Tidal Energy ‘Kite’ That Can Power A Town
Swedish startup Minesto has developed a subsea ‘kite’ style mini power plant that generates renewable energy from tidal streams and ocean currents. How It Works The ‘wing’ technology, described by Minesto as a kind of “subsea kite” and a “powerful, lightweight, and modular power plant” which can be made with a wingspan ranging from 4.9 – 12m and weighing […]
London Data Centres To Heat Homes
A new £36 million UK government project is to use data centre waste heat to provide heating and hot water to 10,000 new homes and 250,000 square metres of commercial space in London. Using Heat From Data Centres Data centres in our digital society and cloud-based business world now play a crucial role in supporting countless industries, […]
New AI Model Classifies Energy-Wasteful Homes
A new deep-learning AI algorithm, developed as part of a study by the University of Cambridge, can identify and classify ‘Hard to Decarbonise’ houses (energy-wasting homes) with 90 per cent accuracy. What Are ‘Hard-to-Decarbonise’ Houses? Hard-to-Decarbonise (HtD) houses/buildings are really a subset of residential structures that present unique challenges in reducing carbon emissions due to […]
Fossil Fuels Peak as Solar & Wind Rise
Independent energy thinktank Ember’s Global Electricity Review 2023 reports that fossil fuel power generation has peaked for the half the world and that clean energy sources now account for nearly 40 per cent of the world’s electricity supply. Five Years Ago Ember’s review report, which analyses electricity data from 78 countries representing 93 percent of […]
Giant Solar Space Farm By 2035
Oxfordshire based Technology firm, Space Solar, says that giant solar panel farms could be in orbit and operational above the Earth by 2035. The Challenge There are significant energy and environmental challenges facing everyone, including the fact that global electricity demand is set to double by 2050. This, together requirements to swap fossil fuel reliance […]
AI Energy Usage As Much As The Netherlands
A study by a PhD candidate at the VU Amsterdam School of Business and Economics, Alex De Vries, warns that the AI industry could be consuming as much energy as a country the size of the Netherlands by 2027. The Impact Of AI De Vries, the founder of Digiconomist, a research company that focuses on […]
Microsoft’s Green Concrete In Data Centres
As part of its commitment to be carbon negative by 2030, Microsoft is trialling cement containing microalgae-based limestone in its data centre builds. The Issue For Microsoft The main issue for Microsoft is that it needs to decarbonise its data centre builds by reducing the amount of ‘embodied carbon’ in the concrete used to build […]
Smart 5G Street Lamps Trial
Six areas across the UK will receive funding to trial a new multi-purpose smart street lamps that house EV charging hubs and boost wireless coverage including 5G. Funding As part of The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT’s) Smart Infrastructure Pilots Programme (SIPP) to level-up digital connectivity, six councils will receive funding for the […]
‘Cobots’ To Restore Reefs
With many of the world’s coral reefs being damaged by heat and acidification, one startup has developed a system to restore reefs at scale with the help of trained AI robots.. Coral Reefs Struggling The world’s coral reefs only cover 0.2 per cent of the seafloor, but they provide a vital habitat to more than […]
Disappearing Packaging Made From Seaweed & Plants
London-based Notpla Ltd makes sustainable, biodegradable, and home compostable packaging from seaweed and plants. Naturally ‘Disappears’ Notpla Ltd, a start-up founded in 2014, manufactures different sustainable packaging solutions made from Notpla, a material made from seaweed and plants that disappears naturally. The Problem The company was started by Pierre Yves-Paslier and Rodrigo Garcia Gonzalez after […]
Offshore Wind Makes Green Renewable Hydrogen
German company Lhyfe is showing how the challenges of producing green hydrogen can be met by using offshore floating wind-to-hydrogen turbines and electrolysers. The Advantages of Hydrogen The great advantages of hydrogen as a fuel include dramatically reduced greenhouse gas emissions, it only produces water vapour as a by-product when burned, it has a high […]
Cargo Ship Sails Help Reduce Pollution
The recently launched Pyxis Ocean cargo ship uses giant foldaway ‘WindWings’ to help supplement engine power and could cut lifetime carbon emissions by 30 per cent. The Cargo Ship A Mitsubishi Corporation cargo ship is currently demonstrating the WindWings, developed by BAR Technologies and Yara Marine Technologies, during its six week-long maiden voyage from China […]