Innovation in DuPage County

From astonishing waves of innovation to technology that changes business models – DuPage County is a place of emerging opportunities.

Stable “Superoxide” Opens the Door to a New Class of Batteries at Argonne National Laboratory

While lithium-ion batteries have transformed our everyday lives, researchers are currently trying to find new chemistries that could offer even better energy possibilities. One of these chemistries, lithium-air, could promise greater energy density but has certain drawbacks as well. Now, thanks to research at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Argonne National Laboratory, one of those drawbacks may have been overcome. All previous work on lithium-air batteries showed the same phenomenon: the formation of lithium peroxide (Li2O2), a solid precipitate that clogged the pores of the electrode. In a recent experiment, however, Argonne battery scientists Jun Lu, Larry Curtiss and Khalil Amine, along with American and Korean collaborators, were able to produce stable crystallized lithium superoxide (LiO2) instead of lithium peroxide during battery discharging. Unlike lithium peroxide, lithium superoxide can easily dissociate into lithium and oxygen, leading to high efficiency and good cycle life. Continue reading… 

Anywhere You Go! Ball Seed’s WebTrack To Go App Now Available

Thousands of greenhouse professionals trust Ball Seed’s WebTrack as the industry’s best business management system. From live inventory and product information to order status and document management, WebTrack helps growers across North America reduce desk time and maximize greenhouse time. Now Ball Seed announces the launch of WebTrack To Go, a mobile app with several features to give customers access anywhere, anytime. “WebTrack To Go is our new mobile portal to everything Ball Seed sells, and provides growers the information they need while away from their desks,” says Mark Morris, Director of IT for Ball Seed. “The WebTrack To Go app is a great tool for your pocket that keeps you connected while on-the-go.” Continue reading…

Coriant Sets New Standard in Data Center Interconnect with Game-Changing 3.2 Tbps in 1RU

New Coriant Groove™ DCI Platform Powers Tomorrow’s Cloud Experience and Drives Industry’s Lowest Operational Costs – up to Six Times Higher System Density and 70 Percent Lower Power Consumption Coriant, a global supplier of SDN-enabled transport networking solutions, today introduced the Coriant Groove™ G30 DCI Platform, an innovative, stackable transport solution for cloud and data center networks. Optimized for the growing surge in video and other hyper-scale Data Center Interconnect (DCI) traffic, the Coriant Groove™ G30 DCI Platform supports an unmatched 3.2 terabits of capacity in a compact 1RU form factor, with up to six times higher system density than comparable offerings. This purpose-built solution also delivers the industry’s lowest power consumption – up to 70 percent more power efficient versus competing available solutions. These capabilities drive down operational costs while increasing capacity to help network operators deliver profitable DCI services and enhance the end-user cloud experience. The Coriant Groove™ G30 DCI Platform simplifies provisioning of 10G, 40G, and 100G Wide Area Network (WAN) cloud connectivity services in metro, regional, and long haul DCI applications. Designed to cost-efficiently address the scalability requirements of today’s cloud and data center networks, the Coriant Groove™ G30 DCI Platform features the industry’s most compelling pay-as-you-grow approach that enables the lowest startup costs, cost-effective scalability, and reduced equipment sparing costs. Continue reading…