September 16, 2026 — Penn State researchers have found that electric arc furnace (EAF) steel slag can serve as a low‑cost, high‑temperature steel slag thermal energy storage material, enabling more efficient storage of solar power. Why Solar Power Needs Storage Solar electricity drops off when clouds pass or after sunset, creating intermittency that can destabilize…
September 2, 2026 — Researchers at the University of Waterloo have unveiled a 3D printed redox flow battery electrode that mimics natural structures. The breakthrough could make it easier to store wind and solar power at the grid level. By weaving geometry from nature with digital‑light‑processing (DLP) 3D printing, the team delivered an electrode that…
July 6, 2026 — In a significant advancement in energy storage, researchers at The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) have unveiled a method to 3D-print battery components in nearly any shape. This 3D-printed battery electrolyte breakthrough could fundamentally change how engineers design portable electronics, medical implants, and aerospace systems. Led by Alexis Maurel,…
July 02, 2026 — Battery safety failures can escalate rapidly into thermal runaway, where heat buildup triggers a dangerous chain reaction of material breakdown and ignition. While such incidents remain rare due to existing safeguards, the push toward higher-energy-density batteries demands stronger prevention measures. At the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Laboratory of the Rockies…
June 9, 2026 — Surging global demand for lithium-ion batteries is driving the energy storage revolution, powering electric vehicles (EVs), grid-scale systems, and renewable integration. Yet supply chain vulnerabilities persist, with China dominating refining capacity despite abundant hard-rock resources in the U.S., Australia, and beyond. A new MIT lithium extraction breakthrough could change that. Researchers…
June 8, 2026 — In the race to build better batteries for electric vehicles and renewable energy storage, one of the biggest bottlenecks has been electrolyte design. University of Chicago researchers have now taken a major leap forward with ElectrolyteGPT, an AI system capable of generating entire battery electrolyte formulations — not just individual ingredients,…