Metals Tech

Electric cars are a key part of Europe’s green transition plans but the road ahead remains littered with obstacles with 10 years to go before a crucial milestone. Despite the fact that the sale of new petrol and diesel cars will be banned in the European Union as of 2035, sales of plug-in “zero emission” […]

New chemistries for batteries, semiconductors and more could be easier to manufacture, thanks to a new approach to making chemically complex materials that researchers at the University of Michigan and Samsung’s Advanced Materials Lab have demonstrated. Their new recipes use unconventional ingredients to make battery materials with fewer impurities, requiring fewer costly refinement steps and […]

Researchers from Lehigh University have developed a material that demonstrates the potential for drastically increasing the efficiency of solar panels. A prototype using the material as the active layer in a solar cell exhibits an average photovoltaic absorption of 80%, a high generation rate of photoexcited carriers, and an external quantum efficiency (EQE) up to […]

Battery industry heavyweight CATL has unveiled its latest innovation in energy storage system design with enhanced energy density and efficiency, as well as zero degradation for both power and capacity. Its new TENER product achieves 6.25 MW capacity in a 20-foot equivalent unit (TEU) container, increasing the energy density per unit area by 30% and […]

An improved charging protocol might help lithium-ion batteries to last much longer. Charging with a high-frequency pulsed current reduces aging effects, an international team demonstrated. The study was led by Philipp Adelhelm (HZB and Humboldt University) in collaboration with teams from the Technical University of Berlin and Aalborg University in Denmark. Experiments at the X-ray […]

Today wirelessly connected devices are performing an expanding array of applications, such as monitoring the condition of engines and machinery and remote sensing in agricultural settings. Systems known as the “Internet of Things” (IoT), hold much potential for improving the efficiency and safety of the equipment. Yet stumbling blocks remain for IoT, thwarting many potential […]

Imagine a vast volume of porous sandstone reservoir, once full of oil and natural gas, now full of a different carbon-free fuel—hydrogen. Scientists at Sandia National Laboratories are using computer simulations and laboratory experiments to determine whether depleted oil and natural gas reservoirs can be used for storing this carbon-free fuel. Hydrogen is an important […]

We often think nothing ever changes, and then wham! Everything changes. Take grid-scale battery storage, for instance. A decade ago, GE installed what was at the time a state of the art combined cycle methane-fired turbine at a generating station in Menifee, California, southeast of Los Angeles. Combined cycle captures some of the exhaust heat […]

American drivers have long been accustomed to quickly filling up at a gas station with plenty of fuel available, and electric vehicle drivers want their pit stops to mimic this experience. Driver uncertainty about access to charging during long trips remains a barrier to broader EV adoption, even as the U.S. strives to combat climate […]

Battery technology is essential for a sustainable future. Energy storage is key for making renewable power viable regardless of the time of day or weather conditions. Lithium-ion batteries are the most common in today’s technology, with uses ranging from cell phones to electric cars. Scientists are consistently looking for ways to make them more efficient […]