🌳 Plast films for air cons, Trees' clean electricity, and World’s 1st artificial island

INTERESTING ENGINEERING SHOP

Welcome back to the twentieth edition of Sustainability, a monthly newsletter by Interesting Engineering.

The month of Halloween already witnessed major climate and sustainable developments including scientists proposing a new method to store hydrogen in a Nature study. They suggested holding hydrogen in pipes full of gravel submerged in lakes, hydropower, and pumped hydro storage reservoirs. 

This month, scientists from RMIT University developed a new sustainable application for air conditioners using waste polystyrene. A thin film, curated by stacking multiple layers of polystyrene, harnesses the plastic's ability to generate static electricity from motion and wind.

Also, Rwanda Forestry Authority scientists discovered two types of trees that could produce clean electricity, providing power to isolated communities. Rwanda aims to achieve complete electricity access by 2030, yet rural regions still need more power availability. This motivated the scientists to potentially produce electricity from biomass sourced from sustainably cultivated plants, evaluating the energy capacity of different tree species.

Renault, the French carmaker debuted its latest concept car, named ‘Emblème’ at the Paris Motor Show as part of its plan to achieve carbon neutrality worldwide by 2050. Emblème pairs hybrid and electric power with a full lifecycle approach to cutting carbon. Renault says the vehicle emits 90 percent less greenhouse gas (CO2) over its lifetime compared to an average car today.

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NEWS BULLETIN

• 🌳 Scientists find two tree species with potential to generate clean electricity The dense wood and elevated calorific values of these trees ensure they burn effectively, offering a high-heat option compared to fossil fuels.

• 🏎️ 620 mile range, 90% less carbon emissions: Renault unveils game-changer Emblème The French automobile giant’s latest concept car is designed to release only 5.5 tons of CO2 in its lifetime, compared to the 55 tons emitted by an average petrol car.

• ☀️ Blade-coated perovskite solar cells achieve 31.2% power conversion efficiency The new solar cells were able to keep around 80% of their initial efficiency for 1,700 hours.

• 🔋 1,000 cycles, 99.2% coulombic efficiency: Li batteries hit milestone for aviation When compared to existing solutions, SOLiTHOR’s Lithium metal SSBs offer superior energy density.

• 🏝️ World’s 1st artificial island to provide 3.5GW wind energy to 3 million homes The first of the island’s caissons, or foundations, are currently being built in Vlissingen (the Netherlands).

• 🌊 Scientists say climate change made Spanish floods worse  Researchers believe rising temperatures have contributed to making Spanish floods worse.

MUST READ

⚡️ Plastic waste-based thin film generates static electricity for air cons

Scientists developed a thin film, curated from waste polystyrene to generate static electricity from motion and wind. This invention is essentially a thin patch made from multiple layers of recycled polystyrene that generates static electricity for applications such as air conditioners. 

Researchers from RMIT University, Australia, in collaboration with Riga Technical University in Latvia, are striving to find a solution to the overwhelming problem of plastic waste in the world. To make the best use of plastic, of which only a fraction is currently recycled, the academics aim to reduce energy consumption and lower carbon emissions by recycling wasted energy from various sources, such as air conditioners and high-traffic areas.

According to TechXplore, RMIT filed a provisional patent application for this invention and is now seeking industry partners to invest in developing it for commercial technologies.

The research is also aimed to deepen the understanding of static electricity at the nanoscale, particularly in relation to polystyrene. Comprehending this phenomenon helped scientists leverage the energy-generating potential of polystyrene-based materials and potentially explore other materials with similar properties.

Dr. Peter Sherrell, from RMIT, also the lead researcher says that the thin patch, made from multiple layers of polystyrene each around one-tenth the thickness of a human hair, produced static electricity.

"We can produce this static electricity just from the air blowing on the surface of our clever patches, then harvest that energy," added Sherrell. "There's potential for energy from the turbulent exhaust of air conditioning units to be collected that could reduce the energy demand by up to five percent and, ultimately, lower the carbon footprint of the system."

The devices generated a maximum voltage of roughly 230 during testing. This voltage level is similar to standard household electricity, but the power output is significantly lower.

Sherrell explained that the biggest numbers come from compression and separation, where you've got faster speeds and bigger motion, while smaller motion generates less energy. 

The patches could not only benefit air conditioner applications but also could be integrated with high-traffic areas such as underground walkways could supplement the local energy supply without creating additional demand on the grid.

"The great thing here is the same reason that it takes 500 years for polystyrene to break down in landfill makes these devices really stable—and able to keep making electricity for a long time," said Sherrell.

The study was published in the journal – Advanced Energy and Sustainability Research.

OTHER IMPORTANT UPDATES

• ☢️ 60 MW: Small Swiss nuclear reactor to supercharge data centers, feed hungry AI

• 💨 US could get offshore hydrogen hub powered by wind for affordable green energy

• 🔋 From trash to treasure: How Princeton is turning dead EV batteries into gold

• 🏜️ CO2 into battery power? China to turn emissions into energy for Mars rovers, robots

• 🌆 US deal could see CO2 battery power 18,000 homes for 10 hrs on single charge

• ⛷️ Finland exports snow-saving mats to ski resorts hit by climate crisis

• 🗻 Polar bears face higher risk of disease in a warming Arctic

• 📈 Lahore air pollution hits historic high, forcing school closures

🌍 Act to shrink your carbon footprint

Forest Paths project, an initiative funded by the European Union, recently proposed a new policy brief to manage how forests and wood use in Europe are affected by policies targeting climate change and biodiversity.

The project’s brief was authored by the Oeko-Institute whose researchers investigated a huge number of policies, relating to climate change mitigation and forests. They found that most of these policies had a positive impact on both climate change mitigation and biodiversity.

The policy brief highlighted key policies impacting forests and wood use in Europe such as:

Climate Change Mitigation

• European Green Deal: This overarching strategy aims to make Europe climate-neutral by 2050. It includes various initiatives that impact forests, such as the EU Forest Strategy and the LULUCF Regulation.

• EU Forest Strategy for 2030: This strategy aims to protect, restore, and sustainably manage EU forests. It sets targets for forest area expansion, sustainable forest management, and the use of wood as a renewable resource.

• LULUCF Regulation: This regulation sets rules for accounting for greenhouse gas emissions and removals from land use, land use change, and forestry. It incentivizes forest management practices that contribute to carbon sequestration.

Biodiversity Conservation

• EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030: This strategy aims to halt biodiversity loss and restore ecosystems. It includes targets for protecting and restoring forests and other natural habitats.

• Habitats Directive and Birds Directive: These directives protect specific habitats and bird species, including those found in forests.

Climate Adaptation

• EU Adaptation Strategy: This strategy aims to make Europe more resilient to the impacts of climate change. It includes measures to protect forests from climate-related threats, such as wildfires and pests.

More to come in the forthcoming edition of Sustainability.