Researchers Found An Enzyme That Could Get Gasoline From Thin Air
"This organism is a very common soil bacteria that is very well understood and has been studied for a long time. But while we were studying it, we realized that the enzyme has some unusual behavior", said Markus Ribbe, a scientist at the University of California.
Solar Roadways Reinventing How We Build Our Paths That Charge Our Cars
The world struggles to make a place for solar panels on the planet, and it looks like there's not enough space for that. A...
Organic Photovoltaic Solar Cells: A New Graphene-Based, Flexible Kind of Cell
A team of researchers from the University of Southern California has published a paper in the most recent journal ACS Nano, revealing a new approach to solar cells. Specifically, they combined graphene, one of the most recent and studied materials discovered, and organic (Graetzel) solar cells. Their project has produced organic photovoltaic cells (OPV).
Bumpy Nanoparticle Treatment of Solar Cells Making Them More Efficient
Yi Cui, a researcher from Stanford University, about whom we've been talking about many times lately, has discovered how nanoscale wires, pores, bumps and other material textures can improve the performance of solar cells dramatically. They could even serve as self-cleaning coatings, because of their highly hydrophobic properties.
Sewage Power Plants Could Produce 20 Times More Electricity Thanks to New Discovery
Sewage treatment plants represent an interesting source of electricity. Oregon State University (OSU) have studied and developed a new type of coating that, if applied on the positive electrodes of microbial electrochemical cells used in such plants would raise the electricity production by about 20 times.
Fast-Forward Powered Pedals Should Help You Climb Hills Easier
The idea of modding my bike and making it electric excites me every time I think about it. I even wanted to buy one of those kits on from China a few weeks ago. Then, my wife reminded me that biking is not about going fast and sweatless, but rather about pedaling and enjoying the sports. I can hardly wait till she sees this... the "Fast-Forward Powered Pedals"
Plasmonic Motor Powered Mechanically and Directly by Light, Developed by UC Berkeley
Researchers from the University of California Berkeley, led by Xiang Zhang, a principal investigator with the university's Materials Sciences Division and director of UC Berkeley's Nano-scale Science and Engineering Center (SINAM), demonstrated for the first time practically how light can actually move material nanometric particles of gold by using surface plasmons.
New Organic Framework for More Efficient Graetzel Solar Cells Discovered
Scientists from Cornell University have unveiled a basic process that could give solar cells a boost in efficiency and a drop in price. The process employs molecules typically used in coloring blue jeans and in ink dyes. Their purpose if to build an organic framework that could serve as a building block for cheaper and flexible solar cells.
Recently Discovered Nanocoating Makes Heat Transfer Happen Much Easier
The action of cooling things down plays a critical part of any mechanical or electric system, because the inevitable heat, produced by friction, is the number one cause of almost instant failure. So far, different methods that cool systems have been discovered, but not to the extent of performance that engineers dream of building their computers or mechanical devices (cars, for example).
New Graphene Production Technology Offers Hope for Cheap Hydrogen Storage
Victor Aristov, a Ph.D. at the Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research, along with a team of other researchers, has discovered how to produce high-quality graphene by using the cheapest methods possible.
