The Top 10 Most Popular Power Management News Stories of 2013
Here in reverse order are the top ten Power Management news stories of 2013. If you missed these stories the first time round now is your chance to catch up with the rest of eeNews Europe Power Management’s readers.
10. Graphene on nickel makes electrons behave like light
An astonishing result made by researchers at BESSY II showed that the conduction of electrons in graphene on nickel behave rather as light than as particles. Physicists had originally expected such behavior only for freestanding graphene layers which show a perfect honeycomb structure and not for graphene on nickel which disturbs the perfect hexagonal symmetry. Their results are supported by calculations of two theoretical groups using novel concepts.
9. Volvo evaluates flywheel hybrid drive – fuel savings of up to 25%
In hybrid cars, several technologies are available to harvest excess kinetic energy; converting it into electricity and storing it in a battery or supercap is currently the most popular approach. But kinetic flywheels offer an alternative and the story about carmaker Volvo testing kinetic flywheel technology under everyday driving conditions on public roads proved to accelerate interest.
8. Self-powered microfluidic chip enables early cancer detection in as little as 20 minutes
The RIKEN Advanced Science Institute has developed a self-powered microfluidic chip that can perform an analysis for cancer-specific microRNAs in a drop of patient blood in as little as 20 minutes.
7. ARM partners Nordic Semiconductor to develop Bluetooth Low Energy-enabled devices
The combination of ARM, Bluetooth Low Energy and the Internet of Things seemed quite irresistible to a lot of you which explains why so many readers checked out the story about ARM signing an agreement with Nordic Semiconductor, the ultra-low power radio frequency (RF) specialist, to incorporate Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) solutions with the ARM mbed IoT device development platform.
6. Wearable textile battery is capable of being recharged by lightweight solar cells
A research team at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology has developed a technology for textile-based foldable batteries that are which are rechargeable using energy recharged via integration with lightweight solar cells.
5. Extremely fast ion conductors: Another step towards better batteries
A research team at the Technical University of Graz (Austria) succeeded in providing fundamental data on the nuclear dynamics of a specific ion conductor that could greatly improve the characteristics of lithium-ion batteries.
4. Battery strategy switch helps Airbus A350 plane orders take off in Japan
A key strategic decision involving battery caught your eye. This story highlighted how a changes in strategy by battey maker Saft helped Europe’s major passenger aircraft manufacturer, Airbus grab a $9.75 billion order from Japan Airlines Co. (JAL) from under the noses of the company’s long-time rival Boeing Co.
Splashing into third place was a news item about the world’s first water-activated charging device developed at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. The innovative solution claimed to be able to use ordinary water to extend KTH Royal
Institute of Technology life for devices of up to 3 W..
2. Perovskite-based solar cells offers major manufacturing cost savings
The runner-up for 20123 is the research team at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University (NTU) who revealed a next generation solar cell, made from organic-inorganic hybrid perovskite materials. The cell is about five times cheaper than current thin-film solar cells because it is produced using a simpler solution-based manufacturing process.
Perovskite is known to be an efficient solar cell material because it can convert up to 15 per cent of sunlight to electricity, close to the efficiency of the current solar cells.
1. University of Alicante researchers convert cement into an electrical conductor
The top prize for 2013 was a concrete certainty for many of you. The winner is a story about researchers at the University of Alicante who developed a cementitious material incorporating carbon nanofibers in its composition which is capable of turning cement into a conductor of electricity capable of performing functions beyond its usual structural function.
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