News

Fusion energy could be essential for our future energy needs. Commonwealth Fusion Systems, in partnership with MIT's Plasma Science and Fusion Center, is building a midsize tokamak prototype called SPARC, also targeted for completion in 2025.

MIT Deputy Director Christopher Knittel discusses the effect of Massachusetts’ flawed electricity pricing system on incentives to electrify.

MIT aeroengineers, led by Professor Zoltán Spakovszky (Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics), are working on significantly shrinking the carbon footprint of aviation by creating a 1-megawatt electrical motor for commercial airliners.

Decarbonizing the energy sector is necessary to avoid the worst climate change projections. MITEI Principal Research Scientist Jennifer Morris advocates for the adoption of nuclear energy in the United States, but says that the right incentives will be necessary to make it more appealing.

MITEI Senior Research Engineer Howard Herzog discusses what carbon capture is and what role it can play in addressing climate change: “There’s no silver bullet here, but it’s a tool in our portfolio.”

Boston is quickly becoming an energy powerhouse in no small part due to the research and startups coming from MIT. Boston Magazine highlights the work of Dennis Whyte (Plasma Science and Fusion Center), Yet-Ming Chiang (Department of Materials Science and Engineering), and startups like Commonwealth Fusion Systems, Quaise Energy, and Form Energy.

T. Alan Hatton (Department of Chemical Engineering) and Kripa Varanasi (Department of Mechanical Engineering) discuss their process for removing CO2 from ocean water, aided by the ocean’s ability to pull greenhouse gases from the atmosphere.

MITEI Deputy Director Chris Knittel weighs in on GOP efforts to repeal the Inflation Reduction Act’s clean energy tax credits, saying it hurt both Democrat and Republication jurisdictions and these impacts will vary based on the type of tax credit.

A new development from MIT can quickly and easily turn any surface into a power source. These thin-film solar cells weigh about 100x less than conventional solar cells while generating about 18x more power-per-kg.

Paul Woskov (Plasma Science and Fusion Center) is developing a method for converting coal and gas electric power plants by drilling geothermal wells to replace the fossil fuels. He joins "Science for the Public" to discuss geothermal energy and the challenges associated with accessing it.

Dharik Mallapragada (MITEI) joins the podcast "Unexplainable" to discuss a suite of possible energy storage options to help us decarbonize the grid.

MITEI Senior Research Engineer Howard Herzog (MITEI) explains why the $100-per-ton price for carbon dioxide removal (CDR) is unrealistic, even though it is the current standard used by economists, policy makers, investors, and industry to make CDR feasible at scale.