News
What the Society is doing, and what is happening in sustainable energy technologies.
Global
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Global
How do solvent-free tandem solar cells boost clean energy scalability?
Perovskite silicon tandem solar cells can achieve high efficiency, but producing them at scale still comes with a major challenge: the use of toxic solvents.
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Global
Are mining roads pushing Alaska’s Arctic past its environmental limit?
Alaska’s Arctic is already under severe climate pressure, with thawing permafrost and declining caribou and salmon populations disrupting Indigenous communities.
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Global
Air-conditioning saves thousands of lives yearly, but at what cost?
Air conditioning protects people from deadly heat, yet it also increases carbon emissions.
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Global
Can steel clamps increase concrete strength?
Strengthening an ageing concrete column normally means pouring a heavy jacket around it or wrapping it in costly fibre composites.
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Global
How much can a small patch of corrosion weaken a subsea CO₂ pipeline?
Carbon capture depends on pipelines that carry CO₂ across the seabed to offshore storage sites, where years of immersion slowly thin their steel walls.
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Global
Why did Antarctica freeze millions of years earlier than the Arctic?
Antarctica has been buried in ice for roughly 34 million years, while the Arctic did not develop major ice sheets until around 5 million years ago, a gap of some 29 million years
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Global
Can a building’s energy system recalibrate itself during a heatwave?
Building energy systems are usually tuned to run as efficiently as possible, which works well until a heatwave arrives, sensors drift out of calibration or equipment quietly degrades.
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Global
Can a liquid store heat until it is needed?
Certain sugar alcohols can be melted and then cooled far below their freezing point without turning solid, holding the stored heat in place until something prompts them to crystallise.
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Global
How can urban green spaces reduce the urban heat island effect?
Urban heat islands raise city temperatures and drive up energy use. Research on urban tree cooling sets out how much vegetation can bring city-centre temperatures down.
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Global
Can free plug-in batteries cut UK household energy bills by 30%?
The UK plans to give plug-in home batteries to low-income households. They charge on cheap overnight electricity, release it at peak, and need no electrician to install.
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Global
Can you use an old coal mine as a clean heating system?
Cumberland, British Columbia, shipped coal for 80 years. Researchers are now testing whether the water left in those tunnels can heat and cool the whole town.
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Global
Are solar panels cheaper than using the national grid?
When war and sanctions cut off Sana'a's electricity, residents installed their own solar systems rather than wait.