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Category: energy – Page 12

New Mn-rich cathode could improve sustainability and stability of high-energy Li-ion batteries

Lithium-ion batteries (LiBs) remain the most widely used rechargeable batteries worldwide, powering most portable and consumer electronics. LiBs are also used to power most electric and hybrid vehicles, which are predicted to become increasingly widespread over the next decades.

Despite their good performance and large-scale adoption, LiBs still primarily rely on based on nickel (Ni) and cobalt (Co). Yet the processes required to source both these metals are known to be destructive for , while also leaving a high carbon footprint and requiring significant water.

Moreover, most of the cobalt used worldwide originates from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where unsafe mining conditions and child labor are still common. Over the past decades, energy researchers have been trying to identify cathode materials that can be sourced safely and sustainably, while matching the performance of Ni and Co-based cathodes.

The quantum door mystery: Electrons that can’t find the exit

What happens when electrons leave a solid material? This seemingly simple phenomenon has, until now, eluded accurate theoretical description. In a new study, researchers have found the missing piece of the puzzle.

Imagine a frog sitting inside a box. The box has a large opening at a certain height. Can the frog escape? That depends on how much energy it has: if it can jump high enough, it could in principle make it out. But whether it actually succeeds is another question. The height of the jump alone isn’t enough—the frog also needs to jump through the opening.

A similar situation arises with inside a solid. When given a bit of extra energy—for example, by bombarding the material with additional electrons—they may be able to escape from the material.

Researchers discover spontaneous chirality in conjugated polymers

Chirality, a property where structures have a distinct left- or right-handedness, allows natural semiconductors to move charge and convert energy with high efficiency by controlling electron spin and the angular momentum of light. A new study has revealed that many conjugated polymers, long considered structurally neutral, can spontaneously twist into chiral shapes. This surprising behavior, overlooked for decades, could pave the way for development of a new class of energy-efficient electronics inspired by nature.

Webb sheds more light on composition of planetary debris around nearby white dwarf

Using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), astronomers have performed infrared observations of a planetary debris disk around a nearby white dwarf known as GD 362. Results of the new observations, presented October 8 on the arXiv preprint server, yield important insights into the chemical composition of this disk.

White dwarfs (WDs) are stellar cores left behind after a star has exhausted its nuclear fuel. Due to their high gravity, they are known to have atmospheres of either pure hydrogen or pure helium.

However, there exists a small fraction of WDs that shows traces of heavier elements, and they are believed to be accreting planetary material. Studies of this material around WDs, which often forms dust disks, is essential to improving our knowledge of how planets form and evolve.

Scientists Forge New “Superalloy” That Could Revolutionize Jet Engines and Power Plants

A newly developed material with exceptional high-temperature resistance shows strong promise for use in energy-efficient aircraft turbines. Metals that can endure extremely high temperatures are essential for technologies such as aircraft engines, gas turbines, and X-ray equipment. Among the most

Quantum mechanics trumps the second law of thermodynamics at the atomic scale

Two physicists at the University of Stuttgart have proven that the Carnot principle, a central law of thermodynamics, does not apply to objects on the atomic scale whose physical properties are linked (so-called correlated objects). This discovery could, for example, advance the development of tiny, energy-efficient quantum motors. The derivation has been published in the journal Science Advances.

Low-power MoS₂-based microwave transmitter could advance communications

To further advance wireless communication systems, electronics engineers have been trying to develop new electronic circuits that operate in the microwave frequency range (1–300 GHz), while also losing little energy while transmitting signals. Ideally, these circuits should also be more compact than existing solutions, as this would help to reduce the overall size of communication systems.

Most of the microwaves integrated in current communication systems are made of bulk materials, such as silicon or gallium arsenide. While these circuits have achieved good results so far, both their size and have proved to be difficult to reduce further.

Two-dimensional (2D) semiconducting materials, which are made up of a single atomic layer, could overcome the limitations of bulk materials, as they are both thinner and exhibit advantageous electrical properties. Among these materials, (MoS₂), has been found to be particularly promising for the development of circuits and other components for communication systems.

Not So Dead After All: Astronomers Reveal the Secret Behind Inflated White Dwarfs

White dwarfs are the dense, compact remains left behind when stars exhaust their nuclear fuel, a process that will one day occur to our own Sun. These stellar remnants are known as degenerate stars because their internal physics defy normal expectations: as they gain mass, they actually become smaller in size.

Many white dwarfs exist in pairs, forming what are known as binary systems, where two stars orbit each other. Most of these systems are ancient by galactic standards and have cooled over time to surface temperatures near 4,000 Kelvin.

Yet, astronomers have recently identified a remarkable group of short-period binary systems in which the stars complete an orbit in less than an hour. Surprisingly, these white dwarfs appear to be about twice as large as models predict, with much higher surface temperatures ranging from 10,000 to 30,000 Kelvin.

Electrolyte breakthrough could help make next-gen solid-state batteries

A research work conducted by scientists from Japan could help make next-generation solid-state batteries. Researchers from Japan’s Tohoku University have confirmed that the pressure-assisted sintering techniques such as hot pressing (HP) and spark plasma sintering (SPS) were found effective to develop next-generation batteries.

Researchers highlighted that solid-state lithium metal batteries (SSLMBs) are drawing worldwide attention as a next-generation technology that promises higher energy density and greater safety than today’s lithium-ion batteries.

Self-healing layer improves the safety and lifespan of all-solid-state lithium batteries

Scientists have come up with a new way to improve the safety and performance of all-solid-state lithium metal batteries (ASSLMBs), the next-generation energy source technology that is set to power everything from electric vehicles to renewable energy grids.

Most batteries that are in common use today contain flammable liquid electrolytes. The next evolution in batteries is the ASSLMB, which replaces the flammable liquid with a non-flammable solid material to move between electrodes. While they are significantly safer, there is a critical flaw that prevents them from being reliable and long-lasting. That is, repeated charging and discharging cause gaps to form between the solid lithium metal anode and the solid electrolyte, which means the quickly breaks down and stops working.

To solve this problem, researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences developed a self-healing layer they call DAI (Dynamically Adaptive Interphase) that keeps the battery connected.

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