Wave Energy Converters have been making a lot of, um, waves in the energy sector lately thanks in part to China’s brand new, megawatt-scale, wave energy device. This device isn’t the first of its kind, but its sheer size represents a breakthrough for this underutilized but potent branch
The saying goes that “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure,” and as we speak, researchers around the globe are experimenting with taking this phrase literally. Right now, it’s possible to turn leftovers from brewing beer into batteries and to generate electricity from wastewater. There’s a
What do you do if a satellite runs out of batteries? It’s prohibitively expensive to send a team into orbit and pop in some new AAs, and as a result many satellites use very efficient, reliable and long-lived nickel-hydrogen batteries. We’re talking about batteries that may last decades.
This is Ascent Milwaukee. A gorgeous combo luxury apartment and retail space. But if you look closely, you might notice something special about this building… Figured it out yet? It’s made out of wood. That’s right, aside from a concrete garage and elevator shafts this 25 story-tall building
Nuclear is reliable, works 24/7, and generates a lot of power, all for essentially zero carbon.1 That comes at a price, though. Nuclear plants are really expensive, legislatively challenging, difficult to scale, and have a hotly debated reputation. But what if there was a way to build smaller,
What if I told you that I got to see first hand a really interesting nuclear fusion discovery that could impact our lives … today? Before you start dropping frantic comments, just hear me out. If you’re like me, the word “fusion” makes your mind go straight towards the long
Fusion energy is basically just smashing things together to make energy. Grossly oversimplified? Yes, but still accurate. First Light Fusion in the UK has a unique approach to fusion energy that takes that “smashing things together” to another level. I had a chance to see their facility first hand and
“Woah …. Woah! This is massive!” -Matt “Welcome to the JET tokamak” -Fernanda Rimini Getting to see the JET tokamak fusion reactor in person was an eye-opening experience, but not in the way you might expect. What I got to see during my time at the Culham Science Center in the
There’s concerns that homes with solar panels are reducing their utility bills at the expense of their neighbors without solar panels. The phenomenon is referred to as “cost shifting”: the idea that the credits utilities pay to solar homes for the energy they produce ultimately results in higher bills
It’s been nice to see the growing popularity of electric vehicles these last few years, but EVs need batteries and batteries don’t last forever. In fact, the first generation of EV batteries are already dying, and there's an absolute dead battery typhoon coming. Lithium battery recycling
In a recent heat pump video I covered how air source heat pumps are getting so much better in the cold, but in my new house I decided not to go with one. Instead I went with the more expensive option: a geothermal heat pump. Why did I decide it
For years, special kinds of semiconductors called perovskites have promised revolutionary improvements compared to traditional silicon solar cells. Perovskites could hold the key to higher efficiency at lower costs. In some cases perovskites have been shown to offer a 250% performance boost. But scientists have been working on this tech
