Interesting stats on EVs and energy use in the US, developments in wind and tidal power, a plastic recycling microfactory, and an "unprecedented collapse" in EU fossil fuel generation.
Researchers at MIT say they've figured out a way to create cement supercapacitators using affordable and readily available materials that could transform buildings, roads, and other infrastructure into energy storage systems that could make on-demand power from renewables affordable worldwide.
The technology involves mixing cement powder with a a low-cost and highly conductive form of powered carbon called "carbon black." So far the cement devices they’ve created are the size of a button and only able to power a few LED lightbulbs, but researchers seem to think the technology is scalable and say that a 45-cubic-meter volume of the “black carbon concrete” could store 10 kilowatt hours of power, enough to power an average household for a day.
Start-ups around the world are exploring the possibility of creating large-scale energy storage batteries using natural heat-storing materials such as sand, salt, and rock.
