wire - news in brief

All-perovskite tandem solar cells could soon pick up where silicon solar cells reach their limits. These highly efficient, lightweight and flexible cells have already proven themselves in the laboratory - now, researchers are working on scaling them up and making them ready for the real world. Roof tiles are becoming a thing of the past: Today, more and more Swiss roofs boast large black and blue rectangles that convert sunlight into electricity.

The word "perovskite" describes a naturally occurring mineral, but also a whole range of highly specialized synthetic compounds that have promising applications in electronics and photovoltaics. But what do they actually have in common? Who discovered them? And how are researchers using them to create innovative technology? This is the focus of the new issue of Empa Quarterly.

At the final of the Not-a-Boring Competition 2024 in Bastrop, Texas, the team from Swissloop Tunneling came out on top thanks to a successful drilling process with a self-developed micro-tunneling machine.

Zero heat waste: This is the goal of a dozen European companies and research institutions, including Empa, in the Horizon Europe project HEATWISE.

From the desert to Swiss industry: As part of the new Mining the Atmosphere initiative, researchers are pursuing the goal of harvesting renewable energy in the Earth's sun belt, converting it several times and transporting it over long distances to where it is needed.

In October 2023, Nathalie Casas took over the lead of Empa's Energy, Mobility and Environment research department.

Skin injuries caused by prolonged pressure often occur in people who are unable to change their position independently - such as sick newborns in hospitals or elderly people.

AMAG Classic and Empa have jointly conducted a detailed and scientifically sound investigation into the compatibility of synthetic gasoline in classic cars. Engine components were tested for over a year and driving tests were carried out with selected classic cars. The result: classic cars can also be operated in a climate-friendly manner in the future, as synthetic gasoline can be used in older engines without hesitation.

Researchers have extracted nanocellulose from a waste product of beer brewing and processed it into an aerogel.

The largest EU research initiative ever launched has come to a successful end: The Graphene Flagship was officially concluded at the end of last year.

Industrial waste heat is an untapped goldmine: It is produced in large quantities, but is hardly used efficiently.

A team of researchers from Germany and Switzerland involving Empa is setting a milestone in weather and climate research: At the beginning of February, the renowned climate and weather model ICON has become available to all interested parties under an open source license. This is intended to make science and the scientific services behind it more transparent.

Two outstanding publications by young researchers were honored with the Empa Research Award. The recipients, Amogh Kinikar and Shih-Chi Yang, wrote their award-winning papers during their doctoral studies at Empa.

Instead of tubular commercial aircraft, other designs could be used in the future: Jets with a blended wing body would fly more efficiently and make less noise - but how would the noise emissions from these new types of aircraft affect people?

Are buildings that affect our climate in a positive way soon going to be a reality? In order to achieve the ambitious net zero target by 2050, we as a society need to rethink the standards and procedures we are living by.

If we want to achieve our climate goals and prevent irreversible changes to the Earth's climate system, we not only need to curb our greenhouse gas emissions, but also remove excess man-made CO2 from the atmosphere.

In late November, researchers from Switzerland and abroad convened at Empa with experts from the pharmaceutical company CSL Vifor for a joint workshop on nanomedicines.

Eight stakeholders from business, science and the public sector launched the first project for wireless charging of electric vehicles in Switzerland at the end of November 2023.

Yaroslav Romanyuk has been working at Empa for around 15 years on complex thin-film technologies for solar cells, printed circuits, novel solid-state batteries and other applications.

Under the motto "Idea generation and co-creation processes to promote technology transfer", around 60 participants from research, business, cantons and municipalities discussed innovative approaches to the energy transition at Empa in Dübendorf on 24 November.

LISA: Innosuisse funding for battery research Empa will collaborate with Battery Consult AG, a research and development company specializing in salt battery technology, and the Swiss Innovation Park

The Federal Commission for Air Hygiene has assessed the revised guideline values issued by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2021 and their significance for Switzerland's Air Pollution Control Ordinance.

Knee operations on the meniscus cartilage are a frequent procedure on a particularly complex part of the human body. researchers want to provide an improved basis for clinicians in order to reduce the risks of the operation. Using 3D models based on micro-computed tomography analyses in the laboratory, they are mapping the blood vessel network of the meniscus on a nanometer scale.

Balgrist University Hospital and the University of Zurich have appointed Inge Herrmann, a leading expert in the field of medical technology, to their academic team.

Non-toxic and scalable water-based flow batteries would be a good solution for storing renewable energy in urban areas - if it weren't for their very low energy density.

Today, the Dynamic Imaging Center at sitem-insel, the Swiss Institute for Translational Medicine and Entrepreneurship, opened its doors. Here, for the first time, X-ray images of a moving person can be taken simultaneously from two different directions. This enables clinical research that is unique in Europe and that represents a milestone in the investigation of musculoskeletal disorders.

The Empa research group led by Maksym Kovalenko is researching innovative materials for the batteries of tomorrow. Whether it's fast-charging electric cars or low-cost stationary storage, there's a promising material or a novel manufacturing process for every application. What are the hallmarks of a good battery? Is it its capacity? How fast it charges? Or its price? The answer depends on where the battery is used, says Empa researcher Kostiantyn Kravchyk.

Empa and Kyburz Switzerland AG are looking for ways to recycle end-of-life lithium-ion batteries in an efficient and resource-saving way. A specially developed experimental facility breaks down the old batteries into their components so that materials can be recovered as clean as possible. Everyone is familiar with this phenomenon from their cell phone or laptop: Over time, the capacity of the battery decreases, so that you have to reach for the charger more and more often.

Construction is underway, once again, at the research and innovation building NEST. The new unit goes by the name of STEP2. Over the past three years, project partners from various disciplines have developed innovations with high market potential, which will be implemented in a real-world construction project for the very first time.

To prevent irreversible and damaging changes to the Earth's climate system, we need to remove excess (man-made) CO2 from the atmosphere.

Environmentally friendly, ubiquitously available and recyclable: Clay is a clean alternative among building materials. Empa researcher Ellina Bernard is trying to find out how the coveted material can actually be used to build in a sustainable and stable way. Her research project is being funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) with an Ambizione grant.

The new Technology Outlook of the Swiss Academy of Engineering Sciences (SATW) showcases the most important findings of numerous Swiss experts from science and industry for a prosperous future. In the areas of Energy and Environment, Manufacturing Processes and Materials as well as Life Sciences, eleven scientists contributed to the identification of the most important trends and their impact on technology and society.

Converting electricity into hydrogen in order to store sustainable energy over a longer period is a hot topic. With the expertise and the tools of researchers, a master's student at ETH Zurich has investigated whether the use of a so-called power-to-hydrogen-to-power system in a multi-family house makes sense.

Researchers want to accelerate the development of urgently needed new energy storage systems with the help of the Aurora battery robot.

Switzerland is built, at least as far as the road network is concerned. Therefore - and despite recycling - significantly more reclaimed asphalt is generated today than can be reused in new roads.

Research institutes of the ETH Domain strengthen cooperation in strategic areas Energy transition, climate change, biodiversity and resource scarcity - today's challenges are complex, and the clock is ticking.