Tag: cleantech

  • What it Takes to Innovate in the Old Economy

    12 February 2016. Innovation is important throughout the modern economy, particularly in established industries that may lack the excitement of hot new sectors like biotechnology. A panel at the American Association for the Advancement of Science, or AAAS 2016 annual meeting today (12 February) in Washington, D.C. examined ways of creating innovation in these legacy…

  • Governments, Private Investors Unveil Clean Energy Plans

    30 November 2015. Two separate but related initiatives from governments and private investors were unveiled today to boost investment in clean energy innovations for reducing the threat of climate change.  Statements announcing the initiatives, expected to double global government spending on clean energy innovation to $20 billion, were made to coincide with the opening of…

  • ARPA-E Funding 41 Energy Generation, Efficiency Projects

    23 November 2015. Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy, or ARPA-E, the agency funding riskier energy research and development initiatives in the U.S., announced funding for 41 new projects, including those at 19 private companies. The grants totaling $125 million were revealed today by Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz at 1776, a technology incubator and seed fund…

  • New Design Advances Lithium-Air Battery

    30 October 2015. A research group at University of Cambridge in the U.K. unveiled a new design that meets some of the obstacles plaguing lithium-air batteries, considered a major improvement over lithium-ion batteries now used to power mobile devices, computers, and electric cars. The team from the lab of chemistry professor Clare Grey published its…

  • Sensor Network, Google Maps to Track California Air Quality

    28 September 2015. A San Francisco company that designs environmental sensors and networks is partnering with Google Maps to track air quality in three California regions. Aclima Inc. and Google Maps announced the partnership today at the annual meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative in New York, but no financial details were revealed. Aclima Inc. develops…

  • Environmental Sensor Developer Reveals Collaborations

    30 June 2015. Aclima Inc., a designer of environmental monitoring sensors and networks, unveiled today collaborations with Google Inc., U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, among others. The San Francisco company, operating with little publicity for long as 5 years, did not disclose financial details from any of these partnerships. Aclima Inc.…

  • Solar Water-Splitting System Produces Hydrogen for Energy

    26 September 2014. Engineers at Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland designed a solar energy system made of inexpensive and abundant materials that efficiently splits water into hydrogen and oxygen for producing electricity. The team from the lab of EPFL’s Michael Grätzel, with colleagues from Singapore and Korea, published its findings in today’s…

  • Solar Process Converts CO2 to Source of Power, Chemicals

    2 July 2014. Chemists from Princeton University and spin-off company Liquid Light Inc. in Monmouth Junction, New Jersey created a process to use sunlight for converting carbon dioxide into formic acid, a source for electric power and industrial chemicals. Princeton chemistry professor Andrew Bocarsly, also a founder of Liquid Light, and colleagues published their findings…

  • Columbia Team to Study Electric Power Switching Transistors

    An engineering research group at Columbia University in New York received a $3 million grant from U.S. Department of Energy to create high-power electric switching devices with the speed and efficiency of electronic transistor circuits. The team led by electrical and biomedical engineering professor Ken Shepard — that includes members from MIT, IBM, and the…

  • Pressure-Cooked Nanoparticles Improve Lithium-Ion Batteries

    Engineers at University of California in Riverside discovered a process for improving cathodes in lithium-ion batteries found in today’s electric cars and most electronic devices, and thus their performance. The team from the lab of Riverside’s David Kisailus published their findings in this month’s issue of the journal Crystal Growth and Design (paid subscription required).…