Energy

Did Volcanoes Spark First Life On Earth?

Lightning and gases from volcanic eruptions could have given rise to the first life on Earth, according to a new analysis of samples from a classic origin-of-life experiment by NASA and university researchers. The NASA-funded result is the subject of a pap ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 16 2008 - 6:24pm

New Hybrid Material Captures All Of The Energy In Sunlight- It's A Rainbow Of Solar Power

Sunlight contains the entire spectrum of colors that can be seen with the naked eye-- all the colors of the rainbow. What our eyes interpret as color are really different energy levels, or frequencies of light. Today's solar cell materials can only ca ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 16 2008 - 6:34pm

International Conference on Hydrogen Production in Oshawa, Canada (May 3-6, 2009)

Are you interested in Hydrogen Energy? Here is an opportunity to participate in a conference with your contributions on the subject. Scientists, engineers, decision makers, and policy experts are invited to attend the International Conference on Hydrogen ...

Blog Post - Hatice Cullingford - Oct 22 2008 - 10:01pm

Synthetic Fuel From Coal Gets Some New Life (Because It Can Be Cleaner)

Using more coal won't solve greenhouse gas issues but it buys time for clean energy to become cost- and energy-effective.  Our coal supply, unlike oil, will last for hundreds of years. Scientists in Italy are reporting that a new process could elimina ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 20 2008 - 8:09pm

The Downside To Alternative Energy- It Takes A Lot More Water

Do we want people to have water or cleaner energy?  As the search for new fuels intensifies, researchers in Texas report that switching to certain alternative fuels to power cars, trucks, and SUVs may require the use of much more water than conventional pe ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 20 2008 - 8:13pm

Bioethanol: Termites And Symbionts May Save Our Energy Future

If bioethanol is going to make a major contribution to our fuel supplies, we will require using biomatter a lot more efficiently than we do now- but we may be able to get some assistance from tiny insect helpers, says Michael Scharf, an assistant professor ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 21 2008 - 6:44pm

The Grass Is Sometimes Greener On The Other Side Of The Biofuels Fence

The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences' (CALS) Bioenergy Feedstock Project, now in its second year, is the only project of its kind devoted to exploring the many species of field grass that grow in the Northeast and their potential as sources fo ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 22 2008 - 12:38pm

Extreme Matter: Center Of Jupiter May Hold A Secret For Our Renewable Energy Future

Research that has provided a deeper understanding into the centre of planets could also provide the way forward in the world's quest for cleaner energy. An international team of scientists, led by the University of Oxford, working alongside researcher ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 23 2008 - 8:35am

Solar Cell Efficiency Reaches 25 Percent Efficiency, Without Changing A Thing

The University of New South Wales ARC Photovoltaic Centre of Excellence says they have set a new standard by creating the first silicon solar cell to achieve 25 percent effiency, surpassing their previous record of 24.7 percent. ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 23 2008 - 11:33am

New 'Electricity From Water' System Uses No Movable Parts

Fraunhofer researchers from Stuttgart have developed a new technology that enables the production of energy-autonomous, low-maintenance sensors.   The original application is sensors in air compression systems.  At present, those sensors are either battery ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 27 2008 - 3:15pm