13 of the 51 Energy and Transport projects at ISEF 2026 won a Grand Award. Here's every one, with its abstract.
ISEF · 2026
Energy: Sustainable Materials and Design First Award
Installed wind power capacity has tripled in the last decade, motivating significant research in wind turbine performance optimization. Traditional optimization methods often evaluate blades…
ISEF · 2026
Energy: Sustainable Materials and Design Second Award
Solar water evaporation (SWE) outstands as a promising method to solve the global freshwater shortage due to its lower cost, green and sustainable. Semiconductors photothermal materials (SPM…
ISEF · 2026
Energy: Sustainable Materials and Design Second Award
All-solid-state lithium-sulfur batteries (ASSLSBs) have emerged as the next-generation energy storage systems due to their high energy density (~2600 Wh kg?¹) and safety, enabled by non-flam…
ISEF · 2026
Energy: Sustainable Materials and Design Second Award
The growing need for an efficient small-scale wind energy system led to the investigation of a biomimetic combination of hammerhead shark-inspired tubercles and golf ball dimple surface roug…
ISEF · 2026
Energy: Sustainable Materials and Design Third Award
Thermoelectric materials convert thermal energy directly into electrical energy based on Seebeck effect. An effective thermoelectric material must simultaneously possess a low thermal conduc…
ISEF · 2026
Energy: Sustainable Materials and Design Third Award
When cables and wired power delivery present safety or practicality issues, such as in biomedical implants or robotics applications, Wireless Power Transfer (WPT) using metamaterials (engine…
ISEF · 2026
Energy: Sustainable Materials and Design Third Award
Electrochemical seawater splitting is one of the most promising methods for sustainable hydrogen production. However, its major challenge is the simultaneous chlorine evolution reaction (CER…
ISEF · 2026
Energy: Sustainable Materials and Design Third Award
Ocean energy is a mostly unexplored renewable energy source. Conventional wave energy converters are limited by moving parts prone to deterioration and narrow frequencies ranges, which reduc…
ISEF · 2026
Energy: Sustainable Materials and Design Fourth Award
Solar photovoltaics are the fastest-growing renewable energy source, expected to account for over 16% of global electricity generation by 2050. Conventional silicon solar cells are more carb…
ISEF · 2026
Energy: Sustainable Materials and Design Fourth Award
Thermoelectric generators (TEGs) remain limited to roughly 6–8% efficiency due to material constraints, but their solid-state design enables exceptional reliability. Thermophotovoltaic (TPV)…
ISEF · 2026
Energy: Sustainable Materials and Design Fourth Award
American Samoa’s reliance on imported fossil fuels increases vulnerability to price volatility and supply disruptions, highlighting the need for locally sourced renewable energy. This study…
ISEF · 2026
Energy: Sustainable Materials and Design Fourth Award
The rising cost and scarcity of conventional battery materials have accelerated the search for sustainable energy storage systems capable of operating in extreme environments. Seawater-activ…
ISEF · 2026
Energy: Sustainable Materials and Design Fourth Award
Globally, centralized grids leave 940 million people in low - income communities without reliable electricity access, while simultaneously contributing to climate change through carbon emiss…