Lifeboat Foundation

As potential alternatives to lithium-ion batteries, rechargeable calcium (Ca) metal batteries offer advantageous features such as high energy density, cost-effectiveness, and natural elemental abundance. Its properties are also thought to help accelerate ion transport and diffusion in electrolytes and cathode materials, giving it an edge over other lithium-ion battery alternatives such as magnesium and zinc.

However, many challenges impede the development of practical Ca metal batteries. The challenges include the lack of an efficient electrolyte and the absence of cathode materials with sufficient Ca²⁺ storage capabilities.

Now, Tohoku University researchers have developed a prototype calcium metal rechargeable battery capable of 500 cycles of repeated charge-discharge – the benchmark for practical use.

Excitations in solids can also be represented mathematically as quasiparticles; for example, lattice vibrations that increase with temperature can be well described as phonons. Mathematically, also quasiparticles can be described that have never been observed in a material before. If such “theoretical” quasiparticles have interesting talents, then it is worth taking a closer look. Take fractons, for example.

Fractons are fractions of spin excitations and are not allowed to possess kinetic energy. As a consequence, they are completely stationary and immobile. This makes fractons new candidates for perfectly secure information storage. Especially since they can be moved under special conditions, namely piggyback on another quasiparticle.

“Fractons have emerged from a mathematical extension of quantum electrodynamics, in which electric fields are treated not as vectors but as tensors—completely detached from real materials,” explains Prof. Dr. Johannes Reuther, theoretical physicist at the Freie Universität Berlin and at HZB.

Single electrons stay stationary in superconductors with “flat-band” electronic structures, which could lead to low-energy-consumption devices made from such materials.

In 2018, researchers discovered that two layers of graphene, stacked and twisted at a specific angle, could exhibit superconductivity. Theorists have determined that the electronic structure of such a twisted material approximately resembles a “flat band,” which means that the energy of the materials’ free electrons remains constant regardless of the electrons’ momenta. This phenomenon inspired a flurry of work on systems that exhibit flat-band superconductivity. However, most of the research has focused on how such systems behave under equilibrium conditions. Now Päivi Törmä of Aalto University in Finland and her colleagues have probed the behavior of superconducting flat-band systems under nonequilibrium conditions [1]. The findings could help in the design of superconducting devices with low energy consumption.

Törmä and her colleagues considered an idealized flat-band material subjected to an applied voltage, making it a nonequilibrium system. Their predictions indicate that in this nonequilibrium system the paired and unpaired electrons follow the same behavior patterns as those in an equilibrium system: unpaired electrons form stationary quasiparticles and paired electrons flow with zero resistance. Additionally, in both types of systems the flat band helps the electrons form the bound pairs required for superconductivity.

Biden’s energy policy is paying off big time.

SEOUL, May 26 (Reuters) — South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Group and LG Energy Solution Ltd (LGES) (373220.KS) on Friday said they will build a $4.3 billion electric vehicle (EV) battery plant in the United States amid a push to take advantage of tax credits.

Manufacturers must adhere to new U.S. sourcing requirements for EV battery components and critical minerals so that buyers of their vehicles can qualify for up to $7,500 in tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).

Continue reading “Hyundai Motor Group, LG Energy to build $4.3 billion EV battery plant in US” »

Researchers from the UK and China developed a greener battery than the lithium-ion alternative.

It is fireproof and produces 2,500 fewer tonnes of CO₂ in comparison to traditional buildings.

Singapore is now home to the largest wooden building in Asia. Named after the Greek goddess of Earth, Gaia is a 6-story structure inside the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore. Students and the Nanyang Business School faculty will use the 43,500m square-meter facility.

Continue reading “Gaia: Asia’s largest wooden building sets new sustainable standard in Singapore” »

Many investors worry about the future of Berkshire Hathaway after its legendary CEO Warren Buffett is gone, but most of the conglomerate’s companies have already made the transition to reporting to the man who will eventually replace the 92-year-old.

Buffett himself and executives at Berkshire Hathaway companies like See’s Candy and Dairy Queen say they don’t have any qualms about Vice Chairman Greg Abel’s ability to lead the conglomerate. Abel already oversees all of Berkshire’s noninsurance businesses. So the main parts of the CEO job he’s not already doing are overseeing the insurance side of the company and deciding how to invest Berkshire’s nearly $131 billion in cash.

Buffett reassured investors at Saturday’s annual meeting that he believes Abel is the right man for the job and that he does know how to allocate capital following the same model Buffett uses even if he’s not making those spending decisions now. Plus, Abel did help oversee a number of large acquisitions at Berkshire’s utility unit that he led from 2008 until 2018, including the purchases of NV Energy in Nevada for $5.6 billion and Canadian power transmission firm Altalink for nearly $3 billion.

Wireless power would be worth the hype if it were widespread — modern life is burdened by a tangle of power cables and an endless hunt for plugs. But despite its potential, wireless power technology is still limited by range.

But Ericsson and PowerLight Technologies have made one dramatic form of wireless power, called optical beaming, work in a proof-of-concept experiment. Their demonstration showed that laser delivery of power to a portable 5G base station could be just around the corner.

The promise of wireless power: Wireless power is straight out of a sci-fi film: electrical power transmitted from place to place through a vacuum or the air. There is no need for wires, poles, outlets, or those pesky USB cubes, which are always lost when you need them most.

CATL, a Chinese battery manufacturer, has created a condensed battery that it says could help power electric aircraft while meeting the required safety and energy standards.

The company claims the battery’s energy density is 500 watt-hours per kilogram, making it much more robust than it looks. This means that the battery can push out more power from a lighter component than the current options.

The belief is that condensed batteries will open the door to improved power systems for both electric cars and even the aviation field. Finding more efficient ways to handle power generation while also remaining lightweight is essential for both these fields, especially as electric cars try to offer longer ranges.