Science and Enterprise

Tag: cleantech

  • New Wireless Electric Vehicle Charging System Developed

    Engineers at North Carolina State University in Raleigh developed a new, more dynamic, approach for wirelessly charging moving electric vehicles and built a small-scale prototype to prove the concept. The team led by electrical engineering professor Srdjan Lukic published its findings online in a recent issue of the journal IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics (paid…

  • University of Houston Spins-Off Nanotech Coatings Company

    A physics professor at University of Houston in Texas started a company to develop and manufacture protective coatings for industrial and consumer goods based on his research in nanotechnology. C-Voltaics, started by Houston physicist Seamus Curran, was awarded last week the Young Technology Award at the Commercialization of Micro- and Nanosystems conference in The Netherlands, according…

  • Open Source Energy-Economy Optimization Model Developed

    Computer scientists and engineers at North Carolina State University in Raleigh developed a computer model to aid energy-related economic policy decisions, making both their data and source code available to the public. The model, called Tools for Energy Model Optimization and Assessment or Temoa, is the work of a team led by NC State engineering…

  • Fuel Cells for Refrigerated Trucks Under Development

    A project combining the efforts of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL)  in Richland, Washington with two fuel cell manufacturers is developing fuel cells to power the refrigeration units in refigerated trucks. The companies — Nuvera Fuel Cells in Billerica,, Massachusetts and Plug Power Inc. in Latham, New York — each received a $650,000 matching contract…

  • Alternative Solar Cell Developer Adds $10M Venture Funding

    Scifiniti, a developer of silicon-based solar materials in San Jose, California secured $10 million in series B venture financing, the second round of funding after initial start-up. Current investors Alloy Ventures, Firelake Capital, I2BF Global Ventures, and Peninsula Ventures took part in the round. The company’s first product is SmartWafer, an alternative photovoltaic solar cell…

  • Hydrogen Fuel Cells Found Feasible for Ships Docked in Port

    An analysis by Sandia National Lab in Livermore, California indicates hydrogen fuel cells offer an economical and environmentally feasible alternative for powering commercial ships docked in seaports. Sandia Lab, a division of the U.S. Department of Energy, published the study, conducted for the department’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, earlier this year. Ships docked…

  • Energy-Efficient Process Devised to Convert CO2 to Methanol

    Chemistry researchers at Université Laval in Québec City, Canada and Université de Toulouse in France developed a new process that converts carbon dioxide into the alternative fuel methanol in a single, more efficient step. The team led by Laval professor Frédéric-Georges Fontaine published its findings online earlier this month in the Journal of the American…

  • National Lab Develops Solar Photosynthesis Testing Device

    Researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California developed a device to test on a small scale electrochemical solar-energy conversion methods for future fuel cell and artificial photosynthesis technologies. The team led by Joel Ager and Rachel Segalman from the Berkeley Lab’s materials science division and Joint Center for Artificial Photosynthesis published its findings in…

  • Analysis Shows Life-Cycle Impacts of Lithium-Ion Batteries

    A cradle-to-grave analysis of lithium-ion batteries, like those used in electric vehicles, shows the batteries have potential adverse impacts on the environment and public health beyond the benefits from their day-to-day use. The study, by consulting firm Abt Associates in Bethesda, Maryland, was conducted for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, with researchers from battery manufacturers,…

  • Airborne Wind Energy Systems Company Acquired by Google

    Makani Power Inc., a company in Alameda, California developing airborne wind energy systems that fly in the air like kites, was acquired by Google, according to the company’s Web site. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. The company says its wind energy system operates like a wind turbine, but is flown from 250…