Tag Energy
Retired Dow exec joins UW, will focus on innovation
An industry executive who has spent his entire career translating inventions into products that are both profitable and beneficial to society has joined the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Read More
Discovery of new enzyme could yield better plants for biofuel
For nearly a decade, scientists have thought that they understood how plants produce lignin - a compound that gives plant tissues their structure and sturdiness, but can limit their use as a source of biofuels. Read More
New catalyst could cut cost of making hydrogen fuel
A discovery at the University of Wisconsin–Madison may represent a significant advance in the quest to create a "hydrogen economy" that would use this abundant element to store and transfer energy. Read More
Future looks bright for carbon nanotube solar cells
In an approach that could challenge silicon as the predominant photovoltaic cell material, University of Wisconsin–Madison materials engineers have developed an inexpensive solar cell that exploits carbon nanotubes to absorb and convert energy from the sun. Read More
Innovative solar cell structure stores and supplies energy simultaneously
The potential energy available via solar power might seem limitless on a sunny summer day, but all that energy has to be stored for it to be truly useful. If you see a solar panel on a rooftop, in a large-scale array, or even on a parking meter, a bulky battery or supercapacitor is hidden just out of sight, receiving energy from the panel through power lines. Read More
New ‘green’ method to help upgrade biomass waste into valuable chemicals
University of Wisconsin–Madison chemists have identified an approach to use oxygen gas to convert lignin, a byproduct of biofuel production, into a form that could allow it to replace fossil fuels as a source of chemical feedstocks. Read More
Campus energy conservation, recycling efforts show measureable gains
As the nation recognizes Earth Day on April 22, the University of Wisconsin–Madison is celebrating ongoing strides toward improving campus sustainability. Read More
With 400th Ph.D. grad, UW–Madison celebrates a half century of fusion energy
In the 1930s and '40s, many researchers studied ways to use fusion, the reaction in which atomic nuclei collide, fuse and release energy, to develop atomic weapons. Later, those same brilliant minds began to focus on beneficial applications of fusion, including developing plants that would produce electrical energy for society. Read More
Energy institute fueling innovation in new facility
Gazing out at the roughly 60,000 cars that cross the intersection at the Wisconsin Energy Institute’s (WEI’s) doorstep, the reason the building exists is clear — energy consumption and dependence on fossil fuels — and WEI’s research is poised to address the problem. Read More
Donohue elected president of American Society for Microbiology
University of Wisconsin–Madison bacteriology professor Timothy J. Donohue has been elected president of the American Society for Microbiology. Read More
New biofuel conversion process cuts costly separating step
Using a biomass-derived solvent, University of Wisconsin–Madison chemical and biological engineers have streamlined the process for converting lignocellulosic biomass into high-demand chemicals or energy-dense liquid transportation fuel. Read More
Community forum to focus on fracking and sand mining
Fracking, the controversial technology for opening natural gas deposits, will be the focus of a three-part Community Environmental Forum series beginning on Tuesday, Oct. 30, at 5:30 p.m. in room 1106 of the Mechanical Engineering Building. Read More
New biorenewables technology moves closer to marketplace
A licensing agreement for a novel renewable chemical and biofuel production method between Hyrax Energy and the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation promises to accelerate commercial development of the technology and lead to high-quality U.S. jobs. Read More
Energy from Wisconsin cow manure could replace a coal plant
According to a recent Wisconsin Bioenergy Initiative (WBI) study, Wisconsin can be a national leader in bioenergy production using waste from the state's prosperous agriculture and food processing sectors. Read More
Researchers develop efficient, scalable process for making renewable liquid fuels
Using simple technology developed primarily for producing electricity from hydrogen, a team of researchers from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, University of Massachusetts-Amherst and Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology of South Korea has developed what could be a commercially viable, continuous process for converting biomass and electricity into renewable liquid transportation fuels. Read More
NSF funds UW sustainability project studying the human component of green buildings
Designing a "green" building involves considering a multitude of variables - everything from electrical efficiency to airflow controls to natural sources of light, heat and energy. But engineering more efficient building control systems is only part of the picture; for a building to be truly green, the occupants living and working within it need to know how to behave in a sustainable way as well. Read More
Sunflowers inspire more efficient solar power system
A field of young sunflowers will slowly rotate from east to west during the course of a sunny day, each leaf seeking out as much sunlight as possible as the sun moves across the sky through an adaptation called heliotropism. Read More
International Law Symposium to examine renewable energies
The opportunities and challenges encountered in the development of renewable energies will be discussed at the Wisconsin International Law Journal 2012 Symposium from 8:30 a.m. to 5:45 p.m. Friday, March 23, at the University of Wisconsin Law School. Read More
Award supports study of internal-combustion diagnostic tool
For the past several decades, engineers have been investigating low-temperature combustion as a means of creating engines with diesel-like efficiency and no pollutant emissions. A UW–Madison mechanical engineering assistant professor has received a grant to study the process. Read More
59 businesses show an interest in providing biomass for Charter Street Heating Plant
Officials say 59 businesses responded to a “request for information,” to help pinpoint the sources of biomass fuel for a renovated, coal-free Charter Street… Read More