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Category: energy – Page 204

General Motors Secures Multi-Year Cobalt Supply From Glencore

“GM and our suppliers are building an EV ecosystem that is focused on sourcing critical raw materials in a secure sustainable manner. Importantly, given the critical role of EVs in reducing the carbon footprint of the transportation sector, this agreement is aligned with our approach to responsible sourcing and supply chain management.”

Jeff Morrison, GM vice president, Global Purchasing and Supply Chain

GM and Glencore did not disclose the duration of the sourcing agreement or its value. Cobalt is a rare metal that makes up only 0.001% of the earth’s crust. Known for its heat-resistant properties, it is added to lithium-ion battery cathodes to improve energy density and battery longevity.

New York State is getting 38 MW of community bifacial solar farms

Boston-based solar company ClearPath Energy and Maitland, Florida-based Castillo Engineering, a solar engineering firm, are building six community bifacial solar farms in New York State.

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Ranging from 4.5 megawatts (MW) to 7.5 MW in size, the six solar farms are currently in late stages of construction in central New York State, and some are already mechanically completed. All six projects are scheduled to be operational in the second quarter of 2022.

Dr. David Su, Ph.D. — CEO & Co-Founder, Atmosic — “Re-Architecting” Wireless & Internet-Of-Things

“Re-Architecting” Low Energy Wireless & IoT — Dr. David Su, Ph.D. 0, CEO & Co-Founder, Atmosic

Dr. David Su, Ph.D. (https://atmosic.com/company/leadership/) is CEO and Co-Founder of Atmosic, a fascinating company that is “re-architecting” wireless connectivity solutions from the ground up to radically reduce Internet of Things (IoT) device dependence on batteries, aiming to make batteries last forever and the Internet of Things battery free – thus breaking the power barrier to widespread IoT adoption.

Dr. Su brings to Atmosic over 30 years of engineering expertise with an extensive wireless background, as his past teams’ radio designs have brought billions of successful devices to market. He was on the early engineering team at Atheros, as VP Analog/RF Engineering, and VP Engineering with Qualcomm following the 2011 acquisition of Atheros. He was also at HP for several years.

Dr. Su earned a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) and Master of Engineering (MEng) in Electrical Engineering, from University of Tennessee, a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University, and has been a Consulting Professor of Electrical Engineering at Stanford. He is an Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Fellow.

NREL Researchers Plot Energy Storage Under Our Feet

Oil and gas wells no longer in use could be the answer.

NREL researchers Chad Augustine (left) and David Young, along with former colleague Henry Johnston, have been examining the idea of using depleted oil and gas wells as a reservoir for the storage of natural gas. The gas can then be released, as needed, to spin a turbine and generate electricity. Photo by Werner Slocum, NREL.

Chad Augustine and his colleagues at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) see opportunity where others might simply see a hole in the ground.

“It can’t just be any hole in the ground,” explained Augustine, a researcher with NREL’s geothermal research group.

“Geogrid” helps cut home energy bills to just $1 per month

Earth natural source of heat to warm the house.

These are typically powered by natural gas or electricity, which is usually generated by gas or another fossil fuel, causing a significant share of the nation’s carbon emissions.

Geothermal energy: While the temperature on Earth’s surface varies wildly with the weather, seasons, and location, that’s not the case below the surface. Dig about 10 feet down almost everywhere, and the temperature will be about 54 degrees Fahrenheit. Drill farther down, and it gets even warmer.

All 200 houses in Austin’s Whisper Valley development are equipped with geothermal heat pumps that take advantage of Earth’s consistent below-ground temperature to provide heat in the winter and cool air in the summer, eliminating the need for fossil fuel-powered systems.

Revolutionary DNA Nanotechnology Speeds Up Development of Vaccines

Revolutionary tool will meet future pandemics with accelerated response.

A new tool speeds up development of vaccines and other pharmaceutical products by more than one million times while minimizing costs.

In search of pharmaceutical agents such as new vaccines, industry will routinely scan thousands of related candidate molecules. A novel technique allows this to take place on the nano scale, minimizing use of materials and energy. The work is published in the prestigious journal Nature Chemistry.

Rooftop PV to reduce cooling demand of uninsulated buildings

The research project took place during the heating period spanning November 2021 to April 2021 and the cooling period from May 2021 to October 2021. The PV system was designed to cover 4.9% of the roof surface area. The total installed power of the building was 480 kW.

Through their simulation, the scientists found that the shade effect of PV panels may reduce the building’s cooling demand by 10.87%, which means a lower power consumption of 136.6 kWh for the cooling months. “Conversely, PV panels increased the heating load in the winter by 3.8%, which means that the rise in heating loads in heating months was 175.3%,” they also explained. “A rooftop PV system provides a greater understanding of the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) energy demand variance in buildings which is critical in modern architecture.

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