Imagine if the next coat of paint you put on the outside of your home generates electricity from light — electricity that can be used to power the appliances and equipment on the inside. Scientists have just created an inexpensive “solar paint” that uses semiconducting nanoparticles to produce energy.

Paint-on solar cells developed

Water splitting in photo-electrochemical cells to yield hydrogen is a promising way to sustainable fuels. Scientists have now made major progress in developing highly efficient electrodes – made of an algal protein, thus mimicking a central step in natural photosynthesis.

Towards artificial photosynthesis for solar hydrogen generation: Algal protein gives boost to electrochemical water splitting

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The efficiency of conventional solar cells could be significantly increased, according to new research on the mechanisms of solar energy conversion.

Discovery of a ‘dark state’ could mean a brighter future for solar energy

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An innovative project is using solar generators to provide IT resources and ‘hands-on’ science for students in developing countries.

New solar-powered classroom brings science to schools in developing countries

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A planet made of diamonds may sound lovely, but you wouldn’t want to live there. A new study suggests that some stars in the Milky Way could harbor “carbon super-Earths” – giant terrestrial planets that contain up to 50 percent diamond. But if they exist, those planets are likely devoid of life as we know it.

Giant super-Earths made of diamond are possible, study suggests

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Pyrite, better known as “fool’s gold,” was familiar to the ancient Romans and has fooled prospectors for centuries — but has now helped researchers discover related compounds that offer new, cheap and promising options for solar energy. These new compounds, unlike some solar cell materials made from rare, expensive or toxic elements, would be benign and could be processed from some of the most abundant elements on Earth.

‘Fool’s gold’ aids discovery of new options for cheap, benign solar energy

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Researchers have used nanoparticles of a copper compound to develop a high-power battery electrode that is so inexpensive to make, so efficient and so durable that it could be used to build batteries big enough for economical large-scale energy storage on the electrical grid — something researchers have sought for years.

Nanoparticle electrode for batteries could make grid-scale power storage feasible

Electrical engineers have developed a new compound that could help improve solar-energy generation, computers, lighting technology and Internet capabilities.

New material can enhance energy, computer, lighting technologies

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