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Category: energy

Ethanol plant CO₂ can be converted into low-carbon jet fuel, study finds

Manufacturing sustainable aviation fuel with CO₂ byproducts of ethanol production could reduce carbon intensity by more than 80% compared to fossil fuels.

The CO2 released from corn during could actually be a valuable, underutilized resource for producing rather than a waste byproduct, according to a study published in the SAE International Journal of Sustainable Transportation, Energy, Environment, & Policy.

Unlike the CO₂ from or cement kilns, which requires a lot of energy to capture, fermentation to produce ethanol releases very pure streams containing 85% CO₂ by volume or higher. As the corn plants sequestered CO₂ from the air, capturing the CO₂ released from fermentation and using it as fuel would reuse CO₂ without adding more to the atmosphere.

Low-grade heat from renewable sources could be used to desalinate water

A McGill University-led research team has demonstrated the feasibility of a sustainable and cost-effective way to desalinate seawater. The method—thermally driven reverse osmosis (TDRO)—uses a piston-based system powered by low-grade heat from solar thermal, geothermal heat and other sources of renewable energy to produce fresh water.

Though previous research showed promise, this study is the first to analyze TDRO’s thermodynamic limits. The results have brought researchers closer to realizing the technology which could improve access to water and increase the sustainability of infrastructure.

“Most desalination is done by , which uses electricity to drive water through a membrane,” said Jonathan Maisonneuve, study co-author and Associate Professor of Bioresource Engineering.

Randomly aligned defects explain low thermal conductivity in some materials

QUT researchers have identified why some materials can block heat more effectively, which is a key feature for energy conversion, insulation and gas storage.

The research, published in Nature Communications, discovered a structural mechanism that explains why some materials with uneven composition exhibit exceptionally . This is a property vital for the conversion of heat into .

The first author, Siqi Liu, said the findings challenged conventional models that overlook the role of microstructural features.

Atomic Structure of Mn-Doped CoFe2O4 Nanoparticles for Metal–Air Battery Applications

We discuss the atomic structure of cobalt ferrite nanoparticles doped with Mn via an analysis based on combining atomic pair distribution functions with high energy X-ray diffraction and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy measurements. Cobalt ferrite nanoparticles are promising materials for metal–air battery applications. Cobalt ferrites, however, generally show poor electronic conductivity at ambient temperatures, which limits their bifunctional catalytic performance in oxygen electrocatalysis. Our study reveals how the introduction of Mn ions promotes the conductivity of the cobalt ferrite electrode.

Scientists Finally Peek Inside an “Impossible” Superconductor

High-pressure electron tunneling spectroscopy reveals the presence of a superconducting gap in H₃S and D₃S. Superconductors are special materials that allow electricity to flow without any resistance, making them essential for advanced technologies such as power transmission, energy storage, magnet

Dominican Republic hit with widespread power outage

A rare blackout hit the entire Dominican Republic on Tuesday, snarling traffic and paralyzing businesses in the country of nearly 11 million people.

Officials blamed a failure in the grid’s transmission system, although it wasn’t immediately clear what caused it.

Generation units in San Pedro de Macorís and the Quisqueya Power Plant shut down, triggering a cascade of failures at other transmission and generation plants, according to the Dominican Electricity Transmission Company, a decentralized state agency.

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