Energy and environment

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Photo of self-propelled ferry.

NTNU trials world’s first urban autonomous passenger ferry

In earlier times, cities like Trondheim and Bergen had a ferryman who rowed people from place to place. They were the taxi drivers of the waterways. Now, a new, future-oriented form of water transport will be available to the public.

Sustainability. Jack Liu.

Why there is still hope for our planet

Is it too late to save our planet? Professor Jianguo Liu is the newest winner of The Gunnerus Award in Sustainability Science. He offers us some hope.

man in winter coat

Is it really selfish to complain about electricity prices?

Norwegians are not necessarily being selfish by wanting to go back to the good old days of cheap electricity. Nor do people think it is acceptable to use the situation for some to enrich themselves at the expense of others, says the researcher.

Hydrogen production and carbon capture – in a single step

A team of Norwegian researchers has succeeded in producing hydrogen using a far more efficient method than is currently in use. The technology was ready as early as in 2017. The team has also demonstrated that the process can be scaled up for commercial application.

Coastal marshlands are the place between land and sea

An ‘unknown’ ecosystem that is good news for the climate

At the boundary between the land and sea, there exists an ecosystem that has been overlooked by Norwegians for so long that it was only recently given an official name. But studies are revealing that it has some very desirable properties.

Eavesdropping on whales in the high Arctic

The Earth’s oceans are crisscrossed with roughly 1.2 million km of fibre optic telecommunication cables — enough to girdle the planet 30 times. Researchers have now succeeded in using fibre in a submarine cable as a passive listening system, enabling them to listen to and monitor whales.

Capturing CO2 from flue gases using a super membrane

As part of a six-year research project, researchers have succeeded in developing a membrane that captures CO2 in an entirely innovative way. Their work has resulted in an article published in the prestigious research periodical Science Magazine.

Norwegian rivers need to be better protected

When hydroelectric power plants suddenly switch off the water, we risk killing fish fry and other living organisms in rivers. The regulations need to change, say scientists and anglers.

Thousands of environmental bombs under Norwegian homes

Heating with oil in homes and commercial buildings is now banned in Norway. The storage tanks are supposed to be removed from buildings, but many people choose not to get rid of these environmental time bombs.

Could this dry battery system be Elon Musk’s next big thing?

The idea behind batteries is to make the planet greener, but they all start their lives as energy-demanding environmental liabilities. Research scientists at SINTEF have succeeded in making batteries cheaper and simpler using a process that requires much less energy consumption.

An offshore gas turbine. These can be replaced by fuel cells.

We can electrify the continental shelf without electricity cables

Electrification of the Norwegian continental shelf is a long-standing political issue. Now research scientists believe this can be done using fuel cells installed on the platforms. This will reduce CO2 emissions and remove the need to lay new subsea cables.