Many regions of the world are faced with the problem of using solar panels. The sun does not always shine, and in some northern areas in winter it may not be for months.
Therefore, it was necessary to figure out how to accumulate energy in summer and store it until winter. Researchers from the Swiss Institute for Solar Technology SPF have now proposed a concept that solves the problem of storing energy collected from solar panels.
Aluminum has an energy density more than 50 times higher than lithium-ion plants. According to New Atlas, the SPF team report says that one cubic meter block of aluminum can chemically store about 23.5 megawatt-hours of energy, which is 50 times more than a lithium-ion plant can do. The average house in the US can use this energy for more than two years.
The concept has yet to be repeatedly tested and brought to the final world, but the researchers are sure this is a new milestone in solving the environmental crisis.
In recent years, robotics has developed many systems with different body structures and capabilities. ACS Nano magazine reports reports that most robots are made from either hard materials such as metals or soft materials such as silicon and rubber materials.
Scientists at the University of Hong Kong and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory recently created “Aquabots,” a new class of soft robots that are predominantly composed of liquids. Because most biological systems are predominantly made up of water or other aqueous solutions, the new robots could have precious biomedical and environmental applications.
The idea came about when Professor Zhu, as a PhD student at the University of Hong Kong, began thinking about the possibility of integrating magnetic nanoparticles into ATPS assembly systems.
This would allow them to direct the movement of structures using external magnetic fields and lead to the emergence of ultra-soft, flexible robotic systems that could be adapted to perform specific functions.
The robots presented by this group of researchers were assembled in an aquatic environment. The first prototypes can perform delicate tasks. For example, they can grab an item and move it.
In the future, aquabots could open up interesting possibilities for numerous real life biomedical and environmental applications. For example, they can function as drug deliverers inside the human body. They can also be used for biological engineering of human tissues, etc.