US Department of Energy

Sandia awards for solar glitter, rescue robot & university partnership

Sandia National Laboratories will begin researching how to use glitter-sized photovoltaic cells in utility-scale solar power systems, which eventually could cut the costs of solar panels in half and nearly double their efficiency.

Microwave ovens key to energy from wasted heat

Researchers have found a new way to make "thermoelectric" materials for use in technology that could potentially save vast amounts of energy.

Findings could lead to better hydrogen storage

New research by a team from MIT and several other institutions analyzes the performance of a class of materials considered a promising candidate for such storage: activated carbon that incorporates a platinum catalyst, so hydrogen atoms can bond directly to the surface of carbon particles and then be released when needed.

EnOcean and EnOcean Alliance members sponsor Empowerhouse team

EnOcean and other members of the EnOcean Alliance—Leviton, Thermokon, Intesis and Can2Go—are serving as sponsors of Empowerhouse, a team participating in the 2011 Solar Decathlon Competition.

ECOtality announces the expansion of the EV project into Houston

In June this year IDTechEx reported on the plans of ECOtality to install charging stations in multiple US states in collaboration with Blink. The companies have now announced the expansion of the original initiative into Houston.

Most efficient colloidal quantum dot solar cell ever

Researchers from the University of Toronto, King Abdullah University of Science & Technology and Pennsylvania State University have created the most efficient colloidal quantum dot solar cell ever.

Waste heat recovery systems in vehicles

In recent years, there's been a surge of energy harvesting applications in the automotive sector, with a host of technologies utilized, each characterized by different achievable levels of power.

Transportation ministers from Asia-Pacific nations pledge cooperation

Energy and transportation ministers from 21 economies in the Asia-Pacific region today agreed to continue progress on initiatives to make transportation in the region cleaner and more energy-efficient, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced this week.

DOE awards more than $175 million for advanced vehicle research

U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu recently announced more than $175 million over the next three to five years to accelerate the development and deployment of advanced vehicle technologies. The funding will support 40 projects across 15 states and will help improve the fuel efficiency of next generation vehicles.

New approach to e-bike batteries

IDTechEx Technology Analyst Harry Zervos interviewed Leyden Energy's Aakar Patel, discussing the company's battery technology, the attributes that make it a technology that's attracting the interest of electric vehicle, consumer electronic, smart grid and EV developers as well as the company's prospects and aims for the future.

Solyndra Declares Bankruptcy

Solyndra, a maker of CIGS PV in a proprietary tubular format, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Graphene nanocomposite a bridge to better batteries

Researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have created a graphene and tin nanoscale composite material for high-capacity energy storage in renewable lithium ion batteries.

Transparent conductors workshop

Technical Analyst, Dr Harry Zervos reports on the FlexTech Alliance Quarterly Workshop.

Desert Sunlight Solar Farm, a 550-megawatt (MW) solar power project

Secretary Salazar approves 550 megawatt solar project in Riverside County, California

Graphene nanocomposite a bridge to better batteries

Researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have created a graphene and tin nanoscale composite material for high-capacity energy storage in renewable lithium ion batteries. By encapsulating tin between sheets of graphene, the researchers constructed a new, lightweight "sandwich" structure that should bolster battery performance.

First Solar achieves 17.3% efficiency

A significant milestone has been achieved by First Solar, who have set a new world record for cadmium-telluride (CdTe) photovoltaic (PV) solar cell efficiency, reaching 17.3 percent with a test cell constructed using commercial-scale manufacturing equipment and materials.

Soft memory device opens door to new biocompatible electronics

Researchers from North Carolina State University have developed a memory device that is soft and functions well in wet environments - opening the door to a new generation of biocompatible electronic devices.

High-density, temperature tolerant battery development

Last week IDTechEx reported on work at Stanford University tackling the issues of low energy and power densities in lithium-ion batteries using sulphur particles. Now another significant problem associated with electric vehicle batteries is being explored by US based company Leyden Energy by exchanging traditional battery chemistries.

Nanostructures on plastic aid energy harvesting

The technique, which uses a heated atomic force microscope (AFM) tip to produce patterns, could facilitate high-density, low-cost production of complex ferroelectric structures for energy harvesting arrays, sensors and actuators in nano-electromechanical systems (NEMS) and micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS).

Graphene gives up more of its secrets

Graphene, a sheet of carbon only a single atom thick, was an object of theoretical speculation long before it was actually made. Theory predicts extraordinary properties for graphene, but testing the predictions against experimental results is often challenging.