Roberson, W. (2024, January 29). It works for scooters: Can battery swapping work for electric cars? Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/billroberson/2024/01/28/it-works-for-scooters-can-battery-swapping-work-for-electric-cars/?sh=11dc48c37fad

The US infrastructure for charging electric vehicles remains underdeveloped and most people still have “range anxiety” when they think about driving electric vehicles. Tesla has been on the market for more than 10 years and has developed their own charging network. In the meantime, other manufacturers fought against electric cars and then had to play catchup and develop their own models. The result is that not a lot of chargers have been installed around the country, yet there are gas stateions on every corner still.  One technology that might help is battery-swapping. It works well for electric scooters in Europe, but has not been proven yet for cars. If US car companies can agree on a standard battery, battery swap stations around the country could allow people to “fill up” in a matter of minutes in stead of charging for an hour. The article talks about the major challenges to this happening; companies have already developed their own battery designs and shapes, and major infrastructure would need to be developed around battery-swap stations. They suggest that in China where the government mandates everything, it can be done more easily. In the US, the market decides what the market wants however.

This article raised the idea of a technology that can solve a big problem in the electric vehicle market, but at the same time raised several issues that are enormous obstacles to it becoming reality. Imagine what would have to happen so that any electric car used the same battery? Then imagine what would need to happen so that you could pull into a battery-station and just get a new battery swapped out. Would they use robots to do it? Would a battery-station have 10, 20, 100 batteries just sitting there getting charged at all times in case people stop by for a swap? Batteries are large and expensive, so this seems like a highly unlikely solution to the EV market.

Hunter, K., & Mehta, G. (2024, January 26). World’s first sustainable jet fuel plant opens in Georgia. What it means for climate change. Macon Telegraph. https://www.macon.com/news/environment/article284641210.html

A company called LanzaJet has announced that they have a method and a facility for making sustainable aviation fuel. They are using ethanol as well as carbon that has already been “in circulation” to create the first sustainable aviation fuel. The Biden administration has issued a mandate to be 100% sustainable by 2050 and according to LanzaJet, this method of using corn alcohol (ethanol) is likely the only way to achieve the goal. The aviation industry releases millions of tons of C02 into the atmosphere each year, and all of its fuel is currently non sustainable and is mostly from fossil fuels. In addition to using alcohol to create the jet fuel, they are also removing the elements that lead to soot particles in the air, which will be good for the air we breathe.

This technology seems really promising. It doesn’t reduce the emissions of planes exactly, but it allows them to run on alcohol and not fossil fuels. I think the engines can already run on high octane ethanol, but there isn’t enough in the world to supply the aviation industry. Billions of gallons a year will be needed, and this technology is the first plant that will make sustainable aviation fuel. It shows you that companies really are trying to make sustainable solutions and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and at the same time they can make money doing it. That’s a good thing because capitalism can drive a lot of innovation.

New Mexico governor proposes $500M to treat fracking wastewater | AP News. (2024, January 23). AP News. https://apnews.com/article/environmentalists-oppose-reuse-fracking-water-1442415343b86ceae9f36d66eaebdacc

This article is less about a technology itself, and more about a controversy surrounding a technology. Recently the governor of New Mexico announced a $500M program where they will process and clean wastewater from fracking to use it for industrial purposes. The goal is to create a new source of water for businesses, farms, and industry in New Mexico so they can use less water from lakes and rivers. People have an issue with this initiative, because by reusing the water it may encourage more fracking in the area and environmentalists would really like to see a shift towards sustainable energy sources like wind and solar. Making fracking more appealing might make people rely on oil and gas longer in New Mexico.

I thought this was especially interesting because I could see both sides of the argument. The initiative allows the state to finally access millions of gallons of water that is brackish from the fracking process, and that seems like a good thing. It helps preserve lakes and river sources of water and that is also a good thing. But I also get how increasing fracking could be a bad thing. Fracking has allowed the capture of a lot of natural gas and oil that previously was not able to get captured, but has created some bad issues too and might even cause some earthquakes. This situation is a reminder that environmental technology is also very political and there are people on all sides of an argument who fight for their interests.

Simon, M. (n.d.). Startups aim to turn plant waste into concentrated carbon—and bury it. Mother Jones. https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2024/01/biomass-biochar-carbon-capture-storage-startups/

This article talks about the technology from a company called Carba, and others trying the same thing, where they are essentially trying to put coal back in the ground. Coal is created over millions of years under extreme pressure and temperatures. Eventually we found some of it, mined it, and burn it. The carbon in coal is sent up into the atmosphere and is obviously a big part of pollution and climate change. The startup, based in Minnesota, is capturing carbon in order to bury it underground so that it will undergo the same process again. The challenge lies in getting the right combination of microbes so that it doesn’t create the wrong types of gas as it breaks down. These technologies are smart because they allow nature to do the hard part and can help make an impact in carbon in the atmosphere.

I thought this was another interesting article, and it was good to see that several companies are trying to do similar techniques. The implications for the US are huge because there is so much plant waste created and capturing and returning it to the soil in a package that eventually will create coal again is a great idea. It’s not just burying waste in the ground, it’s creating a recipe that is environmentally friendly and something that can be done anywhere. It’s this kind of solution that we need lots of, in addition to ways to reduce emissions themselves. The article brought up this fact, and reminded the authors that capturing carbon is not an excuse to just keep polluting. Emissions levels need to be focused on too.

Lewis, M. (2024, January 23). Here’s how utility-scale solar farms may just help save the bees. Electrek. https://electrek.co/2024/01/23/utility-scale-solar-farms-bees/

Researchers at the US Department of Energy conducted research around solar farms that incorporated native plants and wildflowers and studied the effect on bees. Bees are really important to the ecosystem and are facing a lot of threats in the US in recent years from pollution, habitat destruction, and climate change itself. Bees pollinate plants and play an important role in biodiversity and keeping soil fertile as well. Over the course of 5 years, the researchers studied the number of bees around solar farms and learned that solar farms that used native plants and wildflowers around the panels saw an increase of 20x the number of bees. This contributed to plant diversity and overall helped make farmland locally more healthy.

This was an interesting article and focused on the idea that integrating new technologies with natural resources and habitats can allow the ecosystem to thrive and recover, and at the same time generate electricity for people without hurting the environment. Bees are especially important, and not just because they make honey. This research was a confirmation that it isn’t just about building large solar panels to shift to sustainable energy sources, it needs to be done in a way that maximizes its positive impact on the environment.

Kahn, A. N. a. B. (2023, August 11). How the Biden administration is betting on carbon capture – Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times. https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2023-08-11/how-the-biden-administration-is-pouring-billions-into-technology-that-sucks-carbon-from-the-air

This article reviews how the Biden administration is investing in technologies that literally suck carbon out of the air. The technology is called carbon capturing, and it is almost like an air filter at your house that forces air through a filter that traps the pollutants and carbon, but on a much larger scale. The article discussed one example of a carbon capture technology that a Swiss company called Climeworks developed, which can extract 4000 tons of CO2 from the air each year. The idea is to have technologies like this near oil refineries and other factories that put out a lot of CO2, and these carbon capture technologies could filter out some of the pollution before it spreads around the planet.

This seems like a no-brainer idea, and one that should already be in place. Why don’t factories have filters on their smokestacks? I’m sure there are good reasons, but if we can filter out some of the pollution with larger carbon-capture vacuums and filters, maybe we can make a difference. Of course, the risks need to be evaluated too. Similar to the EV’s requiring dangerous mining to take place, if this technology cleans the air but requires too much electricity to run the filters, maybe it is not as valuable. But it seems like a good idea and one that could help.

Leimbach, S. (2023). Boyd introduces green cooling technology for EV charging. Environment+Energy Leader. https://www.environmentalleader.com/2023/08/boyd-introduces-green-cooling-technology-for-ev-charging/

A company called Boyd has introduced a liquid cooling technology to enhance the speed and safety of electric vehicle charging through fast charging cables and connectors. Any time electricity is used, even if it is just charging a battery, it generates heat. Boyd developed a coolant for the charging stations. This green coolant cools high-powered fast chargers, which generate significant heat. Cooling the cables lets them charge faster. Rapid charging is important for EV adoption and a lot of car buyers don’t go electric because of concerns about charging times. Boyd’s technology could help the US (and beyond) build more charging stations around the country and world that work more quickly and with less heat.

I think this is a good idea. It seems like charging an electric car is the worst part about owning one, because it takes a lot longer than filling up a gas tank. If you have to drive from the Bay Area to LA, you probably need to stop at least once to charge for at least an hour. If you are trying to drive cross-country, you have to be careful about your route, so that you can charge your car before you run out of battery. It seems like Boyd’s technology would allow people to charge a little faster, which means more people could buy EVs, which would mean more chargers would get installed too. It might help solve the chicken-or-the-egg challenge of electric cars not having enough chargers, but chargers not being built because there aren’t enough electric car owners.

Mercado, A. (2023, August 14). Researcher proposes space umbrella attached to asteroid to mitigate climate change. Gizmodo. https://gizmodo.com/asteroid-space-umbrella-climate-change-1850696646?

This article reviewed a proposed solution for combating climate change that involved attaching a large shield to an asteroid in space which would hang off the asteroid like a parachute or umbrella. This theory was detailed in a study by University of Hawai’i researcher István Szapudi. This “umbrella” could block 1.7% of the sun’s rays, potentially slowing down planetary warming. The article suggested that it is similar to kite surfing, in this case the sunlight’s momentum moves the shield. Currently, our rockets lack the power for this, but if achievable in the future, this approach could become a climate solution. Szapudi’s work marks an initial step, but the real work would be in determining the logistics for making it happen and developing technologies that would be required to do it.

This technology seems a little far-fetched to me, but shows us how important it is to come up with as many ideas as possible. Most genius ideas were thought to be crazy at first because they were impossible at the time or outside of current technology’s capability. This space-shield or umbrella technology seems a little like something a middle-school student came up with during a contest for climate-change ideas, but maybe that’s exactly what we need. The researcher talked about needing to research ways to proof the concept without launching a full umbrella, like possibly putting moon-dust into space that could deflect the sun’s rays a bit. Personally, I think our solutions for climate change should focus on Earth, because I’d be afraid things like this could mess up the whole planet by accident.

Park, W. (2023, January 23). How far can vertical farming go? BBC Future. https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20230106-what-if-all-our-food-was-grown-in-indoor-vertical-farms

Vertical farming was “invented” in the 1990s, but it is really an extension of farmer’s quest to farm more crops in less space…a quest that has been since the beginning of farming. Vertical farming offers a potential solution to growing food in urban areas and addressing space constraints. The article talks about the pros and cons of vertical farming, for example it can be done in a city in buildings without windows, but requires a farmer to supply all the light, nutrients, etc.  Initiatives like the Pasona Urban Farm in Tokyo and the Oishii vertically farmed strawberries show us the concept’s potential. Those farms use stacked trays with LED lighting to grow crops, while using hydroponic (in water) systems to save water and nutrients. The controlled environment reduces pest risks and allows year-round cultivation of crops like herbs, salads, and small fruits. Large-scale vertical farming might revolutionize food production, but challenges include high energy costs and reliance on fossil fuels. Scaling up will require innovations in energy efficiency, sustainable power sources, and solving disease and growth challenges for longer-maturing crops like fruit trees.

This article was interesting and the idea of vertical farming seems like a good way to produce food closer to where people eat it. That would save transportation costs, and not require as much land dedicated to farming produce and other crops. It would also reduce the use of heavy farm equipment that pollutes the air.  It does sound like the technology is still a little new and not super cost-effective yet. But it seems promising and if enough people invest in it, maybe they can get the costs down so that it can make a real impact.

Irwandi, R. T. D. M. S. J. (2023, May 10). To mine EV minerals, industry turns to dangerous refinery technology. Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/interactive/2023/ev-nickel-refinery-dangers/

With the recent increase in sales of electric vehicles, demand for batteries has gone up significantly as well. Most of the materials used for the batteries of electric vehicles are mined from the earth, which actually creates an environmental hazard on its own. Indonesia is the largest producer of nickel, which is a key material for rechargeable batteries. The mining of this material creates a lot of dangerous by-products, and mining companies in Indonesia have struggled to solve how to dispose of the waste. Indonesia has developed an “acid leaching technology” that previously was considered too risky to use. However, now that demand has gone up so much, this technique would provide access to a new type of nickel, which is harder to process, but it would allow a higher amount to be mined each year. Indonesia is testing the technology in several areas and partnering with companies to invest in Indonesia’s nickel processing.

This technology could be important, but it could also be risky. It reminds me of fracking actually. Fracking is a mining technology where they pump water into the ground so they can extract more of the oil. But it potentially causes earthquakes and other issues. This mining technology would allow more of the earth’s supply of nickel to be mined, but we need to be careful of the risks. The mining of battery materials is the main impact of electric vehicles on the planet, so we need to make sure that we aren’t just trading one problem for another (less fossil fuel use, but more toxic chemicals spilled from mining nickel).