Energy & Decarbonization Stories
Capping and/or mitigating global warming requires a rapid shift to low-carbon socio-economic systems. From stories about scaling up renewable energy to pioneering work in solar fuels to carbon capture and storage technologies, Anthropocene magazine aims to be a leading voice in the conversation about this great transition.
Here’s an unusual but surprisingly feasible idea: Run electric trucks downhill as an alternative to dams.
Researchers say the idea requires only existing roads, e-trucks, and small rivers; and could cost about half that of conventional hydropower.
Researchers propose turning high-rises into gravity batteries
Novel concept that relies on elevators to move heavy loads up and down could store energy for lower cost than batteries
How We Think about E-Waste Is in Need of Repair
China and Ghana are looking less and less like electronic wastebaskets and more and more like leaders in a powerful, informal green economy
Airplanes could cut emissions by being better wind-surfers
It’s a quick, safe and relatively simple way to save up to 16 percent of fuel burned on transoceanic flights while the industry waits for biofuels and electric craft
Algae powers computer for a year using only light and water
Made of common, inexpensive, and non-toxic materials, an algae-powered battery could be a sustainable option for powering electronics
A kelp elevator could speed up seaweed’s route to biofuels
By making kelp grow four times faster, a simple technology could provide the massive amounts needed for affordable, ocean-based biofuel and other climate solutions
How COVID kills coal
The pause of 2020 enabled low-carbon power growth to get ahead of electricity demand growth
This enzyme-coated cotton offers a low-tech way to capture CO2
A team of chemists envision scaling up their new filter to smokestack size, where it can turn carbon dioxide into bicarbonate, aka baking soda
To decarbonize the grid, we need extraordinary power storage. This new device gets us closer.
With no moving parts, the solar cell-like device generates heat from electricity with a record-breaking efficiency higher than that of steam turbines
Using seawater for cooling could be a sustainable option
Researchers found that just one cubic meter of seawater has the same cooling energy as a solar farm the size of 68 football fields—or 21 wind turbines.
