Many scientists believe we’re at the tipping point of our energy technology future. With the advancement of new, alternative energy sources, some are left to wonder what will happen to the energy landscape as a whole.

While nuclear power has energized much of the world over the past 50 years, the establishment of new nuclear power plants has been nonexistent in recent times in light of other alternatives such as solar and wind. Now, with California phasing out its last nuclear power plant in Diablo Canyon, many are left to wonder just what role nuclear will play in the future of energy.

A turning point

During the oil crisis of the 1970s, global conversations about the future of energy production began to hit the mainstream. If fossil fuels don’t warrant consistent dependency, how would the U.S. power future generations? The answer: nuclear.

“At that time we were thinking we’d build up these nuclear power plants everywhere and they would provide free electricity because it would just be too cheap to meter,” ECS Secretary Jim Fenton previously told ECS.

The thought was nuclear could provide such cheap and plentiful amounts of energy that not only would it be free to the consumer, but there would be an overproduction. This encouraged new research in devices such as flow batteries to store this excess energy.

But those expectations turned out to be wrong.

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Image: Ashley Christopherson/Iowa State University

Biomedical innovations have helped shape the world of modern medicine. From pacemakers to auto-dispensing medications, advances in medical technology have revolutionized the world we live in.

But what happens when some of these devices need to be removed?

That’s where “transient electronics” come in. The concept behind this new technology is that rather than removing medical devices through surgery, scientists could simply develop the device so it could just disappear when the time is appropriate.

The latest development in transient electronics comes from Iowa State University, where researchers have made a breakthrough in the development of a dissolving battery that could power these disappearing devices.

The lithium-ion battery can deliver 2.5 volts and dissipate in 30 minutes when dropped into water. The power generated from the battery could power a desktop calculator for about 15 minutes.

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New materials can change their appearance and quickly revert to their original state, taking inspiration from squid and jellyfish.

Researchers believe the materials could have applications in smart windows (allowing users to block light with the push of a button), display optics, and encryption technology.

“There are several marine animals that can very smartly and actively alter their skin’s structure and color,” says Luyi Sun, co-author of the study. “In this work, we follow two examples, squid and jellyfish respectively, to create different mechanical responsive devices.”

This from the University of Connecticut:

They began with a thin, rigid film, and then attached a thicker layer of soft, stretchable elastomer. When the layers are joined and stretched, the rigid layer develops cracks and folds. As this layer is stretched, the cracks and folds grow in size in proportion to the force exerted. As a result, the surface becomes rough and scatters the light that passes through, thereby changing the material’s transparency.

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Beginning today, ECS is running a sale on ECS Transactions, specifically on ECST PRiME Meeting “Enhanced” Issues and select other ECST issues. For the next few weeks, a discount of 25% will be automatically applied to any ECST product when added to your cart. The discount will be reflected once you begin the check-out process.

Please visit the ECS Online Store and take advantage of this sale! Any ECST PRiME Meeting “Enhanced” Issues ordered by October 2, 2016 can be picked up for free at the ECS Publications Booth at the PRiME 2016 Meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Please visit the ECS Digital Library for more information on all ECS Transactions issues.

ECS member and director of the Princeton Institute for Science and Technology of Materials (PRISM), Craig Arnold, recently sat down with Princeton University to discuss the current and future potential of materials science.

Arnold and his research group at Princeton focus on materials processing and fabrication, with applications in energy, optoelectronics, sensing, and nanotechnology. Applications of this research touches the frontiers of technology, pushing boundaries on optimizing grid level storage for alternative energy and cutting-edge optical devices.

In the interview, Arnold discusses core components of materials science, his favorite materials, and explains how materials science has become the bass player in the band.

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Nissan is taking a big step toward eco-friendly transportation with the development of their new solid oxide fuel cell vehicle.

The science behind the vehicle, which the car company has branded e-Bio Fuel-Cell, uses bio-ethanol fuel to generate electricity through SOFC technology. Nissan states that sugarcane, corn, and soy can all be used as means of fuel – resulting in a carbon neutral cycle when the car hits the road.

The company expects the vehicle to be ready for commercial purchase as early as 2020.

A team of researchers from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, in collaboration with a team from Shanghai Jiao Tong University, has developed a method to improve perovskite solar cells – raising both efficiency and reliability levels while make them easier to produce.

Perovskite cells have become one of the more promising technologies in the future of energy. In 2010, the young technology functioned at under 4 percent efficiency. Fast-forward to 2016, and researchers and showing efficiency levels of upwards of 20 percent.

However, it’s been difficult to produce these cells and the lack of stability and dependability has become a focal issue.

This from NREL:

The research involved hybrid halide perovskite solar cells and revealed treating them with a specific solution of methyl ammonium bromide (MABr) would repair defects, improving efficiency. The scientists converted a low-quality perovskite film with pinholes and small grains into a high-quality film without pinholes and with large grains. Doing so boosted the efficiency of the perovskite film in converting sunlight to 19 percent.

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Researchers have taken a step toward the development of renewable plastics – a promising transformation from current plastics made from oil. The biodegradable material is possible due to the creation of a new catalyst.

Over the past 50 years, the global production of plastic has grown tremendously. According to World Watch Institute, over 299 trillion tons of plastic were produced in 2013. Unfortunately, as plastic production increases, recycling rates lag. Of the 299 trillion tons of plastic produced, between 22 and 43 percent made its way to landfills around the world, thereby wasting resources and negatively impacting the environment.

Biodegradable plastics could provide a potential solution to this issue. Currently, researchers are working to make the plastics – produced completely from renewable resources – match the price and performance of their petroleum-based counterparts.

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Here at ECS we are already preparing for Open Access Week 2016 (October 24-30). This year’s theme is “Open in Action”.

We are taking action with our Free the Science initiative – and we hope you will take action too by sharing your Open Access story with us! We want to know how Open Access is affecting you – what has OA helped you to accomplish? How is OA making a difference to you personally?

Submit your brief essay (200-400 words) for a chance to win a cash prize, and (if applicable) additional funding for your student chapter. These funds could be used to send chapter members to an ECS meeting, other conferences, invite speakers to campus, or to host any number of extra events for your chapter. Any funds not spent this year will be rolled over to the next. (more…)

Image: SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory

A Stanford University-led team recently published research detailing how particles charge and discharge at the nanoscale, giving new insight into the fundamental functioning of batteries and opening doors for the development of better rechargeables.

This new insight into the electrochemical action that powers Li-ion batteries provides powerful knowledge into the building blocks of batteries.

“It gives us fundamental insights into how batteries work,” says Jongwoo Lim, a co-author of the study. “Previously, most studies investigated the average behavior of the whole battery. Now, we can see and understand how individual battery particles charge and discharge.”

At the heart of every Li-ion battery lies the charge/discharge process. In theory, the ions in the process insert uniformly across the surface of the particles. However, that never happens in practice. Instead, the ions get unevenly distributed, leaving inconsistencies that lead to mechanical stresses and eventually shortened battery life. One way to develop batteries with longer life spans is to understand why these phenomena happens and how to prevent it at the nanoscale.

The recently published research uses x-rays and cutting-edge microscopes to look at this process in real time.

“The phenomenon revealed by this technique, I thought would never be visualized in my lifetime. It’s quite game-changing in the battery field,” says Martin Bazant, co-author of the study.

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