Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory have uncovered another possible clue to the causes of high-temperature superconductivity, a phenomenon in which the electrical resistance of a material disappears below a certain temperature. In a superconducting compound, they found evidence of a rarely seen arrangement of “holes” – locations where electrons are absent. The results appear in the October 28, 2004, issue of Nature.
The researchers wer
A new technology is being developed that can turn raw sewage into raw power. The device, called a microbial fuel cell, not only treats wastewater, but also provides a clean energy source with the potential for enormous financial savings, according to scientists at Pennsylvania State University.
Although power output is still relatively low, they say the technology is improving rapidly and eventually could be used to run a small wastewater treatment plant, which would be especiall
Breakthrough discovery is 10 times longer than previous current-carrying nanotubes, paves way for supercomputer and health care applications
UC Irvine today announced that scientists at The Henry Samueli School of Engineering have synthesized the world’s longest electrically conducting nanotubes. These 0.4 cm nanotubes are 10 times longer than previously created electrically conducting nanotubes. The breakthrough discovery may lead to the development of extremely strong, light
New research may advance the nanoelectronics field
Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory and their collaborators have discovered that a short, organic chain molecule with dimensions on the order of a nanometer (a billionth of a meter) conducts electrons in a surprising way: It regulates the electrons’ speed erratically, without a predictable dependence on the length of the wire. This information may help scientists learn how to use nanowires to
From volcanic eruptions to ozone holes, a NASA instrument that monitors Earth’s upper atmosphere marks twenty years in orbit.
The Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment II (SAGE II) instrument was deployed October 5, 1984, from the Space Shuttle Challenger aboard the Earth Radiation Budget Satellite (ERBS.) Originally scheduled for a two-year mission, SAGE II continues to give scientists a wealth of data on the chemistry and motions of the upper troposphere and stratospher
The University of North Dakota (UND) Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) has successfully generated electricity from biomass with an exciting, cost- effective gasification technology in a diesel engine. Biomass includes forest residues, wood chips, sawdust, and agricultural by-products.
This fall, the EERC has completed over 100 hours of continuous operation of a biomass gasifier firing wood chips. The process converts wood chips into gas (similar to natural gas) that can be
The International Conference “European Legislation to Promote Bioenergy”, November 8th and 9th in Brussel, offers special opportunities to engage in direct communication with outstanding speakers from the Parliament and the Commission through organised bilateral meetings, and create contacts among participants.
EU legislation drives bioenergy
European policy strengthens its influence on the energy and environmental sectors towards bioenergy development and climate change
Researchers at the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have taken a giant step toward realizing the promise of laser wakefield acceleration, by guiding and controlling extremely intense laser beams over greater distances than ever before to produce high-quality, energetic electron beams.
For a quarter of a century physicists have been trying to push charged particles to high energies with devices called laser wakefield accelerators. In theory, particles ac
New Environmentally-Conscious Battery Sparks a Revolution in the Watch Market
Sony announced today the launch of the world’s first (as of September 29th, 2004) mercury-free Silver Oxide battery. Considered one of the most difficult challenges within the industry, the introduction of the battery heralds a revolution for millions of watch owners around the world and a major advance for the environment. As a leader in the watch battery market, Sony has utilized its expertise to develo
The University of Alaska Fairbanks and Fuel Cell Technologies of Kingston, Ontario, have announced that the five-kilowatt solid oxide fuel cell installed in Fairbanks has successfully passed the one-year field operational mark.
UAF has been testing fuel cell systems, which convert natural gas to grid-compatible AC electricity, for more than six years. Fuel cells promise highly reliable and efficient small-scale systems for remote power applications that may mean a significant reduc
For the first time, an innovative research technique successfully completed a detailed measurement of how heat energy is created at the molecular level, an approach that could have far reaching implications for developing nano-devices.
Research results to be published in the upcoming issue of Science, detail a collaborative effort involving The University of Scranton, a Jesuit university in Pennsylvania, and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, a research institution in
For the first time, MIT researchers have incorporated a plant’s ability to convert sunlight to energy into a solid-state electronic “spinach sandwich” device that may one day power laptops and cell phones.
At the heart of the device is a protein complex dubbed Photosystem I (PSI). Derived from spinach chloroplasts, PSI is 10 to 20 nanometers wide. Around 100,000 of them would fit on the head of a pin. “They are the smallest electronic circuits I know of,” said researcher Marc A. Bal
U of T research offers hope for environment
The energy stored in Toronto’s municipal wastewater could be harnessed to run water treatment facilities and contribute power to the city grid, says new U of T research. The study, published in the August issue of the Journal of Energy Engineering, is the first to measure the energy content of the raw municipal wastewater in the Ashbridges Bay, North Toronto, Highland Creek and Humber plants. The research revealed that the wastewater conta
Imagine having your own annual greenhouse gas allowance which you ’spend’ each time you fill up with petrol or pay an electric or gas bill. It sounds like a scene from a futuristic movie, but this scenario could really happen in the next few years according to researchers at the UK’s Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Prediction.
Dr Kevin Anderson and Richard Starkey are investigating a system of personal trading for carbon emissions. Instead of people being forced to pay a carbo
Using a carbon nanotube, Cornell University researchers have produced a tiny electromechanical oscillator that might be capable of weighing a single atom. The device, perhaps the smallest of its kind ever produced, can be tuned across a wide range of radio frequencies, and one day might replace bulky power-hungry elements in electronic circuits.
Recent research in nanoelectromechanical systems (NEMS) has focused on vibrating silicon rods so small that they oscillate at radio frequenc
Untapped reserves of methane, the main component in natural gas, may be found deep in Earth’s crust, according to a recently released report* in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS). These reserves could be a virtually inexhaustible source of energy for future generations.
The team of researchers from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Carnegie Institution’s Geophysical Laboratory, Harvard University, Argonne Nation
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