EES Blog

Read this high-impact review by Paul Fennell and Charlotte Williams (Imperial College London).

The future of CO₂ capture – amines or calcium? Is there a viable alternative to land-filling carbon? These issues and more are discussed in this technical review of CO₂ capture technology.

An overview of CO₂ capture technologies
Niall MacDowell, Nick Florin, Antoine Buchard, Jason Hallett, Amparo Galindo, George Jackson, Claire S. Adjiman, Charlotte K. Williams, Nilay Shah and Paul Fennell
Energy Environ. Sci., 2010, DOI: 10.1039/C004106H

Communication article hot of the press – read it today!

Apparent rate constants for the oxygen reduction at monodisperse Pt supported on graphitized carbon black, prepared by the nanocapsule method, were twice those of a commercial one.

Temperature dependence of oxygen reduction activity at Nafion-coated Pt/graphitized carbon black catalysts prepared by the nanocapsule method
Hiroshi Yano, Tomohiro Akiyama, Hiroyuki Uchida and Masahiro Watanabe
Energy Environ. Sci., 2010, DOI: 10.1039/C0EE00106F

Read this Review article by Michael Krüger and colleagues.

Recent development of bulk-heterojunction hybrid solar cells is reviewed and strategies for further improvement are discussed:

Bulk-heterojunction hybrid solar cells based on colloidal nanocrystals and conjugated polymers

Yunfei Zhou, Michael Eck and Michael Krüger
Energy Environ. Sci., 2010,DOI: 10.1039/C0EE00143K

HOT article – published today – read it here now!

Clean, efficient electrolysis of formic acid via formation of eutectic, ionic mixtures with ammonium formate
Leigh Aldous and Richard G Compton
Energy Environ. Sci., 2010, DOI: 10.1039/C0EE00151A

Richard Compton (Oxford University) has performed clean and efficient electrolysis of formic acid, which is a promising compound for hydrogen storage and generation.

The electrocatalytic oxidation of formic acid was observed in the eutectic mixtures, and bulk electrolysis at platinum electrodes demonstrated electrolysis of the formic acid to form H2 and CO2.

Read this ‘HOT’ article by James Durrant (Imperial College London) and colleagues, where they study the injection efficiencies and photovoltaic device performances for two different phthalocyanine sensitisers in solar cells.

Zn(II) versus Ru(II) phthalocyanine-sensitised solar cells. A comparison between singlet and triplet electron injectors
Andrea Listorti, Ismael López-Duarte, M. Victoria Martínez-Díaz, Tomás Torres, Tracy DosSantos, Piers R. F. Barnes and James R. Durrant
Energy Environ. Sci., 2010, DOI: 10.1039/C0EE00083C

Read this ‘HOT’ Minireview by Rodney S. Ruoff and Meryl D. Stoller where they review and validate best practice test methods that accurately predict a material’s performance:

Best practice methods for determining an electrode material’s performance for ultracapacitors
Meryl D. Stoller and Rodney S. Ruoff
Energy Environ. Sci., 2010, DOI: 10.1039/C0EE00074D

Issue 8 of Energy & Environmental Science is now out and contains a great mix of articles, take a look now

Here are just a few  to highlight:

• Dan Nocera explains that new R&D is needed to provide the nonlegacy world with the “fast food” equivalent of solar energy—light-weight and highly manufacturable solar capture and storage systems – “Fast food” energy

• R. Busquim e Silva, M. S. Kazimi and P. Hejzlar from MIT, apply in this Analysis article a system dynamics model to the impact of spent fuel recycling on the US nuclear energy system – Nuclear fuel recycling: National and regional options for the US nuclear energy system

• R. A. Álvarez-Puebla and L. M. Liz-Marzár review ways in which surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) can have a wide range of applications in environmental science and monitoring – Environmental applications of plasmon assisted Raman scattering

Energy & Environmental Science Perspective article – read this article hot off the press!

Energy storage in electrochemical capacitors: designing functional materials
to improve performance
Peter J. Hall, Mojtaba Mirzaeian, S. Isobel Fletcher, Fiona B. Sillars, Anthony J. R. Rennie, Gbolahan. O. Shitta-Bey, Grant Wilson, Andrew Cruden and Rebecca Carter
Energy Environ. Sci., 2010, DOI: 10.1039/C0EE00004C

Electrochemical capacitors, also known as supercapacitors, are becoming increasingly important components in energy storage, although their widespread use has not been attained due to a high cost/performance ratio. Peter J. Hall and colleagues at the University of Strathclyde explain although there are still many uncertainties in understanding the underlying mechanisms involved in electrochemical capacitors, genuine progress continues to be made.

Daniel Nocera explains that new R&D is needed to provide the nonlegacy world with the fast food equivalent of solar energy—light-weight and highly manufacturable solar capture and storage systems.

Read this high-profile EES Opinion article now:

“Fast Food” Energy
Daniel G. Nocera, Energy Environ. Sci., 2010, DOI: 10.1039/c003891c