Fast-growing power densities within the server racks at new data centers often generate enough heat to quickly overwhelm legacy air- and liquid-cooling methods, and managing the thermal load is becoming a constraint for the data-center infrastructure that supports AI. A…
A new manufacturing technique is helping to overcome some of the major hurdles in developing more reliable and durable all-solid-state batteries. Combining a controlled sintering step with precise passivation, researchers from Paul Scherrer Institute PSI (Villigen, Switzerland; www.psi.ch) focused on…
Much hydrogen produced via water electrolysis (“green” hydrogen) requires downstream compression for end use or storage. A new electrolyzer concept developed by Supercritical Solutions Ltd. (London; www.supercritical.solutions) produces high-pressure hydrogen using a membraneless technology. “Supercritical’s technology outputs hydrogen at pressures…
Traditional methods for making graphite involve heating premium needle coke and coal-tar pitch at temperatures above 3,000ºC in a process that requires several days of heating and cooling. A new process developed by researchers at the National Energy Technology Laboratory…
Calcining limestone (CaCO3) to produce lime (CaO) is a key industrial process for making cement, steel and chemicals, among other uses. Lime production is a target for CO2-abatement efforts because it generates a great deal of CO2 emissions, not only…
Flow batteries have been widely deployed in large-scale energy-storage applications in recent years, but the low energy density and high cost of the incumbent vanadium electrolyte limit the long-term return on investment of such systems. A new organic redox flow-battery…
Electrochemical water-treatment technologies facilitate the adsorption of ions, effectively removing contaminants such as calcium, magnesium, bromine and more. Such processes, however, are often hampered by the high costs associated with electrode regeneration and the use of ion-exchange membranes. A new…
Polystyrene (PS) is among the more difficult-to-recycle fractions of plastic waste, but could be a source of valuable aromatic petrochemicals, such as toluene. Prior approaches to convert PS to toluene have exhibited low yields and a range of products. Now,…
Ozone is seen an a safer and more environmentally friendly alternative to chlorine for water disinfection, but the efficient generation of ozone on-demand and at commercially relevant scales has been hindered by catalytic degradation problems. A team of researchers from…
Buildings lose considerable heating and cooling energy through their windows, so window coatings with low thermal conductivity would improve efficiency. However, finding insulating materials that are also transparent is a challenge. A team of researchers at the University of Colorado…