NTNU joins the EU’s Climate-KIC programme
NTNU launched its partnership on 24 September with the EU’s premier programme to address climate change.
Energy and environment
LOADING CONTENT
Turning political pledges into action on climate change
Beginning on 30 November, the nations of the world will gather in Paris to discuss a new global agreement on climate change. But what will it take to transform international political will into real action to curb global warming?
Drilling down to understand sea ice
Global warming is upending virtually everything that scientists know about the Arctic ice cap. During the first half of 2015, a multinational team of researchers froze the RV Lance into the Arctic ice to learn more about how this ice has changed. NTNU researchers were among the scientists seeking to learn more about this changing environment.
The jewel in the crown
“Dynamic positioning” has been hailed as “the jewel in the crown” and Norway’s greatest engineering feat since World War II. But what is it?
Texas researcher recognized with NTNU/SINTEF award
A Texas chemical engineer has been recognized with the 2015 SINTEF and NTNU CCS Award.
Electric vehicle analysis wins prize
Ever wonder how green your electric car really is? A team of NTNU researchers answered that question — and won a prize for their work.
Recycling aluminium, one can at a time
Producing pure aluminium from ore accounts for as much as 1 per cent of all greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. Recycling is the best way to reduce that carbon footprint – but manufacturers and recycling companies will have to plan carefully to avoid problems with impurities that accumulate in recycled aluminium over time.
Clay can be used for carbon capture
Ordinary clay can be as good as more advanced materials for capturing carbon dioxide.
Carving up the global carbon pie in a new way
When negotiators come to Paris this December to discuss a binding and universal agreement on controlling climate change, they have to know how much each country contributes to the greenhouse gas emissions problem. A new method offers the best hope yet for accurately accounting for these emissions by providing the right incentives and assigning fair responsibilities.
Green light for the world’s first intelligent oil pipelines
Electronics installed in Norwegian oil pipelines have been tested both at sea and in transport vessel reeling simulations. All that now remains is to install them offshore.
Predicting a safe lifetime for risers
More than 90 percent of Brazil’s petroleum reserves are found in deep water or ultra-deep water areas offshore. Researchers at SINTEF’s Brazil office are using advanced modelling and testing, including neural networks, to improve the lifespan and safety of a key component used to exploit these deep water reserves.
Cheaper heating using environmentally-friendly wood-burning stoves
Firewood is a key energy resource. Norway has about two million wood-burning stoves, with a little over half in regular use. For this reason, it’s important that they are efficient and environmentally-friendly.
A Third Industrial Revolution for Norway
Norway’s wealth and prosperity over the last four decades has been built on oil, but Jeremy Rifkin, a futurist and social and economic thinker, says it’s time for the country to change. The Third Industrial Revolution is coming, and Norway needs to abandon fossil fuels and move towards a greener future that relies on renewable energy, shared transport and ultra-efficient housing.
When almost clean isn’t clean enough
The solar cell industry is headed into clean-room labs to better understand and improve the materials that they are working with.
Prevent winter damage to your home
Every winter, many buildings collapse under the weight of snow. Climate change may result in more rain and greater volumes of snow, and many buildings have not been designed to cope with these conditions.
Extreme weather in the Arctic causes problems for people, wildlife
The last week of January 2012 brought wild weather to the Norwegian arctic island archipelago of Svalbard and its largest town, Longyearbyen. A new cross-disciplinary study provides a comprehensive look at the effects of this extreme weather event on everything from town infrastructure to the natural environment.
NTNU and CERN sign commercialization agreement
NTNU has signed an agreement with CERN to create a Business Incubation Centre (BIC) at NTNU to commercialize CERN technology.
Low-carbon electricity future is clean and feasible
The countries of the world wrapped up preliminary climate talks in Lima, Peru this weekend with an agreement on how the UN’s 194 countries will tackle climate change. The agreement comes in advance of major negotiations scheduled for Paris next year to designed to curb the world’s production of greenhouse gases. In a publication from earlier this year, researchers at NTNU’s Industrial Ecology Programme report that the low-carbon future that would result from curbing greenhouse gas emissions is both feasible from a practical standpoint, and will also substantially reduce air pollution.
Turning humble seaweed to biofuel
A Norwegian research group has been able to achieve bio-oil yields of 79% from a common kelp. Other researchers working with the same species have yields closer to 20%. The secret is to heat the kelp very quickly and bring it to the right temperature within seconds.
Hope for the climate, hope for clean air
Climate talks in New York this week have offered a glimmer of hope that the world’s political leaders finally understand the need to act to curb global warming. An NTNU researcher says that these actions will have a beneficial side effect: cleaner air in some of the most polluted places on the planet.
Hunting pressure changes moose genes
Hunting pressure may affect moose populations in a negative way, researchers say.
The Towing Tank turns 75
NTH, Norway’s first technical university and one of the main predecessors to NTNU, SINTEF and MARINTEK, opened in Trondheim in 1910. Just three years later its scientists began to think very big – 170 metres big.
Capturing false hormones
They damage our ability to reproduce, and they pollute the natural environment. Yet chemicals known as hormone mimics can be found in consumer goods. Eventually they end up in our water. But we now have a way of capturing them.
Monitoring neighbourhood electricity consumption
With more and more Norwegian households owning one or even two electric cars requiring charging overnight, how will we manage without sacrificing our hot morning shower and fresh bread for breakfast?