Energy

Microbial fuel cells are a promising new way to generate electricity, but so far they’re plagued by inefficiency. Researchers at UCLA have now found a way to wring more energy out of them, by feeding the bacteria silver to make them more conductive.

Scientists in China have demonstrated a creative approach to flexible energy storage, designing a novel supercapacitor that maintains high capacity when stretched and twisted thanks to accordion-style wrinkles.

Widespread wireless charging could one day keep our devices juiced up indefinitely. A new breakthrough has been made in that direction, as researchers in Japan have developed a system that can turn a whole room into a wireless charger.

The world produces more than 1.8 billion tons of steel a year, releasing nearly twice that weight in carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. It's a huge decarbonization challenge, but steel giant ArcelorMittal is starting on a new green plant in Spain.

According to local media, the Chinese government intends to finish building a prototype molten salt nuclear reactor in the city of Wuwei before the end of year, with plans to establish a number of larger-scale plants in similar settings thereafter.

Western Australia could soon be home to the world's biggest green hydrogen project. The Western Green Energy Hub wants to deploy 50 GW of solar and wind generation to produce up to 3.5 million tons of green hydrogen or 20 million tons of ammonia a year.

Many renewable energy technologies require metals that are mined through environmentally destructive processes. Now, Oxford scientists are investigating a new way to mine valuable metals trapped in hot brines beneath volcanoes.

Thermoelectric generators produce an electric current through a temperature gradient. Now, engineers have created a new device that absorbs heat from the Sun on one surface and emits it from another, allowing it to generate electricity day and night.

MIT has developed a device that generates electricity using a completely new mechanism. “Particles” made of carbon nanotubes are dunked in an organic solvent, which induces a current to potentially power small robots or drive chemical reactions.

Researchers have demonstrated a new approach to harnessing the power of ambient radio waves, developing a novel chip that can convert Wi-Fi signals into power for a small LED, and possibly other small electronics and sensors.

Scientists are investigating more eco-friendly chemistries for batteries, and a team at Texas A&M University has just put forward an interesting candidate, demonstrating a metal-free battery that can be placed in acidic solutions to degrade on demand.

The NSW Government has funded Australia's first dual-fuel-capable power plant to the tune of US$64 million. The Tallawarra B project will initially run on natural gas, but will be gradually upgraded to burn green hydrogen over coming decades.