Research Laboratory news

Organic photochemistry is a scientific area encompassing processes which play an important role in enabling life on our planet. These processes have recently been afforded renewed scientific interest as it enables scientists to cheaply and effectively create new molecules. Gaining greater insights into already known processes can sometimes lead to incredible results and help design better materials than such that can be created by...

The sun is an abundant source of energy. The sunlight which hits the earth in the course of a day is enough to cover the world’s energy consumption for a very long time. This energy can be harnessed using photovoltaic (PV) panels or through mirrors that concentrate solar radiation and used to generate electricity or be stored in batteries or thermal storage. Solar panels, also known as photovoltaics, are made up of semiconductor...

Scientists have always been looking for ways to improve our daily lives. One of their focus areas undoubtedly is materials engineering, where they are trying, among other tasks, to improve or develop new devices which can be used for harvesting energy. Superconductors are one group of such devices, which have zero electrical resistance and thus allow electrons to flow unimpeded. It also means that they do not lose energy or create...

Nowadays a trend can be witnessed in almost all countries around the globe which focuses on the development of renewable energy sources. One condition that has to be met in order to efficiently harness the energy produced by renewables is that the storage media or batteries have to be more flexible and enduring. There are a great many companies dedicated to producing batteries with higher energy density, lighter weight, faster recharge...

After superconductivity was discovered at the beginning of the 20th century, scientists around the globe have taken great pains to unravel the mysteries of this phenomenon in materials physics. The insights they have gained are profound. However, the exact mechanisms that lie at the bottom of this phenomenon have yet to be fully discovered. A superconductor is a material with no electrical resistance, which does not allow magnetic...

In view of the looming energy crisis, scientists are leaving no stone unturned to find sustainable and efficient means to mitigate fossil fuel dependency. A promising source of energy is geothermal wells because, unlike wind or solar energy, they do not rely on the weather to produce heat or electricity. There are, however, some challenges which need to be tackled in order to enable wide adoption of geothermal energy. One of them is...

Lithium is a mineral which occurs naturally and constitutes about 0.0007 percent of the Earth's crust. Lithium is contained in minerals and salts of natural brines which can be found underground or in seawater. Lithium can also form a byproduct of hydraulic fracturing. There it is mostly contained in fracturing fluids. Such brines and produced water also show high concentrations of rare earth elements and metals. Since the 1990s,...

Halide perovskites are generally regarded as materials which have high performance potential while reducing production costs. The name is derived from the mineral calcium titanium oxide CaTiO 3 (XIIA2+VIB4+X2−3) and is also used for the class of compounds which have the same crystal structure, called the perovskite structure. Perovskite solar cells have witnessed a rapid development in recent years, with efficiencies increasing to over...

In our modern world, tremendous amounts of organic waste, such as agricultural residues, food waste and animal manure, are produced every day. The greater part of this waste is transported to composting plants and incinerated to gain heat and electricity. This process often releases significant amounts of CO2 into the atmosphere. Waste, however, could be used to produce energy in a more sustainable manner, including various fuel...

As we become ever more dependent on lighter, thinner, and smaller electrical devices, the production and use of lithium-ion batteries has turned into one of the most important branches of industry, as they are needed for e.g. mobile phones and laptops, but also for larger applications such as electric vehicles. To ensure good and reliable performance, the makeup of the battery is essential. Battery performance and safety are closely...