2D materials are a promising and fairly new technology used in the field of solar photovoltaics. They have very good optical and electronic properties, a necessary feature when you want to develop advanced solar cells and other optoelectronic devices. 2D materials are, as a rule, more stable than commercial 3D materials and have great exciton binding energies. However, despite their efficiency in converting sunlight into energy, they...
Flow batteries consist of electrochemical cells containing chemical components which are dissolved in liquids and pumped through the system on separate sides of a membrane to provide the chemical energy needed. The ion exchange takes place through the membrane while both liquids remain in their respective spaces. Cell voltage ranges from 1.0 to 2.43 volts. Flow batteries can be used like fuel cells or rechargeable batteries. While they...
Methanol is a very versatile alcohol and used to make a great variety of products, such as paints and plastics or fuel. It is small wonder, therefore, that around the globe many research projects are devoted to the development of methods of sustainable methanol production. If, for example, a method could be found to economically convert methane into methanol, people would get a liquid fuel which can be much more easily stored and...
Electrical resistance at normal temperatures is a characteristic most materials exhibit when confronted with an electrical current. Because of this resistance, some energy is lost as heat. Moreover, for many materials, this resistance remains even if the material is cooled to very low temperatures. In some materials, however, direct current electricity is conducted without energy loss even when the materials are cooled below a critical...
Plant seed oil is used in a broad spectrum of applications, ranging from human nutrition to fuel production. Plants are capable of generating and storing triacylglycerol (TAG) in their seeds which delivers the energy and carbon needed for the development of seedlings but might also be harnessed feedstock for fuel production. One of the most frequently used plants for the study of oilseed biology and metabolism, especially in the field...
Conducting scientific experiments usually involves several carefully planned steps which consist of selecting a topic of research, determining the parameters of the experiment and finally carrying it out. All careful planning notwithstanding, experiments sometimes do not only yield the desired results; however, they may lead to completely unexpected insights and findings. Such was the case in an experiment recently conducted by...
For many years, scientists have been looking for ways to improve the life cycle of commercial lithium-ion batteries as despite the fact that they are a commonly-used and indispensable part of many technical applications, there are still issues concerning their operational capacity. There exist several materials which might lead to improved efficiencies. Metal oxides, for example, have been shown to be a suitable candidate as...
Hydrocarbon separation is one of the most complex and important processes in industrial hydrocarbon production because it generates a multitude of chemicals which are important to national economies. Commercial separation technologies, such as cryogenic distillation or solvent extraction, consume a lot of energy and cause serious environmental damage. Also, the growth of industrial processes and technologies as well as the overall...
With ever-increasing levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, concerned scientists are looking for ways to mitigate the negative impacts of this development for our planet. One of the easiest and also most sustainable methods would be to simply collect the greenhouse gas and turn it into fuel. Now (2021), scientists at Brookhaven Laboratory have found a means to create an almost zero-net-carbon technology which is able to...
Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFC) use an electrolyte consisting of a solid oxide material which conducts negative oxygen ions from the cathode to the anode. The electrochemical oxidation of the oxygen ions with hydrogen or carbon monoxide takes place on the anode side. This kind of fuel cell operates at very high temperatures (500 - 1,000°C) and does not need expensive platinum catalysts which are vulnerable to carbon monoxide catalyst...
