When it comes to the special sauce of batteries, researchers at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have discovered it’s all about the salt concentration. By getting the right amount of salt, right where they want it, they’ve demonstrated a small lithium-metal battery can re-charge about seven times more than batteries with conventional […]
ShAPEing The Future Of Magnesium Car Parts
Magnesium — the lightest of all structural metals — has a lot going for it in the quest to make ever lighter cars and trucks that go farther on a tank of fuel or battery charge. Magnesium is 75 percent lighter than steel, 33 percent lighter than aluminum and is the fourth most common element […]
Night Vision for Bird- and Bat-Friendly Offshore Wind Power
The same technology that enables soldiers to see in the dark can also help protect birds and bats near offshore wind turbines. Night vision goggles use thermal imaging, which captures infrared light that’s invisible to the human eye. Now, researchers at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory are using thermal imaging to help […]
Tweaking Electrolyte Makes Better Lithium-Metal Batteries
Scientists have found adding a pinch of something new to a battery’s electrolyte gives the energy storage devices more juice per charge than today’s commonly used rechargeable batteries. New, early-stage research shows adding a small amount of the chemical lithium hexafluorophosphate to a dual-salt, carbonate solvent-based electrolyte can make rechargeable lithium-metal batteries stable, charge quickly […]
Smart stuff: IQ of Northwest power grid raised, energy saved
RICHLAND, Wash. – Smart meters, automated control of power distribution and other intelligent energy technologies can improve energy efficiency and possibly reduce power costs, according to the final results of a comprehensive, five-year regional smart grid pilot project. But more research and development is needed to support utility-led smart grid deployment throughout the United States, […]
‘Wetting’ a Battery’s Appetite for Renewable Energy Storage
Sun, wind and other renewable energy sources could make up a larger portion of the electricity America consumes if better batteries could be built to store the intermittent energy for cloudy, windless days. Now a new material could allow more utilities to store large amounts of renewable energy and make the nation’s power system more […]
Battery Development May Extend Range of Electric Cars
It’s known that electric vehicles could travel longer distances before needing to charge and more renewable energy could be saved for a rainy day if lithium-sulfur batteries can just overcome a few technical hurdles. Now, a novel design for a critical part of the battery has been shown to significantly extend the technology’s lifespan, bringing […]
Structure of bacterial nanowire protein hints at secrets of conduction
Electrically conducting bacteria important for energy, environment and technology RICHLAND, Wash. – Tiny electrical wires protrude from some bacteria and contribute to rock and dirt formation. Researchers studying the protein that makes up one such wire have determined the protein’s structure. The finding is important to such diverse fields as producing energy, recycling Earth’s carbon […]
