Solving the problem of battery waste

The increased uptake of electric vehicles (EVs) and home batteries comes with its own environmental and sustainability problem—what to do with the batteries at the end of their lifespan?

source https://www.lifetechnology.com/blogs/life-technology-technology-news/solving-the-problem-of-battery-waste

Why including coal in a new 'capacity mechanism' will make Australia's energy crisis worse

Australia's electricity generators would be paid extra money to be available even if they don't actually generate any energy, under a new mechanism proposed by the federal government's Energy Security Board (ESB).

source https://www.lifetechnology.com/blogs/life-technology-technology-news/why-including-coal-in-a-new-capacity-mechanism-will-make-australias-energy-crisis-worse

A neural autoencoder to enhance sensory neuroprostheses

New technologies have the potential to greatly simplify the lives of humans, including those of blind individuals. One of the most promising types of tools designed to assist the blind are visual prostheses.

source https://www.lifetechnology.com/blogs/life-technology-technology-news/a-neural-autoencoder-to-enhance-sensory-neuroprostheses

Emergency-response drones to save lives in the digital skies

Uncrewed aircraft responding to fire and medical emergencies will be used to save lives—if digitalized air-traffic control can help them navigate safely in the skies over Europe.

source https://www.lifetechnology.com/blogs/life-technology-technology-news/emergency-response-drones-to-save-lives-in-the-digital-skies

Chemists pin down the cause for energy losses in high-capacity lithium-ion battery cathodes

An international team, which included Skoltech researchers and their colleagues from France, the United States, and Switzerland, found out why energy losses occur during the charge-discharge cycle in lithium-ion batteries with cathodes made from complex lithium-rich oxides of transition metals. Published in Nature Materials, the new study shows that the difference in the charge-discharge operating voltage leading to low energy efficiency is due to long-lived kinetically hindered intermediate species of nickel.

source https://www.lifetechnology.com/blogs/life-technology-technology-news/chemists-pin-down-the-cause-for-energy-losses-in-high-capacity-lithium-ion-battery-cathodes

Robotic lightning bugs take flight

Fireflies that light up dusky backyards on warm summer evenings use their luminescence for communication—to attract a mate, ward off predators or lure prey.

source https://www.lifetechnology.com/blogs/life-technology-technology-news/robotic-lightning-bugs-take-flight

Nuclear industry hopes to expand output with new reactors

The U.S. nuclear industry is generating less electricity as reactors retire, but now plant operators are hoping to nearly double their output over the next three decades, according to the industry's trade association.

source https://www.lifetechnology.com/blogs/life-technology-technology-news/nuclear-industry-hopes-to-expand-output-with-new-reactors