While most electronics, including autonomous vehicles, power themselves with batteries made of lithium, the growing demand for this element is expected to exhaust our planet’s land-based reserves by 2080. Future shortages could cause battery prices to skyrocket and hinder the … [Read more...] about Scientists develop innovative process that extracts lithium out of seawater
seawater
This seawater-powered lamp is bringing light to coastal communities
Like millions of other people on the planet, inhabitants on the Guajira Peninsula, a coastal desert at the northernmost tip of South America, lack adequate access to electricity. Something they do have in abundance, however, is saltwater — a commodity that is now charging small … [Read more...] about This seawater-powered lamp is bringing light to coastal communities
A new hydrophobic surface could turn the ocean’s waves into electricity
There's waterproof and then there's the surface developed by engineers at the University of California San Diego. They've developed a surface so hydrophobic that it can actually be used to generate electrical voltage, turning seawater into 50 millivolts. … [Read more...] about A new hydrophobic surface could turn the ocean’s waves into electricity