Quantum matter
Superconductivity, charge order, fractional excitations, and slow quantum dynamics.
11 problemsEnergy and materials
Generating, storing, and converting energy demands both physical understanding and workable devices.
Subjects: Energy systems · Condensed matter
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Hydrogen production
Seawater-fed systems, low-iridium catalysts and polymer-bound electrodes face different durability tests.
3 problemsHeat and energy
Moving, storing and controlling heat, from cooling drives to hypersonic heat shields.
5 problemsSpaceflight
Propellant, plasma devices and heat shields for sustained spaceflight.
4 problemsProblems in this collection
14 problemsFusion power
Producing fusion energy is a milestone. Can a complete plant deliver more electricity to the grid than it consumes, repeatedly and with components that survive operation?
Solid-state batteries
Solid electrolytes promise new battery designs. Can a lithium-metal cell combine high energy, repeated cycling, safe operation, and manufacturability without impractical mechanical pressure?
Lithium–sulfur batteries
Sulfur offers attractive battery capacity, but a practical cell must keep that capacity through many cycles without hiding its weaknesses behind excess electrolyte or lithium.
Artificial photosynthesis
Devices can use sunlight to make fuels. Can direct solar-fuel systems remain efficient, selective, safe, and durable as they grow beyond carefully controlled demonstrations?
Carbon dioxide electrolysis
Electricity can turn carbon dioxide into useful chemicals. Can an electrolyzer do so with durable operation, efficient carbon use, and a favorable whole-system energy and emissions balance?
Room-temperature superconductivity
The goal is a material that conducts electricity without resistance at room temperature and normal atmospheric pressure. Achieving both conditions together remains a research target.
Perovskite solar module durability
Perovskite solar cells can be highly efficient. Can full modules keep that performance through decades of outdoor light, heat, moisture and partial shading?
Electrochemical ammonia synthesis
Electricity can convert nitrogen into ammonia in the laboratory. Can a process sustain useful production rates with low total energy use and long-lived reactors?
Electrochemical lithium extraction from geothermal brines
Electrochemical cells can selectively recover lithium from geothermal-like brines. Can industrially made electrodes keep that performance during prolonged exposure to hot, impurity-rich feeds?
Elastocaloric work recovery
Squeezing and releasing a metal can move heat. Recovering the mechanical work must also reduce the electricity used by a complete cooler.
Solar thermochemical heat storage
Sunlight can dry a salt that releases heat when it takes up water again. Can durable pellets do this reliably inside an outdoor reactor?
Structural battery qualification
A structural battery stores energy while carrying load. How can one test sample reliably measure both jobs at once?
Onboard hydrogen storage
Hydrogen tanks already power cars. Can a complete storage system carry enough usable fuel while meeting the weight, space, delivery and lifetime targets together?
Organic flow-battery lifetime prediction
A charged flow battery can lose capacity while merely waiting. Can a model forecast how much active organic material will remain when its temperature and charging schedule change?