Tag Archives: nanotechnology
Fuel Cells and the Carbon Nanotube Revolution
Fuel cells are beneficial because they have a higher energy efficiency rating. They are 40 to 60% energy efficient and about 85% energy efficient in cells that can recycle released heat. To compare, the typical internal combustion engine of a car is about 25% energy efficient. They are compact and lightweight, with no major moving [...]
The Solar Elevator Has Arrived
The last place you want to be when the power goes out is stuck in an elevator, and although you’ve probably never thought about it, wouldn’t it be much safer if it was powered by renewable energy? Schindler, one of the biggest manufacturers of elevators, is marketing a solar-powered elevator starting this year. Drawing power from roof-top [...]
The Era of Nanoscale Chip Wiring
This TEM image taken at Applied Materials’ Maydan Technology Center shows a series of 20nm-wide trenches in cross section. These tiny structures – about 1/5000th of the diameter of an average human hair – are similar to the interconnects used to wire the billions of transistors in next-generation microchips. You can see that each trench [...]
UConn Professor Uses Nanotech for 70% Efficient Solar Cell
While current solar energy technology, which is usually based on semiconductor technology made of silicon or gallium oxide functions at 20 percent efficiency on the high end, a University of Connecticut professor is working on a new technology that could harvest 70 percent of the sun’s electromagnetic radiation. The technology uses nanosized antennas. Working with [...]
The Future of Eco Building Materials
Designing and building an eco house, or renovating your property to make it more energy efficient is a great way to cut down on bills, and not to mention great fun! More and more people are looking to build their own property today, and the number renovating in an effort to save in the long term is [...]
Solar + Nanotechnolgy: The Future of Energy
One of our Solar Energy World Facebook fans requested a blog post about solar power and nanotechnology. These two technologies combined could pave the way for even more efficient and cost effective solar power generation in the future. This post will give an overview of the concept of nanotechnology, and the effect that it may [...]
University of Albany Grabs $20M for Next-Gen PV Manufacturing Equipment
Under a new partnership with the U.S. Photovoltaic Consortium (PVMC) and Ceres Technologies the University of Albany’s College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering’s Albany NanoTech Complex CNSE will work towards developing the next generation of PV manufacturing equipment. The $20 million is supported partly by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) SunShot Initiative. But it’s [...]
Quantum Dot Solar Breakthrough at University of Toronto
Quantum dots (also known as nanocrystals) have certain electronic properties, which we can use to convert photons (light particles) into electricity in much the same way as with traditional solar cells. Quantum dot solar cells films, are usually built up by much more inexpensive material if compared to crystalline- or thin film silicon, which is [...]
Graphene That Redefines Electric Current
A new joint innovation by the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) and the University of Cambridge could pave the way for redefining the ampere in terms of fundamental constants of physics. The world’s first graphene single-electron pump (SEP), described in Nature Nanotechnology, provides the speed of electron flow needed to create a new standard for electrical current [...]