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  • Rendering of a carbon superstructure designed into a flower.

    Clean energy carbon superstructures

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 20, 2024

    Further research on versatile carbon superstructures constructed at nanoscale could revolutionize energy solutions and clean up carbon's image. Burning carbon may no longer be viewed as the popular energy source, but there is still plenty of work to be done in establishing all that sustainably generated power – work that carbon, by its nature, is well-suited to perform. Superstructured carbons (SSCs) are a unique category of cutting-edge nanomaterial that is fast moving out o...

  • A natural gas flame burning above an exposed vent in the outdoors.

    Natural H2 may be prolific and accessible

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 20, 2024

    Hydrogen discovered in Albanian mine provides clues on where to find massive hydrogen flows. The world's largest natural flow of highly pure hydrogen gas has been quietly seeping through a nondescript pool deep within an Albanian chromium mine. Researchers reported the study in a paper published in the journal Science, noting that the investigation of similar deposits may reveal more major findings of this clean-burning resource across the globe. Naturally occurring hydrogen a...

  • Closeup of human eye with augmented reality contact lens.

    Smart contact lenses for augmented reality

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 20, 2024

    New light-bending nanomaterials may turn science fiction into science fact across AI computing, medical, and entertainment fields. Konstantin Novoselov, co-discoverer of graphene and 2010 Nobel laureate, is among a group of scientists behind a breakthrough that could open the way for even more revolutionary nanomaterial applications similar to graphene, from smart contact lenses to rapid disease detection. Although scientists had long understood that crystal graphene existed,...

  • Two angles of the Porsche Macan EV.

    Electric Porsches to be unveiled at SXSW

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 19, 2024

    The all-electric Taycan and Macan will take center stage at technology, arts, and culture festival in Austin, Texas. Returning to Austin for its third year at South by Southwest arts and tech festival, Porsche will spotlight three new all-electric options – the Taycan Turbo S, Macan 4 and Macan Turbo. Porsche is committed to increasing the sales of electric vehicles, stating that it expects to make more than 80% of its sales EVs by 2030. These well-publicized goals by such a...

  • Semi-truck cab painted with Metallica’s '72 season album-inspired graphics.

    A Metallica catalyst for Iveco fuel cells

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 18, 2024

    Iconic heavy metal band will use electric trucks produced by Italian automaker on European leg of 2024 tour. In what may be the perfect metaphor for the heavy metal needed as a catalyst for hydrogen fuel cells, Italian automaker Iveco is providing electric and natural gas trucks and busses to transport crew and gear during the European leg of Metallica's M72 World Tour. Representing the environmental and social values embraced by both the legendary heavy metal rock band and...

  • 100-microwatt nuclear battery next to a Wu Jiao five-cent coin.

    Betavolt unveils 50-year atomic battery

    A.J. Roan, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 13, 2024

    Betavolt reveals battery of atomic proportions, may be solution to long-form energy storage on a micro-scale Exploring alternate battery chemistries, Beijing-based Betavolt has unveiled a new battery that it claims can generate electricity for at least 50 years without the need for recharging or maintenance. The catch – they are nuclear-powered, with diamond semiconductors, and only generate around 100 Microwatts at a size less than a five Jiao coin, which is about 25 m...

  • Rendering of blue and orange grid sandwiching carbon molecules.

    Geothermal for cheap U.S. CO2 capture

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 13, 2024

    Combining carbon-free energy with permanent storage of CO2 creates a more cost-effective self-sustaining loop. A research team at Ohio State University (OSU) has proposed the combination of carbon capture with geothermal energy in a cheap, novel method that could make capturing carbon dioxide from the air a viable option. Their system recycles some of the captured CO2 to transport geothermal energy in a closed loop that can make large-scale direct air capture cheaper and more...

  • Illustration of a futuristic building with honeycomb openings in a grassy field.

    The cost of catching runaway CO2 emissions

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 13, 2024

    Startup Clairity raises $6.75 million to scale carbon removal system, bringing active carbon capture closer to cheaper, universally adoptable solutions California-based climate tech startup Clairity Technology announced that it has raised $6.75 million to scale its energy-efficient and cost-effective direct air capture (DAC) solution for removing dilute CO2. DAC technology is a key carbon removal option in the transition to a net-zero energy system that works by extracting...

  • A map graphic designed to show connections between Canadian regions.

    Canada's call for clean mining innovations

    A.J. Roan, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 13, 2024

    Mining Innovation Commercialization Accelerator network issues third round of pan-Canadian call for proposals Issuing its third pan-Canadian call for proposals from innovative clean-tech companies for the mining industry, the Mining Innovation Commercialization Accelerator (MICA) network, supported by the Government of Canada, hopes to once again drive the nationwide commodity toward modernization through efficiency and sustainability. Created in 2021 through a strategic C$40...

  • Lead author Tianyi Ma working with assistant on water batteries.

    Water Batteries: cheap, green, no fire

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 12, 2024

    A little rust might make batteries safer, easier to recycle, and a potential competitor to lithium-ion. By using water in place of the hazardous chemical electrolytes used in commercial batteries, an international team of scientists hailing from Australia to China has proposed a water-based battery technology, a safer and greener alternative to chemical-laden batteries marketed today. Lithium-ion batteries, used in everything from laptops and phones to electric vehicles,...

  • Artist's rendering of an infinity symbol made up of batteries.

    A one-stop, closed-loop U.S. battery supply

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 12, 2024

    With the money, permits and resources locked in, US Strategic Metals has positioned itself as a desperately needed sustainable domestic battery metals platform Intent on repairing the widening gap representing a nonexistent American electric battery industry, US Strategic Metals (USSM) has transformed from humble beginnings as a mine site cleanup and reclamation business to a one-stop green battery metals platform taking the first steps toward a secure domestic closed-loop...

  • A car with an EV plug showing graphics indicating fast charge.

    Solid-state battery hits fast-charge goal

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 9, 2024

    Ampcera's solid-state battery tech surpasses DOE fast charging goal. Due to mounting charge anxiety over limited at-home charging options and prolonged urban charging station wait times, the United States Advanced Battery Consortium and U.S. Department of Energy have both set commercial manufacturers a goal of 80% battery ultrafast charge in 15 minutes – which Ampcera's all-solid-state (ASSB) battery tech has just blown past. Last year, Ampcera was awarded a $2.1 million g...

  • SK Siltron silicon carbide wafers lined up neatly in a package.

    DOE offers $544M to semiconductor company

    A.J. Roan, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 9, 2024

    Department of Energy hopes to build a more secure and resilient semiconductor supply chain for EV manufacturing in the U.S. Once again investing in the future of secure, domestic manufacturing, the U.S. Department of Energy, through its Loan Programs Office (LPO) has conditionally committed to loan SK Siltron CSS, LLC $544 million to expand American production of high-quality silicon carbide (SiC) wafers for electric vehicles. This more than half-a-billion-dollar loan toward...

  • Computer generated graphic depicting the metrics of an EV battery being charged.

    Scientists: EV battery range can double

    Rose Ragsdale, For Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 9, 2024

    Stanford researchers identify low-cost method to extend the life of lithium-metal batteries and increase range of EVs by up to 600 miles. Electric vehicles may soon run on lithium-metal (Li-metal) batteries with ranges that could double the capacity of batteries currently used by EV manufacturers, according to a recent study completed by Stanford University researchers. The scientists published an article about their discovery, "Recovery of isolated lithium through discharged...

  • Team of researchers presenting carbon graphics in a curve-screened theater.

    Waste carbon into battery-grade graphite

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 9, 2024

    A startup launched by students out of Curtin University's Accelerate program creates graphite from waste carbon. High-purity graphite is substantially sought-after for graphene production and is in heavy demand for the manufacture of lithium-ion batteries. A new technology developed through Curtin University's Accelerate program in Australia, coined RapidGraphite, transforms waste carbon into battery-grade graphite within seconds. The Accelerate program supports early-stage...

  • The western hemisphere aglow at night.

    Will your home run on enhanced geothermal?

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 6, 2024

    The Biden administration's Investing in America Agenda will fund three projects to scale enhanced geothermal systems to power the equivalent of 65 million U.S. homes. The U.S. Department of Energy has high hopes for enhanced geothermal, a process by which manmade hydrothermal power is produced by using hydraulic fracturing techniques to split rock at depths much greater than naturally occurring geothermal wells and injecting water to generate steam, subsequently driving...

  • Gloved hands holding a GMG graphene-aluminum battery pouch.

    Graphene-aluminum battery keeps it cool

    A.J. Roan, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 6, 2024

    The GMG battery maintains less than body temperature when charged and discharged over long periods, high speeds. Following its successful production of a prototype 500 milliampere-hour graphene-aluminum battery, Graphene Manufacturing Group Ltd. (GMG) continues to demonstrate the performance of its potentially game-changing batteries compared to conventional lithium-ion. This includes keeping their cool during rapid charging and discharging. Capitalizing on its proprietary...

  • Artist’s rendering of an x-ray of lungs with swirls of graphite.

    Graphene and your health

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 6, 2024

    Initial studies test graphene as an emerging biological contaminant – where microplastics and pharmaceuticals have fallen. Graphene, a truly revolutionizing nanomaterial with potential that is hard to overstate, may continue to be developed without acute risk to human health, research suggests. Science has discovered an emergence of contaminants as unanticipated drawbacks to technological development – notably microplastics and pharmaceuticals that have made their way int...

  • DexMat CEO Bryan Hassin holds a roughly one-foot section of Galvorn cable.

    DOE backs Galvorn heat exchanger tech

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 6, 2024

    Aims to curb industrial heat's CO2 footprint, which is more than cars and planes combined. Climate tech company DexMat and Rice University have received $1.5 million in U.S. Department of Energy funding on a project to replace aluminum or copper fins in heat exchangers with a thermal conductivity-enhanced version of DexMat's flagship product, Galvorn – a high-performance, carbon nanomaterial that is stronger than steel, lighter than aluminum, and as conductive as copper. T...

  • A microscopic picture of the supports built to hold MIT’s metamaterial.

    MIT prints particle-proof metamaterial

    A.J. Roan, Metal Tech News|Updated Feb 27, 2024

    Supersonic experiments help identify atomic resilience in metamaterials for spacecraft, vehicles, helmets, or other objects. In a "sound-breaking" study conducted by engineers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a novel method has been unveiled for rapidly assessing the resilience of metamaterials and their architectures by exposure to supersonic impacts, positioning research toward possible nanoscale particle-proof protective hulls and segments that can withstand...

  • Morpheus Space FEEP thrusters on display.

    Morpheus' liquid metal ion thruster

    A.J. Roan, Metal Tech News|Updated Feb 21, 2024

    Startup sets new standard for orbital industry with scalable, modular thrusters that come with a suite of support tech for seamless operation. Supporting the dreams of countless space-venturing hopefuls, like its namesake, Morpheus Space Inc. has unveiled a potentially game-changing liquid metal ion propulsion system that they believe will chart a path to the stars for smaller companies and organizations to explore the infinite possibilities of endless space. As orbital capabi...

  • A sunset paints the sky orange behind large offshore wind turbines.

    Wind energy lives up to its potential

    Rose Ragsdale, For Metal Tech News|Updated Feb 21, 2024

    Spurred by government and private incentives, innovators and engineers overcome obstacles to proliferation of green technology. Wind energy – long considered by many, including some environmentalists, as a viable alternative to fossil fuels – is living up to its promise, thanks to government initiatives and technological innovations. Despite the technology's promise to deliver clean and cheap energy that reduces the United States' dependence on fossil fuels with minimal imp...

  • Artist’s rendering representing layers of tape, graphene and substrate.

    Transferring nanomaterials with tape

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Feb 21, 2024

    Polymer tape's sticky properties change when irradiated with UV light. The discovery of graphene – a material with an ever-increasing number of uses – came from the humblest of beginnings: a hunk of graphite, and Scotch tape. Now, tape is once again taking center stage as an unlikely hero of science and technology as researchers from Japan have developed an adhesive with stickiness properties that can be programmed by UV light. Nanomaterials like graphene, which are mere ato...

  • Artist’s rendering of a flying vehicle, solar and wind power.

    Hawaii says aloha to greener energy grid

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Feb 16, 2024

    The Kapolei Energy Storage (KES) facility run by Plus Power has begun operations in Oahu, Hawaii, touted as the most advanced grid-scale standalone battery energy storage system in the world. The facility replaces a defunct coal power plant and will support roughly one-fifth of the population's energy needs, including moderating renewables, reducing electricity bills, and protecting against blackouts. Hawaii's infamous island prices for imported goods were never so alarmingly...

  • Illustration of defunct H2 fueling station with “Sorry we’re closed” sign.

    Are hydrogen cars dead in the water?

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Feb 13, 2024

    H2 infrastructure - Nikola builds out, Shell pulls back, and passenger cars lag heavy vehicles. Shell's withdrawal from passenger-vehicle hydrogen refueling operations has ignited debates on the developing industry's overall timing and viability. However, automakers and governments are still backing hydrogen fuel cells due to growing concerns about the slow pace and environmental expense of new critical mineral mines needed for lithium-ion batteries currently powering most...

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