 1, 2024, and will be supported by a contract totaling more than $480,000. The GLWA says that water utilities are experiencing significant employee recruitment, training and retention challenges. An additional concern is the availability of specialized technical training that addresses recent technological advances in the water sector. In response to these challenges, the Workforce Development and ...

Read the release
Revolutionizing urban energy: how advanced EV charging schedules enhance grid efficiency
Energy

Revolutionizing urban energy: how advanced EV charging schedules enhance grid efficiency

In response to the escalating demand for sustainable transportation solutions, researchers from the National Institute of Technology Silchar have developed a groundbreaking scheduling system for electric vehicles (EVs) that enhances power grid efficiency and accommodates the growing influx of solar energy. This advanced system, outlined in a recent study by Pritam Das and Partha Kayal, focuses on optimizing the charging and discharging times of EVs to better integrate with photovoltaic (PV) energy ...

Read the release
New study confirms presence of benzene in natural gas and potential for undetectable indoor leaks
Energy

New study confirms presence of benzene in natural gas and potential for undetectable indoor leaks

OAKLAND, CA – New research finds that even people with an average sense of smell could be living with a natural gas leak and not know it. The peer-reviewed study, published in Environmental Research Letters, finds that small gas leaks can impact indoor air quality by introducing a number of hazardous air pollutants, including the carcinogen benzene, which researchers found in 97% of natural gas samples across North America. “While these smaller leaks are not large enough to cause gas explosions, hard-to-smell leaks are common,” ...

Read the release
Energy

AI-controlled stations can charge electric cars at a personal price

As more and more people drive electric cars, congestion and queues can occur when many people need to charge at the same time. A new study from Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden shows how AI-controlled charging stations, through smart algorithms, can offer electric vehicle users personalised prices, and thus minimise both price and waiting time for customers. But the researchers point to the importance of taking the ethical issues seriously, as there is a risk that the artificial intelligence exploits information from motorists. Today's commercial ...

Read the release
Fast charging electric vehicles with stable high-energy density lithium-ion batteries
Energy

Fast charging electric vehicles with stable high-energy density lithium-ion batteries

A research team led by Dr. Choi Jeong Hee at the Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute (KERI) Battery Materials and Process Research Center, in cooperation with a Hanyang University team mentored by Professor Lee Jong-Won and a Kyunghee University team mentored by Professor Park Min-Sik, developed a core technology to ensure the charging/discharging stability and long-life of lithium-ion batteries under fast-charging conditions. A crucial prerequisite for the widespread adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) is the enhancement of lithium-ion battery performance in terms of driving ...

Read the release
A 20-year-old puzzle solved: KAIST research team reveals the 'three-dimensional vortex' of zero-dimensional ferroelectrics
Energy

A 20-year-old puzzle solved: KAIST research team reveals the 'three-dimensional vortex' of zero-dimensional ferroelectrics

Materials that can maintain a magnetized state by themselves without an external magnetic field (i.e., permanent magnets) are called ferromagnets. Ferroelectrics can be thought of as the electric counterpart to ferromagnets, as they maintain a polarized state without an external electric field. It is well-known that ferromagnets lose their magnetic properties when reduced to nano sizes below a certain threshold. What happens when ferroelectrics are similarly made extremely small in all directions (i.e., into a zero-dimensional structure such as nanoparticles) has been a topic of controversy for a long time. The research team led by Dr. Yongsoo ...

Read the release
Energy

Inducing piezoelectricity in distorted rutile TiO2 for enhanced tetracycline hydrochloride degradation through photopiezocatalysis

A team of material scientists led by Prof. Qi Li from Southwest Jiaotong University in Chengdu, China recently outlined the state of inducing piezoelectricity in distorted rutile TiO2 for enhanced tetracycline hydrochloride degradation through photopiezocatalysis. Various material design strategies have been developed to enhance photocatalytic performance of TiO2. However, no report is available on applications of the photopiezocatalysis strategy on TiO2 due to its lack of piezoelectricity. Here we developed a low-temperature molten salt etching process to create rutile TiO2 nanoparticles by etching [MgO6] ...

Read the release
STEP Demo supercritical CO2 pilot plant generates electricity for the first time
Energy

STEP Demo supercritical CO2 pilot plant generates electricity for the first time

SAN ANTONIO — May 29, 2024 —The Supercritical Transformational Electric Power (STEP) Demo pilot plant has generated electricity for the first time using supercritical carbon dioxide (sCO2) power cycles. The $169 million, 10-megawatt sCO2 facility at Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) in San Antonio is demonstrating next-generation power production technology in a project led by GTI Energy in collaboration with SwRI, GE Vernova, the U.S. Department of Energy/National Energy Technology Laboratory (U.S. DOE/NETL), and several industry participants. “The impact of demonstrating that the sCO2 technology works cannot be overstated,” said SwRI Project Manager Dr. Jeff ...

Read the release
Reverse electrodialysis heat engine with helium-gap diffusion distillation: Energy efficiency analysis
Energy

Reverse electrodialysis heat engine with helium-gap diffusion distillation: Energy efficiency analysis

The depletion of energy resources poses a significant threat to the development of human society. Specifically, a considerable amount of low-grade heat (LGH), typically below 100 °C, is currently being wasted. However, if harnessed effectively, it has the potential to significantly improve overall energy utilization efficiency and subsequently reduce carbon dioxide emissions. A research group of Junyong Hu from Taiyuan University of Technology has concentrated on developing a new type of reverse electrodialysis ...

Read the release
Energy

Pedestrians may be twice as likely to be hit by electric/hybrid cars as petrol/diesel ones

Pedestrians may be twice as likely to be hit by an electric or hybrid car as those powered by petrol or diesel, finds a study of 2013-17 casualty rates in Great Britain, and published online in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health. The risk is greater in urban areas, and governments must take steps to mitigate this safety hazard as they proceed to phase out fossil fuelled vehicles to improve air quality and curb climate change, urge the researchers. Road traffic injuries are the leading cause of death for children and young people, and 1 in 4 road traffic deaths are of pedestrians, they note. Amid ...

Read the release
Can coal mines be tapped for rare earth elements?
Energy

Can coal mines be tapped for rare earth elements?

Deposits of designated critical minerals needed to transition the world’s energy systems away from fossil fuels may, ironically enough, be co-located with coal deposits that have been mined to produce the fossil fuel most implicated in climate change. Now, research led by the University of Utah has documented elevated concentrations of a key subset of critical minerals, known as rare earth elements, or REEs, in active mines rimming the Uinta coal belt of Colorado and Utah. These findings open the possibility that these mines could see a secondary resource stream in the form of metals used in renewable energy and numerous other high-tech ...

Read the release
Energy

Department of Energy announces $6 million for isotope R&D

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced $6 million in funding for 12 awards across eight efforts to advance research in isotope enrichment, targetry, and separations. This funding is part of a key federal program that produces critical isotopes otherwise unavailable or in short supply in the U.S. Isotopes, or variations of the same elements that have the same number of protons but different numbers of neutrons, have unique properties that make them powerful in medical diagnostic and treatment applications. They are also essential for applications in quantum information science, nuclear power, national security, and more. “These ...

Read the release
Energy

Using magnetic resonance spectroscopy to design safer, higher-performance lithium batteries

Columbia Engineers use nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy to examine lithium metal batteries through a new lens -- their findings may help them design new electrolytes and anode surfaces for high-performance batteries New York, NY—May 20, 2024—A Columbia Engineering team has published a paper in the journal Joule today that details how nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy techniques can be leveraged to design the anode surface in lithium metal batteries. The researchers also present new data and interpretations for how this method can be used to gain unique insight into the structure of these surfaces to share with the field. “We ...

Read the release
Low-permittivity LiLn(PO3)4 (Ln = La, Sm, Eu) dielectric ceramics for microwave/millimeter-wave communication
Energy

Low-permittivity LiLn(PO3)4 (Ln = La, Sm, Eu) dielectric ceramics for microwave/millimeter-wave communication

Microwave dielectric ceramics are the cornerstone of wireless communication devices, widely utilized in mobile communications, satellite radar, GPS, Bluetooth, and WLAN applications. Components made from these ceramic materials, such as filters, resonators, and dielectric antennas, are extensively used in wireless communication networks. As wireless communication frequencies extend into higher bands, signal delay issues become increasingly prominent. Low dielectric constants (εr) can reduce electromagnetic coupling effects, effectively minimizing signal delays. Consequently, developing new ceramic materials with ...

Read the release
Ancient arachnid from coal forests of America stands out for its spiny legs
Energy

Ancient arachnid from coal forests of America stands out for its spiny legs

LAWRENCE — More than 300 million years ago, all sorts of arachnids crawled around the Carboniferous coal forests of North America and Europe. These included familiar ones we’d recognize, such as spiders, harvestmen and scorpions — as well exotic animals that now occur in warmer regions like whip spiders and whip scorpions. But there were also quite bizarre arachnids in these habitats belonging to now extinct groups. Even among these stranger species now lost to time, one might have stood out for its up-armored legs. The ancient critter recently was described in a new paper published ...

Read the release
A powerful tool speeds success in achieving highly efficient thermoelectric materials
Energy

A powerful tool speeds success in achieving highly efficient thermoelectric materials

HOUSTON, May 16, 2024 – Thermoelectric materials could play an important role in the clean energy transition, as they can produce electricity from sources of heat that would otherwise go to waste without generating additional greenhouse gases or requiring large up-front investment. But their promise has been slowed by the fact that most current thermoelectric materials don’t efficiently produce enough power to be useful for many practical applications. The search for new, more efficient materials involving complex chemical ...

Read the release
Energy

Total energy cost of animal reproduction is higher than previously assumed

The energy invested in animal reproduction is as much as 10 times greater than previously estimated when the metabolic load of bearing and caring for offspring is accounted for, according to a new study. The findings fundamentally challenge longstanding theories and biological models of animal growth and life histories. The act of reproduction is one of the largest energy investments an animal can make. This investment includes direct cost, the energy directly invested in the offspring themselves, and indirect costs, the energy expended to create, carry, and care for offspring before they are born. While the direct costs of reproduction are well understood, the indirect ...

Read the release
Study suggests high-frequency electrical ‘noise’ results in congenital night blindness
Energy

Study suggests high-frequency electrical ‘noise’ results in congenital night blindness

In what they believe is a solution to a 30-year biological mystery, neuroscientists at Johns Hopkins Medicine say they have used genetically engineered mice to address how one mutation in the gene for the light-sensing protein rhodopsin results in congenital stationary night blindness. The condition, present from birth, causes poor vision in low-light settings. The findings, published May 14 in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, demonstrate that the rhodopsin gene mutation, called ...

Read the release
Studying bubbles can lead to more efficient biofuel motors
Energy

Studying bubbles can lead to more efficient biofuel motors

By studying how bubbles form in a drop of biodiesel, researchers at the University of Gothenburg can help future engines get the most energy out of the fuel. In an internal combustion engine, the fuel is distributed in small droplets in injection valves to maximise combustion. In the engine, the fuel droplets are pressurised to turn into gas and burn. When gas is formed, bubbles form inside the droplets and it is these that the researchers at the University of Gothenburg have studied using femtosecond lasers. Less emissions “The bubbles have a significant impact on the atomisation of biodiesel in engines. Therefore, our research is very important ...

Read the release
Energy

Petroleum, chlorine mix could yield harmful byproducts in new UH study

A new study from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa shows that chlorine mixed with petroleum in water can potentially produce inadvertent byproducts harmful to human health. Small amounts of chlorine, within safe industry standards, are added to disinfect Oʻahu’s drinking water by the Honolulu Board of Water Supply (BWS) and military installations, according to BWS. In late November 2021, a petroleum release from the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility contaminated the Red Hill ...

Read the release
Aston University researcher’s project selected as part of government support package to rebuild Ukraine’s energy system
Energy

Aston University researcher’s project selected as part of government support package to rebuild Ukraine’s energy system

Aston University researcher’s work highlighted by the British government Dr Muhammed Imran and his collaborators to develop and commercialise cascade heat pumps Part of programme designed by British and Ukraine governments over the last 12 months. An Aston University researcher’s project has been selected as part of a package of support to help rebuild Ukraine’s energy system, phase out fossil fuels and support post-war recovery. In November 2023 it was announced that senior lecturer in engineering and technology Dr Muhammed Imran and his collaborators were to receive almost £1 ...

Read the release
Eco-friendly and affordable battery for low-income countries
Energy

Eco-friendly and affordable battery for low-income countries

A battery made from zinc and lignin that can be used over 8000 times. This has been developed by researchers at Linköping University, Sweden, with a vision to provide a cheap and sustainable battery solution for countries where access to electricity is limited. The study has been published in the journal Energy & Environmental Materials. “Solar panels have become relatively inexpensive, and many people in low-income countries have adopted them. However, near the equator, the sun sets at around 6 PM, leaving households and businesses without electricity. The hope is that ...

Read the release
From the original Press-News collection. Issuers of news releases are responsible for the accuracy of their content.