Alternative Energies
Electric cars: Batteries with brains

The battery is the heart of the electric car. Researchers have developed an energy storage device which is significantly more cost-effective over the entire life cycle in comparison with previous models. If one of the more than one hundred battery cells is defective, it can be replaced easily. Until now, the entire battery had to be replaced.

Global renewable energy growth continues

Global renewable energy capacity continues to grow year after year. In 2014, around 135 GW of new renewable energy capacity were added worldwide, meaning that the total global renewable energy capacity now stands at around 1,712 GW, representing 8.5{f24b02adee2102ff0c5f5079c50862fc8ba5fa53f8615b567037555463da2377} increase from the year 2013. In the same time, carbon dioxide emissions remained pretty much the same in 2014, as compared to 2013, even despite the 1.5{f24b02adee2102ff0c5f5079c50862fc8ba5fa53f8615b567037555463da2377} annual increase in global energy consumption. The growth in renewable energy capacity is the main factor preventing the growth in carbon emissions. The other important factor is the improvement in energy efficiency.