Rare Earths Should Come from U.S. Not China: NCPA Study With economic and military demand likely to grow in the next few years, the United States must reform its mine permit process and safety regulations to get to the vast underground store of rare earths materials that could drive growth, add jobs and bring revenues […]
Automotive/Transportation
Tesla Unveils Financing Program
Electric car maker Tesla Motors says it has joined with two banks to finance a 10 percent down payment on its new Model S sedan. The company also will give buyers the option to sell the car back to Tesla after three years at a value guaranteed by the automaker. The financing program makes buying […]
Light Tsunami in a Superconductor
In their latest experiment, Prof. Andrea Cavalleri from the Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamics of Matter at the Hamburg-based Center for Free-Electron Laser Science (CFEL) and Dr. Michael Gensch from the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) investigated together with other colleagues from the HZDR, the United Kingdom, and Japan if and how superconductivity can […]
The Evolution of M2M: The Other Mobile Marketplace
Amidst the much-discussed love affair between consumers and their mobile devices, another relationship is blooming in the mobile sector. Device manufacturers from nearly every industry vertical (transportation, energy, health, payments, etc.) are increasingly offering devices and products equipped with mobile connectivity, transforming “dumb” devices into “smart” ones. Providing connectivity for these devices currently amounts to […]
Trial Over Gulf Oil Spill Resumes with Halliburton
A Halliburton employee who worked on a failed cement job linked to a 2010 deadly oil rig explosion in the Gulf is testifying in a trial to determine what caused the blowout. Jesse Gagliano began testifying Tuesday about his work for BP’s cement contractor on the Deepwater Horizon. Gagliano invoked his Fifth Amendment right against […]
The Hydrogen Problem
HydroMan may do his hydrogen-shift thing via water, at will – but outside of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, we have some hydrogen issues. Psst! Like cutting out a fossil hydrogen dependency for many biofuels. But, new pathways ensure that the status hydroquo may not last for long. A numbers of readers responding to “Biofuels from […]
Phillips 66 Pursuing Development of Fractionator
Refining and pipeline company Phillips 66 is pursuing development of a 100,000 barrel-per-day natural gas liquids fractionator in Texas. Phillips 66 said Tuesday that the fractionator would be located in Old Ocean, not far from its Sweeny refinery. The project is currently in the engineering design phase, with Phillips 66 in the process of filing […]
First Solar Buys California Power Project
First Solar said Monday that it has purchased a 150-megawatt power project in Southern California. Construction is expected to start this year and finish in 2014. The Tempe, Ariz., company said that the plant could generate enough electricity to power more than 60,000 average California homes. First Solar Inc. bought the project, which is near […]
Engineering Update #7: Self-Healing, Laser Resistant Chips and NYC’s New Touchscreen Subway Maps
In this episode of Engineering Update, David steps in for Jeff. Brought to you by Mouser Electronics www.mouser.com, we’re talking about self-healing, laser resistant chips, New York City’s new interactive, touchscreen subway maps, and BMW and Continental’s new project into developing “co-pilot” driving technology. Take a look at this week’s news highlights: The technology of […]
Even Graphene Has Weak Spots
Graphene, the single-atom-thick form of carbon, has become famous for its extraordinary strength. But less-than-perfect sheets of the material show unexpected weakness, according to researchers at Rice University in Houston and Tsinghua University in Beijing. The kryptonite to this Superman of materials is in the form of a seven-atom ring that inevitably occurs at the junctions of […]