Using EV tyres to counter traffic noise
Research shows that fitting tyres with very low rolling resistance, combined with the right road surfacing, can provide just as much noise reduction as traditional noise barriers.
Energy and environment
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A major research effort into tomorrow’s digital power grids
How will a future electricity grid manage the demands of induction cooking, charging electric cars and roof-installed solar panels? The answer is Smart Grids, which involves digitisation of the electricity grid.
Three Arctic researchers at North Pole
Three NTNU researchers have visited the North Pole during a research cruise in their efforts to better understand sea ice.
Five Nordic universities look into the crystal ball
The Nordic Five Tech, an alliance of the leading technical universities in the Nordic countries, celebrated its tenth anniversary this June with a high level summit to plot a strategy for its next decade. There was talk of horses, cars, and swimming robot snakes.
Bombs away— WWII bombs provide living laboratories for cold-water coral reefs
Ocean dumping of munitions from WWII was common in Norway and along the European coast. Some of these bomb dumps offer a natural living laboratory where biologists can study cold-water coral reefs.
Surplus heat for Norwegian homes
A district heating grid supplying low temperature heat is set to boost surplus and renewably-sourced heat utilisation.
Japan-Norway Arctic Science and Innovation Week
Representatives from Japanese and Norwegian universities, research institutions, government agencies and industries interested in polar issues will gather in Tokyo in early June to present research results and build partnerships.
NTNU builds bridges to Japan
Starting today, Hiroshito Matsumoto will work from a base in Toyko on behalf of NTNU and the University of Bergen to build new research partnerships between Japan and Norway.
Freezing plants to predict the fate of the Arctic
Global warming means much warmer winters in the Arctic, with more rain and icing. Researchers are working to understand what that will do to plants that have evolved to overwinter under a thick blanket of snow.
Keeping Arctic villages, infrastructure from falling into the sea
The Arctic is set to be a 21st century boomtown, as summer sea ice melts away, opening the area to increased trans-Arctic shipping and oil and gas development. A new understanding of Arctic coastal erosion offers clues to how to best protect the docks and other infrastructure this development will bring.
Household consumption significant driver of climate, other environmental impacts
You won’t make big cuts in your environmental impact by taking shorter showers or turning out the lights. The real environmental problem, a new analysis has shown, is embodied in the things you buy.
Hacking Trondheim to cut greenhouse gas emissions
NTNU and Norway’s technological capital—Trondheim—hosted a Climathon to give the city the tools it needs to make ambitious greenhouse gas cuts. The results might be helpful to other cities around the globe that face the same problem.
Food waste recycling not always the best idea
With Norway as a case study, a first-ever effort to quantify the benefits of recycling food waste versus preventing it shows prevention is the best policy. But Norway continues to invest significant funds in biogas facilities for food waste recycling.
The Paris summit is over— now what?
The climate summit in Paris ended with an agreement. But how do we ensure that the agreement is translated into action?
Prime-time charging of electric cars could be a problem
If everyone drove electric cars, there wouldn’t be enough power to charge them all when people got home in the afternoon. The solutions could affect your wallet.
Why we struggle to change our climate habits
Overfishing is part of the climate problem. There is little doubt that we need to change our habits, but what exactly do we need to do, and why is it so difficult?
Seven tips to cut your CO2 emissions
NTNU research can help you decide what measures will help cut your CO2 emissions the most. Reducing your shower time is one of them.
ABC — anything but coal
Policymakers, industry and government officials will have to invest US $2.5 trillion for electricity generation over the next 20 years. A new report presents the environmental costs and benefits linked to different renewable energy sources, and makes one thing abundantly clear: anything is better than coal.
Kon-Tiki2 expedition in Heyerdahl’s wake
The Kon-Tiki2 expedition aims to both reinforce and challenge Heyerdahl’s theories – and NTNU will gather unique research material from the major oceans that the expedition crosses
Norway’s coast challenging for offshore wind turbines
An offshore wind turbine currently costs twice as much to build as an onshore wind turbine. Truer pricing of environmental costs will help make renewable energy cost-effective.
Two tickets to Paris to talk about carbon cuts
NTNU was given only two admission tickets to the UN climate talks in Paris later this month. The tickets will be used in part by two researchers from the university’s Industrial Ecology Programme to give a workshop about carbon accounting.
A climate dictionary
Have you ever wondered what climate scientists are really saying, but find it a little embarrassing to ask anyone about the language? Here is a glossary that explains commonly used technical terms.
Timing is everything for renewable energy use
There’s no time to waste in shifting to renewable energy sources if we are to avoid dangerous climate change. That’s especially true when it comes to bioenergy, which causes a temporary increase in CO2 levels that is later removed as replacement biostocks grow.
Uncovering secrets of ice that burns
Methane hydrates can be seen as a potential energy source or as a dangerous source of methane – a greenhouse gas that is 20 times more potent than CO2. With the help of a supercomputer and an interdisciplinary team, scientists have uncovered important details about their stability if they are disturbed by human-induced or natural forces.