World’s First Bio-Circular Data Centre
French data centre company, Data4, says its new project will create a world-first way of reusing data centre heat and captured CO2 to grow algae which can then be used to power other data centres and create bioproducts. Why? The R&D project, involving Data4 working with the University of Paris-Saclay, is an attempt to tackle […]
First For Energy-Saving Magnetic Levitation Train
Italian firm IronLev has claimed to have completed the first-ever magnetic levitation (maglev) test on an existing train track. Energy Saving Potential The use of maglev technology for trains is particularly valuable because, if scaled up, it has the potential to reduce costs and energy usage as the industry seeks more efficient systems. This is […]
How Cheese Helped Extract Gold From E-Waste
ETH Zurich researchers have reported discovering an effective method for recovering gold from e-waste with the help of byproducts from the cheesemaking process. Protein Fibre Sponge The group of researchers, led by ETH Professor Mezzenga, have reported using a sponge made from a protein matrix (a cheesemaking byproduct) to extract gold from e-waste. The protein […]
New £4 Billion EV Battery Factory in Somerset
Tata Group’s global battery business ‘Agratas’ has confirmed previous announcements that it will invest £4bn in a brownfield site near Bridgwater in Somerset to make it the UK’s biggest electric vehicle (EV) battery manufacturing facility. Somerset To Be Centre Of UK’s Green Energy Revolution Somerset Council has reported that the Agratas factory should create up […]
‘Gasification’ of Waste Tea Powers Factories
The ‘gasification’ of waste tea prunings is being used to both provide free energy for factories in Kenya and to decarbonise the tea sector. Gasification UK-based waste-to-energy company Compact Syngas Solutions (CSS) has developed a ‘gasification’ process which can convert biomass and other feedstocks into synthesis gas (syngas), which can be used to generate heat […]
Dirt-Powered ‘Forever’ Fuel Cell
Researchers at Northwestern University in the US have created a fuel cell that harvests energy from microbes living in soil so that it can potentially last forever (or as long as there are soil microbes). Why? As Bill Yen (who led the research) suggests, the value may lie in its ability to supply power to […]
Promising Lithium Breakthrough For EV Market
Stanford researchers have discovered a simple way to boost the range of lithium metal batteries to twice the range of conventional lithium-ion batteries which could provide a massive boost to the EV market. Lithium-Ion Batteries Rechargeable lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are currently used in a wide array of electronic devices, including smartphones, laptops, tablets, power tools, […]
First 3D Metal Printer In Space
With the world’s first metal 3D printer being sent to the International Space Station (ISS), we look at what impact being able to print metal parts in space could have on space-travel plus potential environmental considerations and more. 3D Metal Printer Although the ISS already has several plastic 3D printers on board, the new Airbus-produced […]
Data-Centres Using One-Third Of Ireland’s Electricity By 2026
A report from the International Energy Agency (IEA) forecasts that almost one-third of electricity demand in Ireland is expected to come from data-centres by 2026. Doubling Of Electricity Demand The IEA’s ‘Electricity 2024 – Analysis and forecast to 2026’ highlights how having one of the lowest corporate tax rates in the EU (12.5 per cent) […]
Google’s AI Discovers 380,000 New Materials
A new AI tool called GNoME from Google’s DeepMind artificial intelligence lab has reportedly discovered and contributed nearly 380,000 new compounds to the Materials Project, the open-access database founded at the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab). GNoME The Graph Networks for Materials Exploration (GNoME), is an AI-powered deep learning tool and […]
Green BT Street Cabinets To Become EV Charging Points
In line with the government’s aim to increase the number of electric vehicle (EV) charging points from 50,000 to 300,000 by 2030, the BT Group has announced that it will be repurposing its old, green street cabinets to EV charging points. 60,000 New EV Charging Points The move, as part of a pilot scheme beginning […]
Map Shows UK Areas Under Water By 2050
An online map from non-profit climate science organisation ‘Climate Central’ shows which areas of the UK could be underwater due to climate change by 2050. Sea Level Rise As highlighted in a 2021 report by Benjamin H Strauss et al, if a high emissions scenario raised global temperatures by 4 ∘C warming, this could produce […]