Thermoelectrics

Magazine Archives

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Solar Power for Carbon Capture

A solar thermal device mimics photosynthesis to convert carbon dioxide emissions into a clean energy resource.

Sapphire Fiber Could Enable Cleaner Energy and Air-Travel

Researchers at Oxford University have used a sapphire optical fiber – a thread of industrially grown sapphire less than half a millimeter thick – that can withstand...

Thermomagnetic Generators Convert Waste Heat into Electrical Power

Many technical processes only use part of the energy consumed. The remaining fraction leaves the system in the form of waste heat. Frequently, this heat is released into the...

Turning Thermal Energy into Electricity

Applications include power and energy, communications, and sensors.

Woven Nanotube Fibers Turn Heat into Power

Invisibly small nanotubes aligned as fibers and sewn into fabrics can turn heat from the Sun or other sources into energy.

Optical Coating Exhibits the Same Color in Reflection and Transmission

Fano Resonance Optical Coatings can both transmit and reflect the same color simultaneously.

Wearable Device Transforms the Human Body into a Biological Battery

The device is stretchy enough to wear like a ring, a bracelet, or any other accessory that touches the skin.

Thermochromic Photovoltaic Windows

The windows reduce the need for air conditioning and simultaneously generate electricity.

Q&A: Self-Healing Polymers Create Water-Resistant Coatings

Jingcheng Ma, along with a team of researchers at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, found a way to make ultra-thin water-resistant surface coatings robust enough to...

5 Ws of the Electronics-Powering Finger Wrap

The wearable device turns the touch of a finger into a source of power for small electronics and sensors.

2021 Create the Future Design Contest: Sustainable Technologies/Future Energy Category Winner — Multifunctional Bionanocomposite Fruit Coatings

The invention could capture the potential of the edible packaging market.

Products of Tomorrow: November 2021

Nanotube fibers that turn heat to power; a NASA antenna system; and an antimicrobial coating.

Energy Harvesting Can Enable 1 Trillion Battery-Free Sensors in the IoT

A tiny investment in system capital expenditures can lead to huge rewards in reduced capital and operating expenses.

Safer, Less Expensive, Fast-Charging Aqueous Battery

A new anode for aqueous batteries uses seawater as an electrolyte.

Better Batteries for Grid-Scale Energy Storage

Molten sodium batteries have been used for many years to store energy from renewable sources, such as solar panels and wind turbines. However, commercially available molten sodium-sulfur...

Hybrid Thermoelectric Compound

The material sets the stage for new forms of electric power in the future.

Stretchable Thermoelectric Generators

The organic composite material is soft, stretchable, and has good thermoelectric properties for many wearable applications.

Reduced Heat Leakage Improves Wearable Health Device

A flexible device worn on the wrist harvests heat energy from the human body to monitor health.

Pyroelectric Sandwich Thermal Energy Harvester

The technology harvests electrical energy from waste heat sources.

Heated Facemask Filters and Inactivates Coronaviruses

The reusable mask would include a heated copper mesh powered by a battery and surrounded by insulating neoprene.

New on the Market: April 2021

Displacement sensors, metal 3D printers, shielding materials, and more.

Q&A: Electricity-Free Cooling

Professor Qiaoqiang Gan of the University at Buffalo (NY) and his team developed a unique two-in-one system that uses solar energy for simultaneously cooling and heating — without electricity.

New Wearable Device Turns the Body Into a Battery

Researchers at CU Boulder have developed a new, low-cost, wearable device that transforms the human body into a biological battery. The device is stretchy enough that you can wear it like...

Material Moves Wind Turbine Blades Toward Recyclability

The material can be recycled, making renewable energy more sustainable while lowering costs in the process.

New Materials Boost Efficiency and Stability of Optical Rectennas

The improved rectennas could operate low-power devices such as temperature sensors.

Solid-State Technology Enables Smaller, Safer Batteries

The technology is inherently safer and more energy-dense than today’s lithium-ion batteries.