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Sustainability

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MIT researchers used these manganese oxide nanoparticles to catalyze the breakdown of water and the subsequent incorporation of oxygen into useful compounds called epoxides.

Shrinking the carbon footprint of a chemical in everyday objects

New method for synthesizing the epoxides found in plastics, textiles, and pharmaceuticals could be powered by electricity.

April 9, 2019

Janus emulsion droplets are captured in the process of changing form in response to the presence of contamination by a food pathogen in a lab setting. The emulsions can be viewed by the naked eye and, with the aid of a handheld sensor currently in development, can quantify the presence and amount of bacterial contamination in food.

MIT spinout seeks to transform food safety testing

An affordable, easy-to-use handheld sensor, soon to enter the market, can indicate the presence of bacterial contaminants in food in seconds.

April 9, 2019

$Heavy trucks such as these 18-wheelers contribute a significant fraction of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. MIT researchers say these emissions could be drastically reduced by using flex-fuel plug-in hybrid powertrains instead of diesel engines.$

Engineers develop concept for hybrid heavy-duty trucks

Long-haul trucks with electric motors combined with gas-alcohol engines could slash pollution levels and greenhouse gases.

April 9, 2019

MIT researchers have developed a new polymer membrane that can dramatically improve the efficiency of natural gas purification, while reducing its environmental impact.

Greener, more efficient natural gas filtration

Novel membrane material removes more impurities, without the need for toxic solvents.

April 8, 2019

The researchers found that traditional long-term strategies, which employ rigid schedules for future road treatments, may overestimate total life-cycle costs.

Paving ahead: Model aims for infrastructure preservation

MIT Concrete Sustainability Hub researchers outline a new pavement maintenance model that accounts for future uncertainties in cost and deterioration.

April 8, 2019

“I thought nuclear made the most sense, since it produced energy and cleaned up the atmosphere, so I decided I should contribute to the field somehow,” Miriam Kreher recalls.

Fine-tuning multiphysics problems

Nuclear science and engineering graduate student Miriam Kreher codes to create better models for complex interactions within nuclear reactors.

March 25, 2019

Participants in a Martha's Vineyard net-zero carbon design thinking workshop included MIT Energy Initiative staff; representatives from Martha's Vineyard, Shell, and Viessmann; and students from MIT, Harvard University, and Tufts University.

Students helping to make islands carbon neutral

MIT Energy Initiative program is using design thinking to solve energy issues on Martha’s Vineyard and beyond.

March 8, 2019

Reading the heartbeat of the road

The Carbin app, from a Concrete Sustainability Hub researcher, promises users an unprecedented understanding of pavement quality.

February 28, 2019

J-WAFS commercialization grants are supporting two MIT research teams developing technologies to make current agricultural practices more sustainable.

J-WAFS grants advance sustainable agriculture

Two new J-WAFS Solutions commercialization grants will support novel technologies that aim to improve the economics and resiliency of farming.

February 14, 2019

Seaside desalination plants like this typically discharge large volumes of concentrated brine back into the sea. MIT researchers have shown that instead, much of this waste could be turned into useful chemicals.

Turning desalination waste into a useful resource

Process developed at MIT could turn concentrated brine into useful chemicals, making desalination more efficient.

February 13, 2019

For tropical growing regions in Brazil and some countries in Africa, differing soil and rock compositions make for a poor match for the fertilizers that are currently on the market. J-WAFS-funded MIT researchers seek to meet this challenge with a new type of fertilizer, and call for more interdisciplinary research to help close yield gaps.

Local rocks can yield more crops

J-WAFS-funded MIT research team shows a new method of fertilizer production can better suit the needs of farms in Africa and around the globe.

February 12, 2019

Professor Reinhart (left) and architecture graduate student Hellen Rose Anyango Awino discuss a class assignment on measuring thermal comfort.

Applying physics to energy-efficient building design

Christoph Reinhart is internationally known for using natural light to illuminate interiors and his lab's design tools are used by architects and urban planners worldwide.

January 16, 2019

Associate Professor Asegun Henry is researching how to use superheated metals like molten tin to store heat from a concentrated solar power system, so it can be used to generate electricity as needed.

Tackling greenhouse gases

Faculty in the Department of Mechanical Engineering are developing technologies that store, capture, convert, and minimize greenhouse gas emissions.

January 7, 2019

Graduate student Julia Sokol is working on making drip irrigation cheaper and more efficient at MIT’s Global Engineering and Research (GEAR) Lab.

Improving crop yields while conserving resources

PhD student Julia Sokol is helping develop drip irrigation technologies that allow farmers to save water and energy.

December 20, 2018

Erik Landry (center) of MIT’s Office of the Vice President for Research spoke with British Columbia’s climate minister George Heyman (far right) at the COP24 U.N. Climate Change Conference in Katowice, Poland. Joining the conversation were (left to right): Claude Nahon of EDF, Sergey Paltsev of MIT, and Sir Philip Lowe of the World Energy Council.

“Climate change will not wait for us”

At UN Climate Change Conference, MIT researchers share knowledge and tools to help nations meet Paris Agreement targets.

December 13, 2018