Alternative Fuels

Briefs: Energy

Nature-Inspired Green Energy Technology

A new design enables artificial photosynthesis to generate fuel that can power homes and vehicles.

Facility Focus: Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Facility Focus: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Rensselaer Engineering focuses on solving the “grand challenges” facing humanity.

Briefs: Software

Open-Source Software Analyzes Economics of Biofuels and Bioproducts

This fast, flexible tool allows researchers to quickly compare and prioritize strategies for converting biomass to fuels and products.

Blog: Transportation

Super-Porous Material Gives Hydrogen-Powered Vehicles a Boost

A team at Northwestern University is developing a material so porous that if you were able to unfold a gram of it, you could go farther than a football field.

Briefs: Motion Control

Maximizing Safety in Advanced Battery Systems

Fuse devices enable circuit safety in high-power applications, such as motion control and alternative energy generation, in addition to electric vehicles.

Briefs: Green Design & Manufacturing

Catalysis Approach Reduces Carbon Dioxide to Methane

This approach is a cost-effective way to convert carbon dioxide gas into methane.

Briefs: Energy

Power System for Hybrid Heavy-Duty Trucks

Electric motors and gas-alcohol engines could slash pollution levels and greenhouse gases from long-haul trucks.

Briefs: Sensors/Data Acquisition

In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU): Methylotrophic Microorganisms Expressing Soluble Methane Monooxygenase Proteins

This technology enables methane metabolism by yeast.

NASA Spinoff: Energy

Carbon Capture Process Makes Sustainable Oil

Life support research for astronauts enabled a solution to one aspect of climate change.

Q&A: Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Q&A: A Circulatory System for Robots

Robert F. Shepherd is Associate Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY. He is leading a team exploring the use of hydraulic fluids in soft robots to also...

Blog: Energy

How to Generate Electricity — From Rust

Scientists from Caltech and Northwestern University have found a way to generate electricity by combining saltwater with one of life's more undesirable compounds: rust.

Blog: Materials

Answering Your Questions: What Are My Lithium-Ion Battery Inspection Options?

Our readers ask: How do you know that you have the right anode? How can you inspect the electrolyte or electrode material?

Briefs: Energy

Fuel Cell Technology Runs on Solid Carbon

Whereas hydrogen fuel cells (e.g., proton exchange membrane (PEM) and other fuel cells) generate electricity from the chemical reaction between pure hydrogen and oxygen, direct carbon fuel cells...

Briefs: Electronics & Computers

Thin-Film System Converts Heat from Electronics into Energy

Nearly 70 percent of the energy produced in the United States each year is wasted as heat. Much of that heat is less than 100 °C and emanates from things like computers, cars, or...

News: Automotive

Engineers Develop Concept for Hybrid Heavy-Duty Trucks

Heavy-duty trucks, such as the 18-wheelers that transport many of the world's goods from farm or factory to market, are virtually all powered by diesel engines. They account for a...

News: Sensors/Data Acquisition

Next-Generation, Low-Cost Stop Sign Improves Driver Safety

It's dark on the back road as a motorist speeds toward the intersection. Up ahead, the stop sign blends with the night and in seconds a deadly crash occurs. According to the U.S....

INSIDER: Automotive

Clean Fuel Cells Could Be Cheap Enough to Replace Gas Engines in Vehicles

Advancements in zero-emission fuel cells could make the technology cheap enough to replace traditional gasoline engines in vehicles, according to researchers at...

Briefs: Energy

One-Pot Bioconversion of Distiller’s Grains to Advanced Biofuels

Increase in bioethanol production throughout the US has led to an increase in the process coproduct — distiller’s grains with solubles (DGS). DGS can be used to feed...

Blog: Energy

High-Speed Jet Mixer Efficiently Turns Algae into Fuel

A new technology may lead to a more mainstream use of algal biofuels.

INSIDER: Materials

New fuel cell concept brings biological design to better electricity generation

Fuel cells generate electricity directly from hydrogen and oxygen and produce only water vapor as emissions. But most fuel cells are too expensive,...

INSIDER: Energy

Solar Cell Does Double Duty for Renewable Energy

In the quest for abundant, renewable alternatives to fossil fuels, scientists have sought to harvest the sun’s energy through “water splitting,” an artificial photosynthesis...

Blog: Energy

From Trash to Treasure: How to Convert ‘Fatberg’ Waste into Biofuel

Have you heard of "fatbergs?" Researcher Asha Srinivasan explains how her team is turning masses of fat, oil, and grease into biofuel.

INSIDER: Energy

EV Charging in Cold Temperatures Could Pose Challenges for Drivers

New research from Idaho National Laboratory suggests that electric vehicle drivers could face longer charging times when temperatures drop. The reason: cold...

Facility Focus: Energy

National Renewable Energy Laboratory

In 1977, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL, Golden, CO) started as the Solar Energy Research Institute (SERI), spurred by national concern during the 1973 oil embargo that caused long...

Briefs: Green Design & Manufacturing

Grid Friendly™ Charger Controller

Electric vehicles are growing in popularity, and while they represent a cleaner alternative to fossil-fueled vehicles, their increased use may stress the grid if this growing load is left unmanaged. A need...