Illinois

US scientists studied a zinc-manganese dioxide battery and found that hydrogen, rather than zinc-ions, move back into the manganese cathode, damaging its structure. The researchers will be able to use this knowledge to pursue new ways to improve its performance.

Module price falls driven by the energy demand slump and Chinese oversupply may reverse at the end of the year, Germany appears immune to the Covid rooftop curse and emergency funding has been offered up to EU businesses affected by the crisis.

Researchers have found strong anodic activity in disordered particles of magnesium chromium oxide. Unlike conventional, ordered nanocrystals, the disordered particles reportedly achieved reversible magnesium extraction and insertion.

Battery innovations started to come thick and fast this quarter as the hunt for alternatives to lithium-ion intensified and the latest slew of solar tenders indicated the relentless pressure on solar power generation costs was showing no sign of abating.

The solar project, southeast of Seville, will power Amazon Web Services data centers and logistics locations, and is expected to start generating next year. The company has launched its Climate Pledge with the aim of complying with the Paris Agreement 10 years early by neutralizing carbon emissions by 2040, and of operating with 80% renewable energy by 2024 and 100% renewable energy by 2030.

Scientists at the United States’ Argonne National Laboratory worked with a class of electrolyte materials they say could greatly improve the performance of lithium-sulfur batteries. The group has devised a selection rule which it says will help researchers select the most suitable electrolyte materials for different battery systems.

Researchers in Chicago have developed a world first fully rechargeable lithium-carbon dioxide battery, an achievement they claim could pave the way for the use of the greenhouse gas in advanced energy storage systems.

Researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory, working with Cambridge University, programmed a ‘supercomputer’ to narrow down a list of almost 10,000 materials with the potential to be used in dye-sensitized solar cells to just five that fit their parameters for high performance, low cost and low environmental impact.

Chicago may be the largest city in the U.S. to commit to 100% renewable energy and has set a 2035 target date. The famous city’s long association with nuclear power says a lot about the future of clean energy Statesside.

While U.S. senators Ed Markey and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez introduce a resolution for a clean energy package, legislation has been tabled in six states aiming to implement 80-100% clean energy by 2050 or earlier.