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An abundant, organic material found in industrial dyes could be the key to advancing a type of battery with promise for storing and deploying large quantities of renewable energy. New research from The University of Texas at Austin’s Cockrell School of Engineering introduces new materials using azobenzene to open the door for “high-capacity, long-life non-aqueous flow batteries.”

The University of Texas at Austin is part of a consortium of four universities designing a new nuclear research reactor to advance research in clean energy.

For decades, researchers have looked for ways to eliminate cobalt from the high-energy batteries that power electronic devices, due to its high cost and the human rights ramifications of its mining. But past attempts haven’t lived up to the performance standards of batteries with cobalt. Researchers from the Walker Department of Mechanical Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin say they’ve cracked the code to a cobalt-free high-energy lithium-ion battery, eliminating the cobalt and opening the door to reducing the costs of producing batteries while boosting performance in some ways.

Researchers in the Walker Department of Mechanical Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin have built a new type of battery that combines the many benefits of existing options while eliminating their key shortcomings and saving energy.

Researchers in the Walker Department of Mechanical Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin have developed a new method to cleanup wastewater produced in United States shale oilfields.

A type of beetle capable of regulating its body temperature in some of the hottest places on Earth is the centerpiece of new research from Texas mechanical engineers, with major potential implications for cooling everything from buildings to electronic devices in an environmentally friendly manner.

Class of 2020 mechanical engineering graduate Tyson Smiter, who has been heavily involved in student organizations and committed to his academics since he joined the Cockrell School of Engineering, has been named this year’s Outstanding Scholar-Leader.

Professor Ezekoye, who grew up in Pittsburgh, became a Longhorn fanatic early on. He has been a season ticket holder since he moved to Austin in 1993. For the past 23 years, Ezekoye’s date nights (and days) with his wife have been at UT football games.

Mechanical Engineering students today are not only characterized by intellectual brightness, they are socially conscious change-makers, dedicating hours of study and many a late night to improving the lives of people in distressed communities.

Lithium-sulfur batteries have been hailed as the next big step in battery technology, promising significantly longer use for everything from cellphones to electric vehicles on a single charge, while being more environmentally sustainable to produce than current lithium-ion batteries. However, these batteries don’t last as long as their lithium-ion counterparts, degrading over time.