Canadian researchers have demonstrated a new way of producing electricity from flowing water which could provide power for anything from mobile phones to the national grid.
A long-time advocate and designer of zero-emissions power plants, Dr. Klaus Lackner was thrilled with President Bush's statement that the United States will sponsor a $1 billion, 10-year demonstration project to create the world's first coal-based, zero-emissions electricity and hydrogen power plant, but Lackner calls for an even larger vision.
Australian scientists have combined solar energy and natural gas in a novel process capable of producing large-scale energy to power the country's future industrial and domestic needs.
In the search for a nonpolluting energy source, hydrogen is often cited as a potential source of unlimited clean power. But hydrogen is only as clean as the process used to make it. Currently, most hydrogen is made from fossil fuels like natural gas using multi-step and high-temperature processes.
Experiments with carbon nanotubes, a new form of carbon discovered about a decade ago, suggest for the first time that it should be possible to store more energy in batteries using the tiny tubes than with conventional graphite electrodes.
Wind turbines can help keep the voltage in the electricity network at a constant level. The power electronics in the turbines can effectively correct peaks and dips in the mains voltage. This is the conclusion reached by NWO-funded researchers.
Rooftop solar panels that produce electricity at a cost approaching that of coal could be available in as little as four years, says an Australian company.
