Steam turbines have to date been the most traditional way to covert heat into electricity. Steam turbines are able to convert between 35-60% of the heat into electricity. However, scientists have kept investigating alternative ways to turn heat into electricity. Thermophotovoltaic cells (TPV) were initially promising, but only ever achieved efficiency rates of 20-32%. By increasing both the temperature of the heat emitter & the absorption properties of the TVC (visible, ultraviolet & infrared) engineers at MIT have achieved efficiency rates of 40%, with a clear idea of how to reach 50%. 

Israel lacks roughly 12,000 acres to meet its 30 percent share of renewable energy goal by 2030.But what if land wasn’t a limiting factor for solar energy? What if we could harness the unused surfaces of our lakes and various types of water reservoirs instead? This is the concept behind floating photovoltaics (FPV), otherwise referred to as floating solar––PV modules mounted on buoyant platforms that float on sunlit bodies of water where surface conditions are calm. Xfloat’s system has buoyancy tanks arranged in a grid of connected vessels that control the rotation of the PV tracking tables in unison. https://nocamels.com/2022/05/xfloat-mekorot-solar-panels-energy-floating/

90% of a medical implant's volume can be the battery. Glucose fuel cells, which use the body's own sugars to create electricity are not new, but they have traditionally used materials which pose their own set of challenges. But scientists have developed a new form of glucose fuel cell that is only 400 nanometers thick (thinner than a human hair), by using a ceramic electrolyte which is easy to miniaturize and integrate on a silicon chip, is bio-compatible & can withstand high temperatures (for sterilisation).https://www.tum.de/en/about-tum/news/press-releases/details/37397

Take 500kg of food waste, blast it with oxygen at low heat to speed up decomposition, add no water and no chemicals, and within 24 hours you end up with around 100kg of high-nutrient residual material, free of odour and pathogens, which can be used for fertilizers or in the production of biofuels. Better yet, you simply wheel your food waste bin into the unit, set it and forget it.  WasteMaster takes care of the rest, including remote management and trouble-shooting of most operational problems. https://www.greenecotec.com/

India first started covering water irrigation canals with solar panels back in 2014 - providing both water and power to communities. By using the canals the solar panels don't compete for scarce land, they also protect the water from both evaporation and algae blooms, while the water cools the panels increasing their efficiency. Solar Canals come with their challenges, including higher engineering costs. But despite this, California is setting up a pilot project in the Turlock Irrigation District, in the San Joaquin Valley. https://thec

In a  'green chemistry' discovery scientists have taken a molecule of carbon, hydrogen & nitrogen, exposed it to sunlight & then stored the energy-rich isomer as a liquid & film. Returning the isomer to its original state releases heat, link that to a thermoelectric generator and you also get electricity. This creates a zero-emission, long-term solar energy storage system(18years!), which uses benign, all-renewable materials. Not yet delivering large-scale energy, nor cost-effective, but it is MOST promising! Pun intended - as the energy storage process is known as - Molecular Solar Thermal (MOST). https://www.chalmers.se/en/departments/chem/news/Pages/Converting-solar-ene