Energy utilization as a research area investigates the quantitative conversion, distribution, and consumption of energy within technical, biological, or socioeconomic systems, with emphasis on efficiency, losses, and optimization under thermodynamic and engineering constraints. It encompasses analytical and experimental methods to characterize energy flows, exergy destruction, and performance metrics across processes such as industrial manufacturing, transportation, buildings, and energy conversion technologies. Research typically integrates modeling, measurement, and control strategies to minimize primary energy input for a given service output, reduce waste heat and parasitic loads, and support system-level planning, often interfacing with energy systems analysis, demand-side management, and sustainability assessment.
Pyroelectric catalysis (pyro-catalysis) can convert environmental temperature fluctuations into clean chemical energy, such as hydrogen. However, compared with the more common catalysis strategy, such as photocatalysis, pyro-catalysis ...
Nanomaterials
Jan 11, 2023
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85
The abundant carbon on Earth might offer a rich, renewable resource for clean, sustainable energy. The technology—called carbon-based electrochemical catalysis—that could make green energy conversion possible exists, according ...
Nanomaterials
Dec 21, 2022
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92
The popularity of wearable electronics has induced demand for their parts, including power sources such as triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs). Such power sources must be both stretchy and high-performance, holding up under ...
Nanophysics
Dec 12, 2022
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102
Reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) to carbon monoxide (CO) through an electrochemical reaction holds strong potential for removing CO2 from the atmosphere to reduce pollution and for producing alternative energy with carbon monoxide ...
Nanomaterials
Dec 8, 2022
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185
Rice University researchers have engineered a key light-activated nanomaterial for the hydrogen economy. Using only inexpensive raw materials, a team from Rice's Laboratory for Nanophotonics, Syzygy Plasmonics Inc. and Princeton ...
Nanophysics
Nov 24, 2022
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970
The metal-carbon dioxide battery is a promising and environmentally friendly technology, but its energy efficiency is limited. Recently, a research team co-led by chemists from City University of Hong Kong (CityU) discovered ...
Nanophysics
Nov 16, 2022
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154
Tandem solar cells made of perovskite and silicon enable significantly higher efficiencies than silicon solar cells alone. Tandem cells from HZB have already achieved several world records. Most recently, in November 2021, ...
Nanomaterials
Oct 24, 2022
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195
Discovery of intriguing material behavior at small scales could reduce energy demands for computing.
Nanophysics
Oct 19, 2022
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1597
LED lights have become ubiquitous lighting solutions for homes and businesses, but when it comes to large, high-resolution displays, traditional LEDs have documented disadvantages. LED displays use a high voltage and a factor ...
Nanophysics
Sep 8, 2022
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115
As demand for solar energy rises around the world, scientists are working to improve the performance of solar devices—important if the technology is to compete with traditional fuels. But researchers face theoretical limits ...
Nanomaterials
Aug 3, 2022
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187
