Energy storage

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Professor Ann Mari Svensson

Why making lighter and better batteries takes time

Chinese car manufacturers aren’t the only ones trying to develop new types of batteries. New materials are being tested in Norwegian laboratories to make batteries lighter, cheaper and more environmentally friendly.

What’s the best way of warming up your electric car?

Up until now, car manufacturers and others have been recommending using electricity from the grid to warm up your car on cold winter mornings because this will save the battery and ensure maximum range. But research is showing that this isn’t always necessary. Nor does it save you money.

‘Bio-batteries’ enable us to store solar and wind energy

Up until now it has been a challenge to store the energy we generate when the sun is shining and the wind is blowing. But researchers at a laboratory in Trondheim in Norway have succeeded in doing just this – and entirely without any form of advanced battery technology.

First ones out to buy and sell neighbourhood electricity

Many buildings with solar cells produce more electricity than they consume themselves, but current legislation prevents surplus power from being sold to neighbouring consumers. A pilot project in Trondheim will be the first in the world to test a system that makes this possible.

The Alchemists: Turning wild water into white coal

How Norwegian scientists and engineers harnessed the country’s wild waterfalls by developing super efficient turbines — and how advances in turbine technology being developed now may be the future in a zero-carbon world.

Turning waste heat into hydrogen fuel

Hydrogen as an energy carrier can help us move away from fossil fuels, but only if it is created efficiently. One way to improve efficiency is to use waste heat that’s left over from other industrial processes.

Sun and wind in a box

Renewable energy is fine, but often it’s needed at times other than when the wind is blowing or the sun makes an appearance. The energy needs to be stored – and a new method is on the horizon.

Measuring devices for the world’s most extreme environment

Norwegian research scientists are contributing to the development of the world’s hottest geothermal well in a non-volcanic area. The goal is to exploit the inexhaustible supply of heat from the interior of the Earth, and this calls for equipment that can withstand the most extreme conditions.

How well do solar cells really work in the Nordic climate?

Experiments in SINTEF’s climate lab demonstrate that solar cells work very effectively in Norway in spite of the rain and cold. But there is one thing that owners should be aware of if they want to get the most from the sun’s energy.

Our cities are hidden power stations

Waste heat and locally-produced renewable energy can be generated by compact, “urban power plants” that are efficient enough to supply heat to entire housing estates.