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Also,
The 18th annual Create the Future
Design Contest sponsored by NASA Tech Briefs is
seeking innovative ideas for new products and technologies that
could generate jobs, improve public health & safety, protect
the environment, and benefit society in other ways. Enter today
at www.createthefuturecontest.com for
a chance to win a top prize of $20,000 USD. There's no cost to
participate.
Speaking
of the future, the “All-Energy & Dcarbonize 2020” conference
in Glasgow will be held 14-15 September 2020 and looks like a big
one since it is postponed now until the Fall when everyone
hopefully will be flying again. Sponsored by Reed Exhibitions,
their website is https://www.all-energy.co.uk/.
Our
first story #1 is a “gamechanger” as they say, and this
technology will transform windows into active power generators,
potentially revolutionizing building design. Two square meters of
solar window, the researchers say, will generate about as much
electricity as a standard rooftop solar panel. Supported by
Australian’s Renewable Energy Agency, the product is perovskite
solar cells to be installed Viridian Glass that generates
electricity while letting light to pass through, as reported in Nano Energy and Eurekalert .
Story
#2 is more for the permanent magnet buffs who hope to see
them used more widely in the near future, like me for example.
The latest study of quantum entanglement suggests a new route
toward room-temperature superconductivity perhaps. It also offers
a way to study quantum fluctuations which are the source of
zero-point energy and as Rutgers University suggests, a
new way to tune a material “to improve quantum fluctuations”
making them “endlessly intense” which is an amplification of
zero-point energy.
Story #3
is a growing trend all around the world… “zero energy homes”. The
article is posted on the www.ZeroEnergyProject.org website
which tells us that the housing market is starting to change as
the number of zero energy homes and zero energy ready homes grows steadily each year. and
many builders are moving incrementally from their current
construction practice toward higher efficiency. We look forward
to this trend continuing so each new home will have a zero carbon
footprint!
Story #4
offers some excitement in the midst of our present difficulties
with the promise of a Mars mission launch by China later this
year. The probe will study the soil, geological structure,
environment and atmosphere of Mars, according to CNSA. The
robotic probe will be made up of an orbiter, lander and a
six-wheeled rover, which will have solar panels and carry 13
scientific instruments, according to CNSA. It is their hope that
this will further the Chinese manned mission to Mars as well. As reported by
CNN , a woman wearing
a spacesuit is shown walking out of the Chinese “Mars Base 1” in
the Gobi desert near China’s Gansu province.
Our
final Story #5 is more down to earth with a great four-minute video
online explaining new
Energy Storage renewable techniques. Balancing energy supply and
demand, the amazing Proton OnSite technology
uses a Solid Electrolyte Proton Exchange Membrane to
perform water electrolysis producing hydrogen that is stored for
future use when supply is low and energy demand increases. This
efficient storage means replaces expensive and heavy weight
batteries that eventually wear out. It is also very efficient and
environmentally friendly, since hydrogen burning creates water as
the ONLY byproduct . We hope this becomes the standard
worldwide for electric utilities and microgrids.
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1) Windows That Can Generate Electricity with Solar
Breakthrough
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Two square metres of solar window will do the same
job as a standard rooftop solar panel, Australian researchers
say.
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Semi-transparent solar cells that can be
incorporated into window glass are a "game-changer"
that could transform architecture, urban planning and electricity
generation, Australian scientists say in a paper in Nano
Energy.
This technology will transform windows into
active power generators, potentially revolutionizing building
design. Two square metres of solar window, the researchers say,
will generate about as much electricity as a standard rooftop
solar panel.
The research was also supported by the
Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).
Photo
credit: DR JAE CHOUL YU
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2) Physicists Study Quantum Entanglement of
Ferromagnets
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A group of Physicists from Rutgers University has
identified the strange behavior of electrons in a ferromagnet.
This discovery could ultimately lead to the development of
high-temperature superconductivity.
The
study of the unusual ferromagnetic material, co-authored by
Rutgers University, has been reported recently in the Nature journal.The
Rutgers Center for Materials Theory, a pioneer in this field,
investigates “quantum phase transitions.” Phase transitions, for
example, those that occur during the melting of ice, necessitate
heat to agitate the atoms and melt the ice crystals. Quantum phase
transitions are triggered by the agitation of electrons and atoms
due to fluctuations that never stop even at low temperatures.
It is possible to achieve a quantum phase
transition by tuning a material to improve quantum fluctuations,
by exposing the material to intense pressure at a near absolute
zero temperature or by applying a magnetic field. In some cases of
quantum phase transitions, the quantum fluctuations turn out to be
endlessly intense, thereby creating a “quantum critical point.”
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3) Zero Energy New Homes Project
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Production
builders are uniquely positioned to identify and fulfill the needs
of mass market home buyers. Most buyers assume that a new home is
more comfortable, healthier, and more durable than an existing
home, including the one they are leaving behind. Zero energy homes
check all these boxes. Unfortunately, there is one misconception
that prevents many production builders from offering zero energy
alternatives. It’s the perception that zero energy homes are not
affordable. In fact, zero energy homes cost less to own, provide
their own buying power and build wealth starting the very first
month.
The
housing market is starting to change as the number of zero energy
homes and zero energy ready homes grows steadily each year. Here
are a few points for production builders to consider as they
contemplate the pros and cons of joining the shift to zero.
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4) China Plans to Launch Mars Mission This Year
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China says
that it’s still on schedule for the mission to Mars it plans to
launch later this year.
The mission, originally slated for
a July launch date, is set to happen “in the coming months,”
according to the China National Space Administration (CNSA), CNN
reports. On top of that, the mission finally has a name: “Tianwen
1,” which translates roughly to “heavenly questions.”
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