Energy Post

Daily reports on the European and Global energy transition

  • Newsletter
  • Search Categories
    • Renewables
    • Policy
    • Oil, Gas & Coal
    • Hydrogen
    • Outlooks
    • Grids
    • Nuclear
    • Markets
    • Transport
    • Videos
  • 24-linkedin 24-twitterfacebook Follow-Us

Perovskite: abundant, cheap, printable solar cells demonstrated, ready to generate power

May 31, 2023 by David Beynon

Laboratories around the world are racing to make printable perovskite solar cells, produced in abundance and so thin they can be wrapped around almost anything. It’s a huge advantage over the typical silicon cell that is relatively big and fragile. And perovskite is much less expensive to produce. David Beynon at Swansea University describes research there that has demonstrated how a roll of plastic film can be loaded into a printing press to … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Energy, Innovations, Renewables Tagged With: cells, chemistry, costs, efficiency, film, innovation, perovskite, printed, silicon, slotdie, solar, thin

“Exascale” computing algorithms can deliver new Wind Turbine designs and on-site power-maximising strategies

May 17, 2023 by Brooke Van Zandt

Advances in exascale computing algorithms and models for multiscale atmospheric flows are leading to new wind turbine designs and on-site power-maximising strategies previously not possible, explains Brooke Van Zandt at NREL. The models can contain and process two billion grid points, simulating the air flow around turbines in a large wind farm with unprecedented accuracy. Van Zandt describes how the new tools are being used to deal with highly … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Energy, Innovations, Renewables Tagged With: algorithms, computing, derating, design, exascale, farm, modelling, turbines, turbulence, wake, wind

“Rebound Effect”: cheap LEDs mean more lights everywhere. But brighter homes, offices and public spaces are worth having

May 15, 2023 by Lucas Davis

LEDs are 90% more efficient than modern incandescent bulbs. Their rapid uptake has resulted in measurable cuts in energy demand and emissions. But their plummeting cost over the last ten years is also causing a “rebound effect” where people are using more and more LEDs, not least for outdoor lighting. Lucas Davis at the Haas School of Business believes we must embrace it, even if it’s counter to maximising energy savings. More and brighter … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Energy, Energy efficiency, Innovations Tagged With: buildings, consumption, demand, efficiency, incandescents, LEDs, lighting, lumens, ReboundEffect

Can Phytomining deliver Critical Minerals at scale: farming plants that accumulate high metal concentrations

May 10, 2023 by Maria Krol-Sinclair and Thomas Hale

Both Europe and the U.S. are making plans to secure supplies of critical minerals as the transition gains pace. Domestic mining or securing import deals with close allies is the main focus. Here, Maria Krol-Sinclair and Thomas Hale at CSIS review the prospects for a new method that will require neither: phytomining. Some plants, called hyperaccumulators, soak up high concentrations of metals into their leaves, bark, and roots. These plants can … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Energy, Innovations Tagged With: agriculture, batteries, cobalt, CriticalMinerals, EVs, farming, hyperaccumulators, metals, nickel, phytomining, RareEarthElements, regulations, selenium, US

4 CEOs explain their innovations: EV charging, aviation fuel, hydrogen fuel cells, nuclear waste-to-energy

April 26, 2023 by Robin Pomeroy and Kate Whiting

To meet our global climate targets, new solutions, technologies and pathways will be needed. Existing technologies, on their own, can’t be scaled up fast enough to do it. Robin Pomeroy and Kate Whiting at the World Economic Forum pick out highlights from their podcast that hears from four CEOs of innovative companies, covering EV charging, aviation, hydrogen fuel cells, and new nuclear. Today’s millions of EV charging points needs to rise to 450m … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Energy, Innovations Tagged With: aviation, charging, costs, EVs, fuel, fuelcells, hydrogen, innovation, Nuclear, SAF, waste

“Combustion” can make cathodes for lithium-ion batteries more cheaply, quicker, using less energy

March 15, 2023 by Nancy Stauffer

Burning things produce soot. And that soot contains materials that have been morphed into something else. As Nancy Stauffer at MIT explains, new research there has shown the burning process can be used to produce cathodes far more cheaply, quicker, more simply, and with less energy than the standard method. It’s another example, from an unexpected direction, of innovations cutting the costs of an essential component of the energy transition: … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Energy, Innovations, Storage Tagged With: batteries, cathodes, combustion, commercialisation, EVs, industry, innovation, lithium, storage

Smart Glasses: experts can monitor and advise on power plant inspections anywhere in the world

January 25, 2023 by Christoph Gatzen and Simon Lemin

The pandemic made on-site testing of power stations and their components more complicated – and considerably so in some cases. But it also made a wide range of product and services companies aware of the availability of technology to monitor, manage and repair units remotely. Rather than fly several experts to a single site, the experts can stay where they are and watch the inspection happen virtually, while giving advice and instructions on the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Energy, Innovations, Promoted content Tagged With: AugmentedReality, inspection, remote, repair, SmartGlasses, Testing, VirtualReality

From lab to commercialisation: what is the optimal pathway for Clean Energy Technologies?

January 11, 2023 by Madeline Geocaris and Andrea Wuorenmaa

It’s a considerable challenge to predict, decades in advance, what the world will need and get it from lab to market. Madeline Geocaris and Andrea Wuorenmaa at NREL summarise four case studies that reveal the key elements required: a good balance of technology, R&D, and public-private partnership; regulatory and market force alignment; good timing for market opportunities. The goal is the optimal pathway to the successful first … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Energy, Innovations Tagged With: blades, development, DOE, HydrogenFuelCells, innovation, JISEA, markets, NREL, refrigerators, regulations, research, solarPV, standards, wind

Comparing the efficiency and progress of the 5 leading Solar PV cell technologies

December 7, 2022 by Wayne Hicks and Harrison Dreves

NREL’s “Best Research-Cell Efficiency Chart” allows researchers to easily compare the performance of specific PV technologies, stretching back 50 years. It’s regularly updated and is free to use, explains Wayne Hicks and Harrison Dreves at NREL. A new “interactive” version is now available. The focus is on crystalline silicon cells, single-junction gallium arsenide cells, multijunction cells, thin films, and emerging PV. For example, you can … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Energy, Innovations, Renewables Tagged With: arsenide, crystalline, efficiency, gallium, multijunction, perovskite, PV, silicon, solar, ThinFilm

Turning waste biomass into clean fuel: cheap, portable equipment, cuts emissions, earns income for rural poor

November 2, 2022 by Kathryn O'Neill

The burning of biomass accounts for 10% of primary energy used worldwide: wood, peat, animal dung, corn stalks, rice husks, hay, straw, and other agricultural waste. Billions of people, mainly in remote and poorer regions, rely on such fuels for cooking, heating, and other household needs. But it’s a major source of emissions as well as pollution. And, annually, an estimated $120bn worth of crop and forest residues are burned out in the open … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Biofuels, Energy, Innovations Tagged With: agriculture, biomass, CDR, cooking, crops, forests, heating, India, Kenya, pollution, torrefaction, waste

China: decades of support for innovation is now delivering results

October 4, 2022 by Daisy Chi

The evolution of China’s clean energy sector used to be based on a technology catch-up approach, which meant secondary innovation based on imported technologies. Daisy Chi at ECECP looks at the IEA’s recent report, “Tracking Clean Energy Innovation: Focus on China”, to conclude that the nation is now a major force in clean energy innovation. Decades of innovation-focussed policies, strong funding support, institutional reforms, big targets and … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Energy, Innovations Tagged With: batteries, China, emissions, EVs, funding, IEA, innovation, markets, patents, policies, research, solar

New research into making water boil using less energy

July 20, 2022 by David Chandler

Can the boiling of water be done more efficiently? If so, a wide range of processes can save energy, not least the standard use of steam turbines in electricity generators. David Chandler at MIT describes research there that modifies the surface of the heating element. A combination of microscale dents and nanoscale bumps and ridges on the surface, and pillars that allow the “wicking” of water by capillary action, improves the efficiency of … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Energy, Innovations Tagged With: boiling, efficiency, industry, innovation, steam, turbines, water

New thermophotovoltaic cells turn heat into electricity more efficiently than a steam turbine

June 22, 2022 by Jennifer Chu

Over 90% of the world’s electricity comes from heat-generating power plants using coal, natural gas, nuclear energy, and concentrated solar energy. Steam turbines have always been the standard for converting that heat into electricity. On average they are only 35% efficient, with moving parts that cannot cope with temperatures above 2,000 degrees Celsius. Jennifer Chu at MIT describes new research, in collaboration with NREL, that has led to a … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Energy, Innovations Tagged With: batteries, electricity, heat, maintenance, solar, storage, thermal, thermophotovoltaic, turbines

Next-gen Solar farms that work at night, in the rain, and self-clean

June 15, 2022 by Douglas Broom

With the worldwide roll-out of solar, raising the efficiency of energy conversion isn’t just about the materials science of PV cells. Douglas Broom, writing for the World Economic Forum, runs through three “add-on” innovations. Researchers have found a way to generate electricity in the dark as panels cool during the night. A low-cost thermoelectric generator works using the temperature difference between the cooling solar panels and the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Energy, Innovations, Renewables Tagged With: cleaning, efficiency, night, raindrops, robots, solar, thermoelectric, triboelectric, weather

Event Summary: “CHINA: Carbon Neutral by 2060 – Innovation”

June 7, 2022 by Sara Stefanini

Here are the highlights of our 2-day 4-session workshop “CHINA: Carbon Neutral by 2060 - Innovation”, compiled by Sara Stefanini. It’s a quick and efficient way for readers to see the main points made by our expert panellists. Held at the end of May, it was the fourth of our EU-China workshops since the first was held in November 2020, produced for the EU China Energy Cooperation Platform (ECECP). As always, leading speakers from the EU, major … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Energy, Innovations Tagged With: AirLiquide, batteries, CCS, CCUS, CDR, China, Danfoss, EU, event, EVs, Flow, grids, hydrogen, innovation, Novozymes, renewables, Scania, SchneiderElectric, Shell, smartgrids, solar, storage, TotalEnergies, wind

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • …
  • 14
  • Next Page »

Most read this week

  • Financing Renewable Hydrogen globally: ramp up to 2030 only needs $150bn/year by Dolf Gielen | posted on May 26, 2023
  • Five charts on the Energy Transition: the 2020s is the decade of maximum disruption. By 2030 the endgame will be clear by Sam Butler-Sloss | posted on May 25, 2023
  • Making Hydrogen direct from seawater using double-membrane electrolysis by David Krause | posted on May 24, 2023
  • 10 Carbon Capture methods compared: costs, scalability, permanence, cleanness by Ella Adlen | posted on November 11, 2019
  • Understanding the new EU ETS (Part 2): Buildings, Road Transport, Fuels. And how the revenues will be spent by Simon Göss | posted on February 6, 2023
  • Micro-nuclear reactors: up to 20MW, portable, safer by Christina Nunez | posted on April 22, 2021
  • Oil & Gas can meet 2030 net-zero target for only $600bn, quickly recouped. But it’s still not happening, warns IEA by IEA | posted on May 22, 2023
  • Gravity Batteries: any nation can do it at scale using rocks by Simon Read | posted on July 27, 2022
  • The history of evidence of CO2-driven climate change starts in the mid-1800s by Marc Hudson | posted on May 23, 2023
  • The 10 big problems with simply replacing fossil cars with electric by Schalk Cloete | posted on December 6, 2021
  • EU Energy Outlook to 2060: how will power prices and revenues develop for wind, solar, gas, hydrogen + more by Alex Schmitt | posted on December 6, 2022
  • What’s best for Hydrogen transport: ammonia, liquid hydrogen, LOHC or pipelines? by Herib Blanco | posted on May 5, 2022
  • Enhanced Weathering: crushed rocks spread on farmland can capture billions of tons of CO2/year by Benjamin Houlton | posted on July 21, 2020
  • Hydrogen production in 2050: how much water will 74EJ need? by Herib Blanco | posted on July 22, 2021
  • U.S. EPA: new rules proposed for cutting Fossil Fuel-Fired Power Plant emissions by Cy McGeady | posted on May 30, 2023
  • Why hydrogen fuel cell cars are not competitive — from a hydrogen fuel cell expert by Zachary Shahan | posted on June 17, 2016
  • Modelling green Ammonia and Methanol in 2050. It will be expensive by Schalk Cloete | posted on September 9, 2022
  • EU Carbon Removal Certification Framework: new rules to turn greenwashing into genuine removals by Simon Göss | posted on May 16, 2023
  • China should comfortably meet its 2030 Renewables target. But its emissions? by Simon Göss | posted on February 21, 2022
  • Can Aluminium-air batteries outperform Li-ion for EVs? by Helena Uhde | posted on September 8, 2021

Information

  • Advertise
  • Privacy Policy including Cookies
  • Terms and conditions for posting content
  • Comment Policy

More Information

  • About us
  • Authors
  • Contact Us

Most read in last 24 hours

  • Recent Posts
  • Recent Comments
  • Most Commented
  • Most Viewed
  • Tags
  • Perovskite: abundant, cheap, printable solar cells demonstrated, ready to generate power
  • U.S. EPA: new rules proposed for cutting Fossil Fuel-Fired Power Plant emissions
  • Financing Renewable Hydrogen globally: ramp up to 2030 only needs $150bn/year
  • Five charts on the Energy Transition: the 2020s is the decade of maximum disruption. By 2030 the endgame will be
  • Making Hydrogen direct from seawater using double-membrane electrolysis
      • Perovskite: abundant, cheap, printable solar cells demonstrated, ready to generate power
      • carbon bubble
      • CCS
      • China
      • climate change
      • coal
      • coal power
      • diversification
      • electric cars
      • electricity
      • electricity market
      • emissions
      • energy2030
      • energy efficiency
      • energy security
      • energy storage
      • energy trade
      • energy transition
      • EU
      • EU energy policy
      • EU ETS
      • European gas market
      • EVs
      • financing
      • gas
      • geopolitics
      • grid
      • grids
      • hydrogen
      • infrastructure
      • investment
      • natural gas
      • nuclear energy
      • oil
      • renewables
      • Russia
      • smart grids
      • solar
      • solar power
      • sustainable mobility
      • transport
      • unconventionals
      • US
      • US energy policy
      • wind
      • wind power

      Recent Posts

      Perovskite: abundant, cheap, printable solar cells demonstrated, ready to generate power

      U.S. EPA: new rules proposed for cutting Fossil Fuel-Fired Power Plant emissions

      Financing Renewable Hydrogen globally: ramp up to 2030 only needs $150bn/year

      Five charts on the Energy Transition: the 2020s is the decade of maximum disruption. By 2030 the endgame will be clear

      Making Hydrogen direct from seawater using double-membrane electrolysis

      Copyright © 2023 Energy Post. All Rights Reserved