Penn State Energy and Environment News

'Materials from First Principles' theme for 2019 Nelson W. Taylor Lecture Series

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The 2019 Nelson W. Taylor Lecture Series in Materials Science and Engineering will be held from 8:30 a.m. to noon on Thursday, April 11 in the HUB-Robeson Center’s Freeman Auditorium on Penn State’s University Park campus. The theme of this year’s lecture series is “Materials from First Principles.”

Researchers look for successful end to power grid failures

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Anyone who has experienced an extended power outage knows that the effects can go well beyond inconvenient and become outright dangerous. Luckily, with the help of a $999,000 NSF Cyber Physical Systems grant, Nilanjan Ray Chaudhuri, assistant professor in electrical engineering, is working on research to prevent failures in the power grid and enable a quick recovery when they do occur.

Seminar to offer better understanding on AI technology and real-world uses

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C. Lee Giles will present a seminar on AI and machine learning and its current uses in real-world cases as part of Penn State's Institute for CyberScience seminar series.

Three research projects receive funding via College of Engineering ENGINE grants

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The Penn State College of Engineering recently selected three projects for funding through its Engineering for Innovation & Entrepreneurship grant program.

Penn State faculty elected senior members of the National Academy of Inventors

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The National Academy of Inventors has named 66 academic inventors to the inaugural class of NAI senior members. Among these are six Penn State researchers.

Antireflection coating makes plastic invisible

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Antireflection (AR) coatings on plastics have a multitude of practical applications, including glare reduction on eyeglasses, computer monitors and the display on your smart-phone when outdoors. Now, researchers at Penn State have developed an AR coating that improves on existing coatings to the extent that it can make transparent plastics, such as Plexiglas, virtually invisible.

Penn State chosen by Department of Energy to help modernize the power grid

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In an effort to modernize and reimagine the United States' power grid, Penn State researchers have qualified for a highly selective, innovative competition sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy.

Re-Imagining Energy: Generating Energy

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Penn State researchers are developing a range of innovative technologies to harvest the sustainable energy of natural processes to power our future. Part one of a five-part series.

Re-Imagining Energy: Storing Energy

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Penn State researchers are at the forefront of a revolution in materials that's enabling batteries that charge faster, last longer, and are safer than conventional batteries. Part two of a five-part series.

Energizing the food-energy-water nexus: the fortuitous tale of duckweed

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Rachel Brennan knows how precious of a commodity water is. During her time as the director of Penn State's Eco-Machine, her work has involved a helpful little plant that is impacting the food-energy-water nexus.

NSF funds $3 million graduate training program focused on Food-Energy-Water

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The National Science Foundation has awarded a $3 million grant to an interdisciplinary team of Penn State researchers to create a new graduate program that will train students to find solutions to real-world problems facing Food-Energy-Water (FEW) systems.

Carbon dioxide-to-methanol process improved by catalyst

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Dramatic improvements have been made to the process of converting carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, to methanol, a fuel and building block for a wide range of everyday materials, according to Penn State researchers.