Read the latest news about research conducted by investigators in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences. Our faculty and students are continually advancing technology, creating solutions and expanding knowledge with new and innovative research.
New screening system may point the way to clean, renewable hydrogen power
02/28/2022
02/28/2022
A new, highly sensitive system for detecting the production of hydrogen gas may play an important role in the quest to develop hydrogen as an environmentally friendly and economical alternative to fossil fuels, according to Penn State scientists.
Researchers to study possible links between fracking, water contaminants
02/23/2022
02/23/2022
Unconventional oil and gas development (UOGD), commonly known as fracking, has helped Pennsylvania retain its status as a leading energy exporter, but UOGD processes come with a host of environmental and public health concerns.
Grant to reduce, eliminate toxicity of coal mine dust
02/15/2022
02/15/2022
Penn State has been awarded $327,849 from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) to fund research targeting ways to reduce or eliminate the toxicity of respirable coal mine dust.
Air chemistry data from South Korea field study puts models to the test
02/14/2022
02/14/2022
An international effort to measure air quality in South Korea, a region with complex sources of pollution, may provide new insights into the atmospheric chemistry that produces ozone pollution, according to a team of scientists.
Grant to help scientists use AI to better measure Antarctic surface ice, climate
02/08/2022
02/08/2022
A $300,000 National Science Foundation grant will help scientists develop artificial intelligence (AI) to better analyze imagery from satellites and other remote sensing devices that are currently monitoring surface ice in the Antarctic, according to a team of researchers.
Mineral dating reveals new clues about important tectonic process
02/08/2022
02/08/2022
Ancient rocks on the coast of Oman that were once driven deep down toward Earth's mantle may reveal new insights into subduction, an important tectonic process that fuels volcanoes and creates continents, according to an international team of scientists.
Microwave data assimilation improves forecasts of hurricane intensity, rainfall
02/01/2022
02/01/2022
A new technique using readily available data reduces forecast errors and could improve track, intensity and rainfall forecasts for future storms like Hurricane Harvey, according to Penn State scientists.
Increased storminess may give rise to North Atlantic’s ‘cold blob’
01/31/2022
01/31/2022
While climate change is making much of the world warmer, temperatures in a subpolar region of the North Atlantic are getting cooler. A team of researchers report that changes in the wind pattern, among other factors, may be contributing to this "cold blob."
Form fit: Device wraps around hot surfaces, turns wasted heat to electricity
01/21/2022
01/21/2022
A new flexible thermoelectric generator can wrap around pipes and other hot surfaces and convert wasted heat into electricity more efficiently than previously possible, according to scientists at Penn State and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
Cold-sintering may open door to improved solid-state battery production
01/21/2022
01/21/2022
Penn State researchers have proposed an improved method of solid-state battery production that enables multi-material integration for better batteries -- cold sintering.