DETROIT - The power of the wind has been harnessed for millennia and began to be used for electricity generation in the late 1800s and early 1900s before the advent of rural electrification. The oil shortages of the 1970s sparked a comeback. Small power-generating windmills, called turbines, were constructed as something of a novelty, usually
LANSING - The Michigan Public Service Commission approved tariff changes and the creation of an accounting process through which Upper Peninsula Power Co. (UPPCO) will accelerate installation of electric vehicle chargers. It’s the first such utility vehicle electrification effort approved by the Commission for the UP as UPPCO seeks to meet growing customer demand for
LONDON, UK - On a basic level, solar or “photovoltaic” cells work by using solar energy in the form of photons to knock electrons loose from atoms such that they can form an electric current. Conventional solar cell technologies are based around the semiconductor silicon, however decades of research have pushed silicon cells close to their theoretical maximum
CHICAGO - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced that the Dearborn School District, in Dearborn, will use a $300,000 EPA grant to purchase an electric school bus. The grant is funded through the 2021 American Rescue Plan Electric School Bus Rebates program. The $7 million in ARP funding is directed toward school districts in underserved
GRAND RAPIDS - Join Michigan Sustainable Business Forum and Meijer at 1 p.m. on Monday, April 18 for webinar focusing on protecting the Great Lakes while creating a more circular, sustainable economy. The webinar will feature two speakers providing actionable guidance for business, government, academic institutions, and non-profits in the Great Lakes region: • Mark
DETROIT - Carbon fiber is arguably the most popular way of increasing rigidity and strength while minimizing weight gains, but it's not the only strong lightweight material out there. Various manufacturers have experimented with flax fibers, as seen on a Porsche racecar in 2020 and Polestar's Precept concept. One of the leading companies in this field is
WASHINGTON DC - The United Nations’ climate change panel is calling for a “substantial reduction” in the global use of fossil fuels in order to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. Warning there is limited time to act, the latest report from the panel says that by 2030, greenhouse gas emissions need to be
DETROIT – The DTE Energy Foundation today announced it has awarded $1 million to The Nature Conservancy (TNC) to fund several significant environmental programs throughout Michigan that will preserve, protect and enhance the state’s treasured natural habitats and species. This latest grant to TNC will be used to fund the Healthy Cities program in Detroit,
BOSTON, MA - Spikes in gas prices have already taken a toll on small business owners trying to bounce back from the pandemic, inflation, labor shortages, and other challenges. In fact, Alignable's Gas Price Poll of 6,439 small business owners surveyed from 3/13/22 to 3/27/22 showed that 68% say gas price spikes have had a "very significant" negative
WASHINGTON DC - All scientist Erin Pettit could see when she looked at the satellite photos of the ice shelf in front of the Thwaites Glacier in West Antarctica was the giant crack that stretched across most of the image. Two years before, when she and her colleagues were deciding where to put their research
