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First full human 3D printed for radiation therapy research

At just 1 year old, she is 5 feet 1 inch tall and weighs 15 pounds. She can hold 36 gallons of water for up to eight hours. She has a detachable head but remains faceless. Her name is Marie, and no, this is not her online profile.

Volkswagen first glimpse of mobile charging station

Volkswagen is offering a glimpse of the company's future mobile quick charging station. It can be set up flexibly and independent of the power supply wherever it is needed: for example, in public parking lots in the city, on company premises, or as a temporary charging point at large-scale events.

WAVEGEM hybrid platform launched and inaugurated

The IHES project was initiated in 2015 by Geps Techno, a company located in the Pays de la Loire region, based on its own technology for harvesting wave energy from floating structures.

Fingernail wearable monitors disease progression

Grip strength is a useful metric in a surprisingly broad set of health issues. It has been associated with the effectiveness of medication in individuals with Parkinson's disease, the degree of cognitive function in schizophrenics, the state of an individual's cardiovascular health, and all-cause mortality in geriatrics.

Robots with sticky feet

Jet engines can have up to 25,000 individual parts, making regular maintenance a tedious task that can take over a month per engine. Many components are located deep inside the engine and cannot be inspected without taking the machine apart, adding time and costs to maintenance. This problem is not only confined to jet engines, either; many complicated, expensive machines.

Integration of single-crystal hybrid perovskites into electronics

A team of researchers has developed a technique that, for the first time, allows single-crystal hybrid perovskite materials to be integrated into electronics. Because these perovskites can be synthesized at low temperatures, the advance opens the door to new research into flexible electronics and potentially reduced manufacturing costs for electronic devices.

Robots are being programmed to adapt in real time

A robust, adaptable robot that responds to its environment on the fly and overcomes obstacles such as a broken leg without human intervention could be used to rescue people from an earthquake zone or clean up sites that are too hazardous for humans.

The stiffest 3D printed structures

Researchers have developed and manufactured a family of architectures that maximises the stiffness of porous lightweight materials. It's practically impossible to develop stiffer designs.

Paper sensors remove the sting of diabetic testing

A technique that enables biologically active enzymes to survive the rigors of inkjet printing presents a promising alternative to routine blood screening exams faced by diabetic patients.

Pumped storage hydropower to turbocharge the clean energy transition

An additional 78,000 megawatts in clean energy storage capacity is expected to come online by 2030 from hydropower reservoirs fitted with pumped storage technology, according to the International Hydropower Association.

Smart charging keeps power grid from overloading

Smart charging electric cars with a dynamic price mechanism may play an important part to help keep the power grid from overloading.

How climate impacts solar and wind power supply

One of the challenges with solar and wind power is that, on any given day, the sun isn't always shining, and the wind isn't always blowing when we want it to. Now, zooming out, researchers at Columbia's Earth Institute have found that the same could be true on the scale of years to decades.

Research multiplies the life of rechargeable NiMH batteries

Researchers have developed a method to multiply the lifespan of nickel-metal hydride batteries. This means that the batteries can handle a great many more charging cycles without losing capacity. The new method also means that the batteries can easily be restored once they have begun to wear out, unlike other rechargeable batteries that must be melted down for recycling.

Drones can detect protected nightjar nests

Thermal-sensing cameras mounted on drones may offer a safer and more cost-effective way to locate nests of the elusive European nightjar in forestry work and construction areas, according to new research presented at the British Ecological Society.

Method to shrink objects to the nanoscale

Researchers have invented a way to fabricate nanoscale 3-D objects of nearly any shape. They can also pattern the objects with a variety of useful materials, including metals, quantum dots, and DNA.

Implantable device aids weight loss

New battery-free, easily implantable weight-loss devices developed by engineers could offer a promising new weapon for battling the bulge.

Strong and lightweight polymer aerogels

A polymer aerogel combines the benefits of an aerogel with the conveniences of a plastic (i.e., polymer).

3D printed brick generates electricity

An international team of scientists have developed a thermogalvanic brick that generates electricity as long as the two faces of the brick are at different temperatures.

E.ON makes a strategic investment in Virta

Earlier this year Virta and E.ON signed a global operational agreement to make thousands of intelligent E.ON charging stations available to electric vehicle users across Europe in ten countries. The cooperation creates one of the largest and densest charging networks in Europe, where the E.ON electric vehicle charging infrastructure is powered by the Virta platform.

Electro-thermal energy storage system raises funds

Malta Inc, a pioneer in electro-thermal energy storage, today announced it has raised $26M in a Series A round of funding led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures with participation from other investors including Concord New Energy Group and Alfa Laval. Malta, which started as "Project Malta" at X, Alphabet's Moonshot Factory, is now an independent company outside of Alphabet called "Malta Inc". "Our investors share our vision to create a scalable storage solution that will facilitate further expansion of renewable energy while improving grid stability and resilience across the globe. Beyond capital investment, they are truly partnering with us to build a first-of-a-kind product. We appreciate their confidence in our strategy and in our team's ability to execute on it," said Ramya Swaminathan, CEO of Malta Inc. The Malta energy storage system stores energy in the form of a thermal differential between hot and cold storage media. It is based on well-established principles in thermodynamics for a system that stores electricity as heat in high temperature molten salt and cold in a low temperature antifreeze liquid. While incubated at X, Alphabet's Moonshot Factory, the project underwent a rigorous evaluation and de-risking process. Malta Inc will work in collaboration with industry partners to turn the detailed designs developed and refined at X into industrial-grade machinery for its first pilot system. Malta's system can store electricity for days or even weeks, until it's needed. The electricity can come from any source (i.e. wind, sun, or fossil fuels) in any location. Malta has the potential to make existing capital investments in both fossil and renewable generation more productive while dramatically improving power grid stability and resilience. "A lack of affordable, reliable grid-scale energy storage is currently limiting the shift to renewable energy. Malta's technology gives us a shot at storing all the renewable energy we create cheaply and reliably. With X having done our part to bring Malta's technology as far as we can take it, we're excited to hand the baton to the Malta team for the next phase of product development and deployment," said Raj Apte, PhD, Science Adviser at X, the Moonshot Factory. "Solving the intermittency problem of renewable energy is a critical part of delivering inexpensive and reliable clean energy, which is why storage is an important area of investment for BEV," said Carmichael Roberts of Breakthrough Energy Ventures. "Malta's energy storage system is a different and promising approach from conventional batteries, using existing components and inexpensive resources to store energy as heat - and that makes the system cost-effective to scale. We're also excited about this investor syndicate, pooling our unique resources to bring this technology to market." "With the rise in electricity being generated from renewable resources, the demand for energy storage has become higher, and innovation in energy storage technology will become critical for using clean energy effectively. Malta's energy storage technology can be widely applied to various energy storage markets such as grid peak load shifting, auxiliary services, distributed energy resources, business and industrial parks, and more, with considerable development potential. Our investment in Malta Inc. has strategic significance for the further development of our energy project investment operations and technical services business line and benefits the interests of our company and shareholders as a whole," said Mr. Liu Shunxing, the Chairman of Concord New Energy Group. "We believe that Malta is a very interesting initiative, with great potential," says Susanne Pahlén Åklundh, President of Alfa Laval's Energy Division. "We will bring our unique expertise within heat transfer technology, including design and production of heat exchangers, to the invaluable knowledge and resources within the group of investors in Malta Inc. We are excited to partner with them to bring this innovative new approach in energy storage to the market." About Malta Inc Malta is a provider of industrial-grade, grid-scale energy storage solutions. The Malta system collects and stores inexpensive and abundant renewable and fossil energy, and dispatches it as needed to the grid to enable the affordable and reliable delivery of electricity on demand. Incubated at X, the Moonshot Factory (formerly Google [x]), and funded by leading venture capital and commercial power industry companies, Malta is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Visit www.maltainc.com. About Breakthrough Energy Ventures Breakthrough Energy Ventures (BEV) is a for-profit, investor-led fund created to accelerate the world's transition to clean energy. BEV has more than $1 billion in committed capital to fund scientific breakthroughs with the potential to deliver affordable, reliable clean energy. The fund prioritizes investments across the five grand challenges that contribute most to greenhouse gas emissions: electricity, transportation, agriculture, manufacturing and buildings. BEV was created by the Breakthrough Energy Coalition in 2016 and is backed by an investor group that includes many of the world's top business leaders. For more information visit www.b-t.energy/ventures/ About Concord New Energy Group Limited Concord New Energy Group Limited (CNE) is an integrated utility scale wind, solar, and energy storage project developer and operator. The company currently owns over 1,900 MW of operating capacity in China and the United States and is focused on developing, operating, and servicing energy projects that can help transition the world into a cleaner energy future. CNE was formerly known as China WindPower Group Limited and is listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange under stock symbol 0182. More information can be found at www.cnegroup.com/en About Alfa Laval Alfa Laval is a leading global provider of specialized products and engineering solutions based on its key technologies of heat transfer, separation and fluid handling. The company's equipment, systems and services are dedicated to assisting customers in optimizing the performance of their processes. The solutions help them to heat, cool, separate and transport products in industries that produce food and beverages, chemicals and petrochemicals, pharmaceuticals, starch, sugar and ethanol. Alfa Laval's products are also used in power plants, aboard ships, oil and gas exploration, in the mechanical engineering industry, in the mining industry and for wastewater treatment, as well as for comfort climate and refrigeration applications. Alfa Laval's worldwide organization works closely with customers in nearly 100 countries to help them stay ahead in the global arena. Alfa Laval is listed on Nasdaq OMX, and, in 2017, posted annual sales of about SEK 35.3 billion (approx. 3.6 billion Euro). The company has about 16 400 employees. www.alfalaval.com.