Today's Tech News: Notable or Not?

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1127794 "solar thermal phase-change materials' top layer melts, turning insulative making it harder for heat to reach the unmelted solid underneath, overcome continuously feeding cold solid particles into concentrated solar rays' focal point/ removing hot melted ones... 2 mm core-shell manganese ferrite particles absorb >91% of solar radiation... 49.7% solar thermal storage efficiency, stable 686°C outlet temperature, survived 1K thermal cycles with 97% mass retention... slow, diffusion-limited now fast, advection-dominated"

https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-wood-solar-power-sun.html "strip wood of lignin to increase porosity/ prevent light reflection, coat internal channels with: black phosphorene for light absorption/ conductivity)/ silver nanoparticles to amplify solar interaction... fill with stearic acid/ hydrocarbon chains storing sunlight as heat during day... 91.2% conversion efficiency into heat, nearly 4X more efficient than raw wood... heat after dark convert heat into electricity... 0.65 V/ cycle, comparable to traditional solar cells... consistent performance over 100 cycles, fires self-extinguished"

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1122111 "making dense thermoelectric materials requires extreme temperatures (~1000°C)/ massive pressure, overcome adding excess selenium, with its low melting point, to silver selenide nanoparticles at just 350°C/ ambient pressure... achieved dense, high-quality bulk structure by "annealing" (heating)... selenium fills gaps between particles increasing electrical conductivity/ blocking heat flow, boosting thermoelectric efficiency to 0.927 zT... 2X better compressive strength/ flexibility... data centers, wearable IoT, solar"

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1111246 "encapsulates up to 60% stearic acid by weight without leakage... 118 J/g thermal storage density (melting enthalpy)... improved thermal conductivity compared to pure stearic acid, allowing efficient heat absorption/ release... elevates stearic acid activation energy, indicating improved thermal stability... retains >97% original heat storage capacity, maintains stable phase change temperatures after 100 heating/ cooling cycles... chitin from seafood waste: low-cost, environmentally friendly... buildings, electronics" Related: Phase-change-based thermal energy storage system cuts electricity use by up to 25% https://www.hungarianconservative.com/articles/current/heatventors-thermal-energy-storage-innovation/ Leak-free thermal batteries from shell waste: Chitin aerogel locks in heat https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1120456

https://www.aau.dk/new-technology-can-store-green-energy-for-months-n151116 "when electricity is needed, the stored heat is converted back into electricity using thermophotovoltaic cells. These specialized devices convert IR emitted by the heat source into electricity... nanostructured emitter can withstand extreme temperatures, up to 1400 °C, and has shown stable operation for over six months, making it suitable for long-term energy storage... reduces energy storage costs by up to 80% compared to traditional batteries and can also be used to recover waste heat in industrial processes"

https://www.newequipment.com/home/product/55325167/exowatt-p3-modular-energy-system-delivers-24-hour-renewable-power "heat stored in sustainably sourced U.S. -made: silicon-based composite, clay, and ceramic blocks... for industry: electricity-intensive users such as data centers, and high-temperature thermal energy uses such as manufacturing/ chemical processing... modular, scalable, each unit fits in a 40 ft shipping container footprint... generates electricity by way of Stirling engine at <4 cents/ kWh... minimal maintenance, rapid deployment... unified interface gives operators real-time control from single module to entire fleet" See also: The trouble with Exowatt’s ‘groundbreaking’ tech: We’ve seen it before https://www.latitudemedia.com/news/the-trouble-with-exowatts-groundbreaking-energy-tech-weve-seen-it-before/

https://phys.org/news/2025-07-molecules-sunlight-chemical-energy-demand.html "molecular solar thermal (MOST): structurally change upon absorbing sunlight, release heat when triggered to return to original shape... Dewar isomerization: energy storage in chemical bonds... energy locked in for long periods, released using heat, specific wavelength light, or catalyst... absorb not only UV but visible light, solvent-free, >28 cycles with minimal fatigue... formation of isomers crucial... up to 170 kJ/mol, 0.65 MJ/kg energy storage densities... recharge within 6–8 hours... fully carbon-based systems" Related: EarthEn Heat Battery stores electricity and releases it as high-temperature steam or hot air (200°C to 500°C) on demand, with customizable 4-12 hour storage durations, up to 90% round-trip efficiency https://www.altenergymag.com/news/2025/08/01/earthen-energy-launches-breakthrough-heat-battery-at-re-storage-to-decarbonize-industrial-heat-processes/45854 Voltanova thermal st...

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1090733 "water molecules simultaneously absorbed (intercalated)/ adsorbed from atmosphere... water molecules enter MnO2 layers at around 130°C, surface adsorption emerging below 60°C by breaking down layered manganese dioxide into ultrathin nanosheets... this dual mechanism increases total amount storable water molecules by 1.5X, 30% enhances energy storage density compared to bulk MnO2... interlayer water exhibits solid-like characteristics, surface-adsorbed more like liquid... solar/ waste heat, thermoelectric" Related: Inking heterometallic nanosheets: A scalable breakthrough for coating, electronics, and electrocatalyst applications https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1090761 Manganese’s resilience is key to its use as a catalyst https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1102511

  https://www.mgathermal.com/news/mga-thermal-achieves-world-first-247-renewable-industrial-steam "MGA converts intermittent renewable electricity into latent heat storage: more compact footprint/ temperature range, more reliable, energy efficient/ affordable than sensible heat storage... on-demand produces steam during phase change... prototype 12m long, 3m wide, 4m tall stores 5 MWh with 500kW thermal dispatch power, providing continuous superheated steam for 24 hours that can power >270 homes, utilizing 3,700 proprietary Miscibility Gap Alloy blocks... can simultaneously charge and discharge energy" Simon Derricutt commented: Sounds good, but it's electricity in and steam out by the look of it - a bit harder to input energy while it's being taken out if you use some heated fluid and a heat exchanger, and much less efficient too, and in any case the renewable power from solar and wind comes as electrical energy. Problem really is what you use that steam for. If y...

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08214-1 "boric/ succinic acid eutectic mixture transitions at around 150°C, with record high 394 ± 5% J g−1 reversible thermal energy uptake, by melting boric acid component... simultaneously undergoes dehydration into metaboric acid/ water, dissolving into the liquid readily rehydrating re-forming boric acid on cooling... thermal stability >1K heating/ cooling cycles... very low cost, eco-friendly/ sustainable... high energy density/ capacity/ efficiency" Related: Brenmiller Energy's bGen ONE Thermal Storage: 50% Performance Gains at Half the Cost https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250423326817/en/Brenmiller-Energy-Unveils-Technology-Roadmap-2030-Delivering-50-Performance-Gains-at-Half-the-Cost-for-Thermal-Energy-Storage

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/261716759_LTA-CAES_-_A_low-temperature_approach_to_Adiabatic_Compressed_Air_Energy_Storage "most thermal energy storage requires high temperatures/ high pressures... multistage radial compressors and expanders with single stages rotating with different speeds allowing for intermediate air flowcooling and reheating... roundtrip efficiencies 52–60%, slightly lower compared to those envisioned for high temperature A-CAES. However, it can be shown in an economic analysis that its fast start-up characteristics and wide-ranging part load ability overcompensates the lower cycle efficiencies with regard to plant profitability" Related: VHD Tech Modelling Highlights Immense Clean Energy Potential https://www.marketindex.com.au/asx/gcm/announcements/vhd-tech-modelling-highlights-immense-clean-energy-potential-2A1566446 Why thermal batteries could replace lithium-ion batteries for energy storage https://www.cnbc.com/2024/12/06/why-thermal-batteri...

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1063065 "stores solar energy for several weeks/ months as chemical bonds (photoswitches)... overcomes trade-off between energy storage capacity and efficient absorption of solar light... indirect light harvesting incorporating a sensitizer, absorbs light/ transfers energy to photoswitch, which cannot be directly excited... increased solar energy storage efficiency > 1 order magnitude... each absorbed photon can trigger a chemical bond formation process... household heating up to large-scale energy storage"

https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2024/10/02/storing-solar-power-through-aluminum-rock-composite/ "recycled aluminum/ volcanic rock/ proprietary material preventing radiative loss, composite stores heat up to 500°C, producing up to 210°C hot water/ steam... enclosed in vacuum-insulated (prevents heat conduction/ convection loss) chamber heated using electric elements... produces steam through small amount of water passed through coil within core, extracting stored energy... varying water volume controls power output... being modular allows storage capacity up to 100 MWh... built 4 MWh first demonstrator" Related: Metallic fuels as the energy storage of the future? When aluminum and iron overtake hydrogen https://xpert.digital/en/metallic-fuels-as-energy-storage/

https://www.pv-magazine.com/2024/05/15/enhancing-photovoltaic-thermal-module-performance-with-tesla-valves/ "enhances heat transfer (storage)... glass cover, PV panel, heat-absorbing plate, flow channel, fluid, ethyl vinyl acetate encapsulant, Tesla valve (passive 1D valvular conduit moving fluid in single direction without moving parts)... turbulent fluid flow, increasing heat transfer coefficient reducing temperature difference between fluid and solid surface... fluid velocity >1 m/s lowers PV temperature... efficiencies: electrical 16.32%, thermal 59.65%... optimal valve: angle 30°, pipe diameter ratio 1... future: test nanofluids"

https://news.umich.edu/renewable-grid-recovering-electricity-from-heat-storage-hits-44-efficiency/ "power conversion efficiency 44% (goal 50%) at 1435°C surpassing 37% achieved previously, closing in on theoretical maximum... optimizing semiconductor capturing photons (20-30% IR have enough energy generating electricity)... also collect photons above/ below semiconductor's range adding gold reflector (air bridge) beyond air gaps above/ below semiconductor giving energy another chance to be re-emitted, which regular solar cells cannot do"

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240422640698/en/ "fit 40-foot shipping container, scalable... stores heat instead of electricity... heat engine enables electricity 24 hours/ day... electricity as low as $0.01/ kWh or less... deployable rapidly and cost-effectively – and it's available this year,... Exowatt is built to respond quickly to the escalating energy demands of the modern world, especially those spurred by the rapid growth of AI... backlog >500 MW for data centers" Related: World's most efficient engine becomes a colossal clean energy generator https://newatlas.com/technology/wartsila-hydrogen-generator/

https://www.rechargenews.com/energy-transition/whole-buildings-could-become-giant-batteries-with-help-of-cenosphere-tech-breakthrough/2-1-1595981 "microcapsule polymer shell phase-change materials used for thermal energy storage strengthened using bioinspired method for applying silica coating on surface... coating made of cenospheres: lightweight, hollow, and spherical ceramic microspheres that are byproduct of coal-burning power plants... improved microcapsule thermal performance and fire resistance... incorporated into building materials such as concrete, heating, ventilation and air conditioning units without drastic loss of structural strength" Related:  Turning building walls into rechargeable batteries https://www.techno-science.net/en/news/what-if-walls-could-become-batteries-N26983.html

https://www.solarpaces.org/why-solar-sulphur-cycle-ideal-seasonal-thermal-energy-storage/ "sulfur’s energy density order magnitude higher/ sand particles remain stable without degrading at much higher temperatures than molten salt... sulphur is cheap... burning using concentrated solar (no C02 emmissions) enables 1000° - 1500°C, centrifugal force creates dense particle film absorbing heat... enclosed endless cycles: sulohur --> sulphuric acid (valuable in itself)--> sulphur dioxide --> sulphur... power density >5 MW/m³ at ambient pressure (> 75 MW/m³ at 15 bar pressure)... seasonal storage" Related: Study finds volcanic ash could store excess solar energy https://interestingengineering.com/innovation/volcanic-ash-stor age-solar-energy New Study Validates CSP Plant Efficiency for Round-the-Clock Renewable Energy https://www.azocleantech.com/news.aspx?newsID=35272 Heliogen harnessing the sun for new possibilities https://kathyvarol.com/harnessing-the-sun-for-new-...

https://techxplore.com/news/2023-11-salt-batteries-storage.html "salts tested for availability, safety, compactness and recyclability... heating strontium chloride salt releases water vapor.. adding back water vapor releases heat again... heat from pv solar panels extracted by boiler and used to heat house/ shower with excess heating 10 m3 of salt, which corresponds to two to three wardrobes. With that quantity natural gas no longer needed and heat stored in summer can be used in winter" Comments from Revolution-Green: "Rather expensive, that much strontium salt would cost ~$30k or more... also, if the demand for Strontium Chloride rises, the cost will too. Needs something a lot cheaper now and in massive supply"  http://disq.us/p/2wplbjw Related: UK’s unique heat-capturing glass tubes are keeping US fishermen warm https://interestingengineering.com/innovation/solar-solution-focuses-on-suns-heat Passive Photovoltaic Cooling: Advances Toward Low-Temperature Operatio...

https://techxplore.com/news/2023-11-boosting-thermal-energy-storage-polyelectrolytes.html "dextran sulfate sodium improves thermal performance and stability of salt hydrate phase change materials... pure salt hydrate PCM cannot sustain up to 10 melt-freeze cycles, but with the additive, stability is retained after 150 cycles... better performing heat pumps" Related: Fourth Power, a startup, receives $19 million for 1 MWh prototype liquid tin energy storage https://interestingengineering.com/innovation/bill-gates-liquid-tin-energy Integrating thermochemical salt-hydrate into a building’s HVAC system for load flexibility https://www.nrel.gov/news/detail/press/2024/thermochemical-tech-shows-promising-path-for-building-heat