According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, approximately 15 percent of net anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions come from the transportation sector. To meet global climate targets, we must devise ways to get people and goods from point A to point B without burning fossil fuels. In this month’s special report on the greening of… Continue reading The Greening of Transportation
Author: IEEE_Spectrum
Compact Spinning Tech Makes Thermal Imaging Bright
Seeing heat, as a cutting-edge field of research today, is getting hotter. Purdue University researchers have merged the power of advanced surfaces (including metamaterials) with thermal imaging algorithms to create technology that could open new frontiers in machine vision and autonomous systems. Previously, such advanced surfaces had been used for imaging tech in the visible… Continue reading Compact Spinning Tech Makes Thermal Imaging Bright
This Lockheed Martin Researcher’s Work on UAVs Saves Lives
Kingsley Fregene wants to keep people out of harm’s way—so much so that he has ordered his life around that fundamental goal. As director of technology integration at Lockheed Martin, in Grand Prairie, Texas, he leads a team that is actively pursuing breakthroughs designed to, among other things, allow life-saving missions to be performed in… Continue reading This Lockheed Martin Researcher’s Work on UAVs Saves Lives
Solid-State EV Batteries Now Face “Production Hell”
Recent solid-state battery announcements by Volkswagen and QuantumScape are raising hopes in the electric-vehicle market, but automotive battery experts are warning that the road to widespread, solid-state success is still a long and arduous one. A single breakthrough, as if from above, is not likely to turn the whole industry on its nose anytime soon.… Continue reading Solid-State EV Batteries Now Face “Production Hell”
BT Group Converts Telecom Infrastructure to EV Chargers
One of the knocks on the potential of electric vehicles has been the paucity of charging stations compared with the near-ubiquitous presence of gas stations. The standard question posed by EV naysayers is, “What if an EV’s battery is nearly depleted and the nearest charging station is too far to reach?” BT Group, Britain’s largest… Continue reading BT Group Converts Telecom Infrastructure to EV Chargers
The Case for Nuclear Cargo Ships
The shipping industry has been trying to cut its carbon emissions for years, and with little to show for it. Nearly all of the world’s ship fleet still runs on diesel fuel, with about a quarter of new ships on order being built to run on somewhat lower-carbon alternatives like liquefied natural gas, methanol, or… Continue reading The Case for Nuclear Cargo Ships
Daimler Truck Fuels Big Rigs With Hydrogen
At CES this past week, the trucking startup Nikola showed off a hydrogen-fueled semi truck, one of its first ever built in the U.S. But the troubled company with a convicted founder is not the only player these days seeing a promising future in fuel-cell fueled big rigs. Daimler Truck has also recently announced their… Continue reading Daimler Truck Fuels Big Rigs With Hydrogen
500-Mile EV Pack Uses Two Batteries in ONE
Dragging a fledgling American battery company through myriad minefields into mass production is a daunting mission—even for a veteran battery engineer and executive who played lead roles with Apple’s hush-hush EV program, the now-defunct A123 Systems, and Ford. In December, Mujeeb Ijaz stepped aside as CEO of Michigan-based Our Next Energy (ONE), following the layoffs… Continue reading 500-Mile EV Pack Uses Two Batteries in ONE
What You Might Not Know About Connected Autonomous Vehicles
Critical considerations pertinent to connected autonomous vehicles, such as ethics, liability, privacy, and cybersecurity, do not share the same spotlight as the CAVs’ benefits. Although CAVs’ abilities to reduce the number of fatal accidents and to consume less fuel receive most of the attention, the vehicles’ challenges are equally worthy of discussion. In a trio… Continue reading What You Might Not Know About Connected Autonomous Vehicles
11 Intriguing Engineering Milestones to Look for in 2024
This story is part of our Top Tech 2024 special report. Journey to the Center of the Earth To unlock the terawatt potential of geothermal energy, MIT startup Quaise Energy is testing a deep-drilling rig in 2024 that will use high-power millimeter waves to melt a column of rock down as far as 10 to… Continue reading 11 Intriguing Engineering Milestones to Look for in 2024