Energy

Knittel named first energy faculty chair at MIT

The case of the missing gas mileageAutomakers have made great strides in fuel efficiency in recent decades — but the mileage numbers of individual vehicles have barely increased. An MIT economist explains the conundrum.

Microbe metabolismFor the smallest organisms, size determines how microbes spend energy.

How to kick-start new energy technologiesThree-year study produces proposals for boosting energy innovation to meet growing demand, curb global warming.

Five-year effort by Campus Energy Task Force saves MIT millions of dollars, kilowatt-hours

Need a new material? New tool can helpExhaustive reference system and interactive toolkit could revolutionize materials research, potentially enabling new types of manufacturing.

Using wheels to reduce a carbon footprintFacilities' new electric vehicle is powered by a battery and generates no emissions.

Energy Education Task Force marks five-year surge in energy focused offeringsNearly $9 million raised for curriculum development so far.

Nobel laureate: Long path to economic renewal, but energy innovation could help

Two congressmen visit the Plasma Science and Fusion Center

Carbon capture? Go for the sourceNew analysis shows pulling CO₂ from the air would not be cost-effective in the foreseeable future.

With changes, the grid can take itMIT report shows that with new policies, U.S. electric grid could handle expected influx of electric cars and wind and solar generation.

Chu: New materials could be transformativeCiting historical examples, U.S. secretary of energy argues that the nation can still regain its manufacturing leadership.

IPC Forum on Energy InnovationNew ways of developing clean, reliable, affordable U.S. energy supplies

Major global increase in energy use, emissions predicted at MITEI colloquium

Materials research in the Information AgeMIT, Lawrence Berkeley launch new tool to calculate properties of new materials

Highly efficient oxygen catalyst foundNew catalyst, made of inexpensive and abundant materials, could prove useful in rechargeable batteries and hydrogen-fuel production.

‘Conserve, conserve, conserve’A megawatt saved is better than a megawatt made, and there are plenty of ways to save energy without sacrifice.

Turning green to goldKoch building takes the lead in lab energy performance.

Harnessing the Earth, the atom and the leafThere are many sources that can make a contribution to our energy supply, but likely not at a major scale in the near future.

Shining brightlyVast amounts of solar energy radiate to the Earth constantly, but tapping that energy cost-effectively remains a challenge.

Where the wind blowsHow far can wind power go toward reducing global carbon emissions from electricity production?

What can make a dent?Given the enormous scale of worldwide energy use, there are limited options for achieving significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.

A new approach to solar powerHybrid solar-thermoelectric systems could provide advantages over conventional solar cells or solar thermal plants.

Bristly particles could be boon for powerplantsMulti-scale material may have applications in heat transfer, potentially helping powerplants be more efficient.

MIT and Cyprus Institute expanding collaborative research, education

Graphene shows unusual thermoelectric response to lightFinding could lead to new photodetectors or energy-harvesting devices.