TUESDAY, MARCH 4, 2014 technology Better batteries are key to climate change: Kemp LONDON: Finding a better way to store and ships. “Compared to gasoline and the high cost and weight. Department of Energy, the world’s focuses on nuclear and solar thermal electrical energy is the single biggest diesel, other options may have more For grid applications, some truly biggest funder of science research. energy, all these programmes concen- breakthrough needed to tackle climate energy per unit weight, but none have enormous batteries have been built. The Most of the department’s research trate on developing better batteries. change. But the goal of developing bat- more energy per unit volume,” the U.S. city of Fairbanks in Alaska has installed a focuses on more mature technologies. Since 2010, ARPA-E has allocated well teries that are lighter, as well as more Energy Information Administration battery system weighing 1,300 tonnes Its Advanced Research Projects Agency- over $100 million of funding to 47 bat- compact, powerful and affordable explained in a recent note (“Few trans- and taking up 2,000 square metres Energy (ARPA-E), however, is a spe- tery-related projects, according to the remains frustratingly elusive. portation fuels surpass the energy densi- (21,000 square feet) in a warehouse cialised unit that aims to catalyse the agency’s website. Virtually all usable energy on Earth ties of gasoline and diesel”, Jan. 3, 2014). capable of providing 40 megawatts of development of less advanced technolo- BEEST is funding research that explic- originates from the sun: wind, solar, Liquefied natural gas contains more power for up to seven minutes in the gies with transformational potential by itly aims to make batteries comparable wood, even fossil fuels. Oil, gas and coal energy per unit of weight but takes up event of a power failure (Daily Telegraph, providing early-stage funding, technical to gasoline and diesel. “To offer perform- are simply the fossilised remains of much more space. Ethanol is inferior in “World’s biggest battery switched on in assistance and commercial expertise. ance comparable to gasoline-powered organisms that lived in ancient forests, weight and volume terms. Batteries are Alaska” 2003). Established in 2007, ARPA-E was cars, electric vehicles must be able to lakes and seas, which relied on photo- generally heavier and need more space Given Fairbanks’ isolated location and modelled on the Pentagon’s Defense deliver the kind of power that will make synthesis to harness the sun’s energy. than gasoline or diesel. Most are also winter temperatures as much as 50 Advanced Research Projects Agency, electric cars fast, responsive and exciting The amount of solar energy reaching much more expensive. degrees Celsius below zero (minus 58 credited with helping develop the glob- to drive,” ARPA-E emphasises. Earth’s surface every year is many orders Burning those fossil fuels, however, Fahrenheit), a secure supply of electricity al positioning system, the stealth fighter “They also must be able to travel at of magnitude greater than that needed contributes to global warming. The chal- is vital. The battery is intended to keep and computer networking. least 300 miles (480 km) on a single to meet all the needs of the planet’s lenge is to develop more effective ener- the lights on long enough to start up According to the US National charge - the approximate driving range growing population. gy storage that can compete with gaso- auxiliary diesel generators. Academy of Science, ARPA-E was per tank of gas - for a comparable cost. Solar radiation reaching the planet’s line and diesel. Better batteries are likely Even bigger batteries have been designed to support “creative out-of- This would require batteries with double surface is equivalent to more than 150 to prove the only realistic option. built. In 2011, China’s State Grid the-box transformational generic energy the energy density and one-third the watts per square metre on average, Corporation commissioned a giant bat- research that industry by itself cannot or cost of today’s state-of-the-art lithium- according to Roger Barry at the Grid scale, vehicles tery array that can supply 20-36 will not support and in which the risk ion battery packs.” University of Colorado (“Atmosphere, Improved storage is needed at two megawatt-hours of electricity. The may be high but success would provide ARPA-E is funding research to re-eval- weather and climate”, 2010). very different levels: grid scale (for exam- Zhangbei National Energy Storage and dramatic benefits to the nation”. uate each component of a battery (posi- The problem is how to store that ple to store solar electricity for use at Transmission Demonstration Project, in The agency has an annual budget of tive and negative electrodes as well as energy in a usable form available when night) where it can be stationary, and on Hebei province, is coupled with a wind $275 million. Most of the funding is allo- the electrolyte) and the materials used and where needed. Solar panels are not a smaller, more mobile scale (to replace farm and solar power plant, and claims cated to 18 focus areas. Five of them to make them. useful at night, or in the winter at high gasoline and diesel with electricity as to be the largest battery array in the concern energy storage - more than any “BEEST projects are exploring a vari- latitudes, or when the sun is temporarily the source of power in cars, trucks and world. Crucially, Zhangbei was intended other area of energy technology. ety of potential solutions including radi- obscured by clouds. Solar energy ulti- ships). Various options have been devel- to prove that wind and solar can provide The storage-related programmes are: cal improvement of today’s lithium-ion mately drives the wind too. But wind tur- oped for stationary grid-scale storage - a reliable source of power on demand. Advanced Management and Protection technologies, designs using other met- bines are useless on a still day. including pump hydro, flywheels and But in most cases, batteries are still too Energy Storage Devices (AMPED); als such as magnesium, sodium and zinc, The ideal storage medium has a high compressed air systems. Better batteries heavy, too large and too expensive to Batteries for Electrical Energy Storage in and new ways of using lithium in lithi- energy content but is light, compact and are the most promising technology for offer an effective solution to grid-scale Transportation (BEEST); Grid-Scale um-sulfur and lithium-air batteries,” the affordable. Liquid fuels refined from grid-scale applications, however, and and vehicle storage needs. Rampable Intermittent Dispatchable agency explains. petroleum, especially gasoline and probably the only one for small-scale Storage (GRIDS); High-Energy Advanced At a much bigger scale, GRIDS is diesel, have the best combination of mobile applications. Advanced research Thermal Storage (HEATS); and Robust funding research into technology that energy content, density and weight, Small-scale batteries are already used Developing smaller, lighter and more Affordable Next Generation Energy could be used to back up intermittent which makes them especially desirable in electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid powerful batteries is now one of the top Storage Systems (RANGE). wind and solar generation with storage in mobile applications like cars, trucks electric vehicles. The main problem is research priorities for the US With the exception of HEATS, which anywhere. — AP Mouse Interface, for Grim Fandango y now you’ve heard some clever mod- der has added mouse controls to the BLucasArts classic adventure Grim Fandango, allowing you to play the game without having to awkwardly steer Manny Calavera around like a friggin’ cargo barge. I’ve actually tried it out, and I can answer all of your questions. Is the mod hard to install? Not really! Does it work? Almost entirely! Can I squeeze an entire column out of telling you how to get it running? Most definitely. Read on to learn how you can point - finally point - in Grim Fandango. Just like Manny’s doing! Essentially, you’re looking at a four step process to get both Grim Fandango and the mod running on current PCs. The example below is from my machine, using Windows 7, though it appears you can get it running on Mac and other versions of Windows as well. SINGAPORE: This photograph taken on February 10, 2014 shows Singapore Airlines Except possibly Windows 8. Sorry. Also, you passenger aircraft taxis along tarmac for take-off at Changi International Airport in will need to find your old Grim Fandango Singapore. Wi-Fi services in aircraft, hobbled in the past by slow speeds, could soon discs, which brings us to Step One. take off after new technology enables passengers to surf the web as if they were in a coffee shop offering Internet access, Internet executives say. — AFP Step One: Find Your Old ahead and copy/replace. It’s fine. sponsive tank through screen after screen, hit- Grim Fandango Discs While you’re dragging stuff into that folder, ting the brakes as he passed an item that They’re in a box in your closet, most likely you’ll also need download the official Grim made him briefly glance in its direction, Cisco cleared in rights case the bottom box under a tower of other, heav- Fandango patch. It’s on this page, labeled throwing him into reverse to rewind him to ier boxes, so pull all those boxes out and stack gfupd.exe. Don’t run it, just download it and the precise spot, missing, and shoving him WASHINGTON: A US court has cleared against Cisco,” company general counsel them against a wall where you’ll leave them stick it into the same folder you put the .LAB forward again.