October 22, 2022

Weekend Reads: The Key to Success at COP27; A Look at Mini Rooftop Wind Turbines

It's the weekend! Kick back and catch up with these must-read articles from around the web.

The Key to Success for the COP27 Climate Summit Showdown in Three Charts (BloombergNEF) With around three weeks to go until the start of the COP27 summit in Sharm el-Sheik, Egypt, the need to urgently address the climate crisis has never been clearer. Pakistan and Nigeria have experienced devastating flooding this year, Europe sweltered in a record heatwave over the summer, and Kenya and Somalia have been ravaged by a catastrophic drought. Yet, at a time when unified global action is required, November’s climate talks are at risk of being overshadowed by other world events – namely, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, frostier relations between the US and China, energy and food crises, and inflationary pressures.

Meet the CO2 battery cozying up with a wind energy giant (The Verge) There’s a new CO2 battery in the energy game, and it just might be the assist turbines need to harness the full power of the wind. The technology uses carbon dioxide to store energy in the form of pressure and heat. It’s a relatively straightforward solution that gives the CO2 battery some more flexibility than more traditional alternatives, like lithium-ion batteries. Lithium-ion batteries have become ubiquitous companions to solar panels. But the new CO2 battery could have an edge when it comes to storing energy from winds, which can be even more temperamental than the sun.

Smart Energy Decisions' next event is the Renewable Energy Forum/Winter Edition, set for December 6-8, 2022 at the Hyatt Regency Resort, Huntington Beach, California. Buyer registration is limited; for more information, click here. Suppliers may click here for information on sponsorship opportunities.

Meet this year's Green Business Award winners (Utah Business) In partnership with Rocky Mountain Power, we are proud to honor the Utah companies and individuals making strides toward our state’s environmental sustainability. Congratulations to the 2022 Green Business honorees! This year, Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD) is celebrating 125 years of advancing the world of health. As a global organization, BD is committed to using its scale and influence to address climate change from many different angles. For more than two decades, BD has been committed to actively managing environmental, social, and governance issues around the globe to generate the positive change needed to realize healthy, resilient communities.

Taco Bell innovates the fast food experience with fast chargers for EV drivers with the munchies (Electrek) Your favorite late-night snack place, Taco Bell, is always looking for new ways to serve its customers, introducing irresistible favorites like nacho fries. TB’s latest idea: to serve the growing population of EV drivers with ultrafast charging stations so you can “get an EV charge and a chalupa all in one easy stop.” The first Taco Bell fast EV charging station opened Tuesday morning as the restaurant chain looks to solidify its position in a new era of drivers. Electric vehicle sales are outpacing their gas-powered counterparts, and it’s not even close. Over 200,000 EVs were sold in the US this past quarter, a record as automakers scale production to meet the overwhelming demand.

These mini wind turbines are designed for rooftops (Fast Company) A typical wind turbine is massive—roughly as tall as the Statue of Liberty, with blades that stretch wider than a football field. (Some are even bigger, like a new offshore turbine from Siemens that has a 774-foot-wide rotor.) By contrast, a new 10-by-10 foot turbine is relatively tiny. And without moving blades, it isn’t immediately recognizable as wind energy tech. The devices, designed by a startup called Aeromine, are meant to sit on the edge of a rooftop instead of out in a field, and can work alongside solar panels. “I like to think of this as kind of disruptive and complimentary to the solar business,” says Aeromine cofounder and CEO David Asarnow. “Our production can be stronger. At the same time, when you pair the two, you really have a path for on-site energy independence.”

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