Resource World Magazine

D E C E M B E R / J A N U A R Y 2 0 2 0 www.resourceworld.com 75 than what we see today, making them fea- sible for large-scale usage, such as solar cell parks, or storage of wind energy, for example," Patrik Johansson, Professor at the Department of Physics at Chalmers, notes. Despite having no commercially available aluminium batteries, the question scientists are asking is whether they can one day replace lithium-ion batteries. "Of course, we hope that they can. But above all, they can be complementary, ensuring that lithium-ion batteries are only used where strictly necessary," Johansson says. According to the team, they still have much work to do with the electrolyte and charging mechanisms, but they believe that aluminium is a significantly better charge carrier than lithium, and the bat- teries have the potential to be significantly less environmentally harmful. In a related study completed at Northwestern University in Illinois, and published in online journal, Nature Energy, in December 2018, Dr. Dong Jun Kim, now of Australia's University of New South Wales School of Chemistry, led a team of researchers to demonstrate a strategy for designing active materials for recharge- able aluminium batteries. Dr. Kim says, "Developing batteries using aluminium has received a lot of expectation for deliv- ering high energy-to-price ratios. The fundamental challenge has been finding appropriate host electrodes for insertion of complex aluminium ions," he said. But Dr. Kim's team believes it might have found an answer to that problem. "We found a novel way to design rechargeable alumin- ium batteries by employing a redox-active macrocyclic compound as the active mate- rial," Dr. Kim said. Organic rechargeable batteries, composed of redox-active mol- ecules, are emerging as candidates for the next generation of energy storage materials because of their large specific capacities, cost effectiveness, and the abundance of organic precursors, when compared with conventional lithium-ion batteries. Dr. Kim and his team have managed to use a large organic chemical compound as the part of the battery that stores energy. "We believe the research discussed in the article opens up a new approach to design- ing aluminium-ion batteries that could be of interest to scientists investigating next- generation electrochemical energy storage," Dr. Kim said. "Our results showed promis- ing battery performances; however, it is early days and we stress that there is need to improve even more in every aspect. So it does not make much sense to compare against the well-established lithium-ion battery system." He is not restricting his studies to aluminium and looks forward to further research on redox-active organic molecules for batteries, such as aluminium, magnesium, zinc, and calcium," he said. GROWING GREEN ENERGY SOURCES FROM COAL MINE RECLAMATION Alberta Innovates, headquartered in Edmonton, Alberta, is a provincially funded corporation that builds on the province's research and technology devel- opment strengths in core sectors of health, environment, energy, food and fibre, and platforms such as artificial intelligence, nanotechnology, and omics (a field of study in biology). Their Bioindustrial Innovaton sector is developing new sustainability practices, new natural products for world markets, and new economic opportunities and investment in Alberta. The company is joining federal, provincial, municipal and industry partners to contribute to a unique clean technology demonstration project that reclaims land at an Alberta coal mine. Municipal organic waste from Edmonton will replenish soil at the mine site to grow a willow crop (salix) for bio- mass feedstock. The program, called BIOSALIX, is a renewable energy, coal mine reclamation project near Forestburg, Alberta. Through a collaborative team led by SYLVIS Environmental Services Inc., the biomass feedstock can then be used for soil reclamation and as an energy or bio- mass feedstock source. The process results in significant sequestration of carbon in both soils and woody biomass, mitigating climate change. The project is the first of its type and size, and provides a path for clean energy growth through transitioning prairie coal mines to biomass production while providing mining communities with eco- nomic stability by developing a cleantech economy. Project partners EPCOR Water Services Inc. will supply the municipal biosolids and Westmoreland Mining LLC will provide the reclamation landbase, project support, and a segment of the workforce. The willow plantation will be established by Bionera Resources Inc. The BIOSALIX team sees this as an opportunity to not only meet federal and provincial carbon strategy policy targets, but to also provide sustainable biosolids management, while offering the prospect of small community transition and growth from a mining hub to a clean technology industry. They say this program encom- passes the true meaning of clean growth – the combination of technology and pro- cess to drive technical, carbon and social benefits that have the capacity to support the traditional fossil fuel economy and provide new opportunities in coal mining communities. Alberta Innovates is contributing $1.5 million to the BIOSALIX project. This investment is being leveraged with fund- ing from the Natural Resources Canada Clean Growth Program and Emissions Reduction Alberta, who are providing $3.8 million and $2.1 million respectively. SYLVIS, EPCOR, and industry partners Westmoreland Mining Company and Bionera Resources are providing additional cash and in-kind services for a total proj- ect value of about $10.5 million. n

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