Japanese company collaborates with city of Houston on energy efficiency partnership

daikin's in

Daikin committed to installing energy efficient technology in low-to-moderate-income households in Houston. Photo courtesy of Daikin

A Japanese air conditioner manufacturer has teamed up with the city of Houston on an energy efficiency initiative.

Daikin Comfort Technologies, which has its 4.2 million-square-foot Daikin Texas Technology Park in Waller, Texas, has partnered with the city of Houston to provide advanced air conditioning and heating solutions to help homeowners with energy efficiency and general comfort.

The company will install up to 30 horizontal discharge inverter FIT heat pump units over the next three years. The units will be provided to low-to-moderate-income households, which will include seniors over the age of 62, and homes renovated through the Housing and Community Development Department’s Home Repair Program. The new units will offer internet connectivity for remote monitoring and control. The installations align with Houston's Home Repair Program reconstruction plans.

“We are proud to partner with the City of Houston to launch this program that can directly advance their vision for decarbonization and increasing grid resiliency through higher efficiency,” CEO Satoru Akama says in a news release. “Through this program, Homeowners will have a premium system that will not only provide comfort but save on their monthly bills and do so in a way that lowers site emissions of CO2 compared to traditional, non-inverter systems. At Daikin, we are focused on changing the culture of air conditioning in North America and are looking forward to having a direct impact in our hometown.”

The initiative coincides with the company’s 100th year anniversary and National Air Condition Appreciation Days, which was coined by Mayor John Whitmire on August 13. Air Conditioning Appreciation Days ran from July 3 until August 15.

“The city thanks Daikin for this collaboration. Houstonians, especially seniors, (that) must have the resources to stay comfortable during extreme temperatures,” Whitmire adds. “This partnership reflects our dedication to caring for the well-being of our community.”

Awareness is part of the appreciation days, as Daikin recommends homeowners and facilities to clean filters, schedule maintenance checkups and look at ways to lower energy use.

“Through these new energy-efficient solutions, Daikin is helping the city promote a more sustainable environment for our community, and we are thankful for their example of how public-private partnerships can make a positive difference in society,” Houston Council Member Sallie Alcorn says in a news release.

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Looking to start composting? This is your month to try it out with free drop-off spots in Houston. Photo via Getty Images

City offers free composting services to Houstonians looking to reduce landfill contributions

do your part

The City of Houston Solid Waste Management Department is launching a free Food Waste Drop-Off pilot program through the end of February.

The program is in collaboration with Council Member Sallie Alcorn, Zero Waste Houston and the City of Houston Health Department, and allows residents to drop off food scraps at four different locations. The locations are:

Kashmere Multi-Service Center, Mondays from 2 to 5 pm
Acres Homes Multi-Service Center, Tuesdays from 2 to 5 pm
Alief Neighborhood Center, Wednesdays from 4 to 7 pm
Sunnyside Multi-Service Center, Thursdays from 3 to 6 pm

Houston residents, businesses, and institutions generate 6.2 million tons of municipal solid waste per year according to the Solid Waste Department program.

“You’ll find when you start composting your food scraps, there is a lot less trash generated in your home, at your curb, and taken to the landfill,” Alcorn says in a news release.

The Solid Waste Management Department provides solid waste services with the collection, disposal, and recycling of discarded material in an environmentally-friendly and cost effective way.

“The Solid Waste Department is eager to continue to provide innovative programs that divert waste from the landfill and actively engage Houston residents,” says Mark Wilfalk, Director of Solid Waste Management in the release.

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Houston team’s discovery brings solid-state batteries closer to EV use

a better battery

A team of researchers from the University of Houston, Rice University and Brown University has uncovered new findings that could extend battery life and potentially change the electric vehicle landscape.

The team, led by Yan Yao, the Hugh Roy and Lillie Cranz Cullen Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at UH, recently published its findings in the journal Nature Communications.

The work deployed a powerful, high-resolution imaging technique known as operando scanning electron microscopy to better understand why solid-state batteries break down and what could be done to slow the process.

“This research solves a long-standing mystery about why solid-state batteries sometimes fail,” Yao, corresponding author of the study, said in a news release. “This discovery allows solid-state batteries to operate under lower pressure, which can reduce the need for bulky external casing and improve overall safety.”

A solid-state battery replaces liquid electrolytes found in conventional lithium-ion cells with a solid separator, according to Car and Driver. They also boast faster recharging capabilities, better safety and higher energy density.

However, when it comes to EVs, solid-state batteries are not ideal since they require high external stack pressure to stay intact while operating.

Yao’s team learned that tiny empty spaces, or voids, form within the solid-state batteries and merge into a large gap, which causes them to fail. The team found that adding small amounts of alloying elements, like magnesium, can help close the voids and help the battery continue to function. The team captured it in real-time with high-resolution videos that showed what happens inside a battery while it’s working under a scanning electron microscope.

“By carefully adjusting the battery’s chemistry, we can significantly lower the pressure needed to keep it stable,” Lihong Zhao, the first author of this work, a former postdoctoral researcher in Yao’s lab and now an assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at UH, said in the release. “This breakthrough brings solid-state batteries much closer to being ready for real-world EV applications.”

The team says it plans to build on the alloy concept and explore other metals that could improve battery performance in the future.

“It’s about making future energy storage more reliable for everyone,” Zhao added.

The research was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Battery 500 Consortium under the Vehicle Technologies Program. Other contributors were Min Feng from Brown; Chaoshan Wu, Liqun Guo, Zhaoyang Chen, Samprash Risal and Zheng Fan from UH; and Qing Ai and Jun Lou from Rice.

Texas drivers continue to pump the brakes on EVs, shows new report

EV adoption

Even though Texas is home to Tesla, a major manufacturer of electric vehicles, motorists in the Lone Star State aren’t in the fast lane when it comes to getting behind the wheel of an EV.

U.S. Department of Energy data compiled by Visual Capitalist shows Texas has 689.9 EV registrations per 100,000 people, putting it in 20th place for EV adoption among the 50 states and the District of Columbia. A report released in 2023 by the University of Houston and Texas Southern University found that a little over 5 percent of Texans drove EVs.

California leads all states for EV adoption, with 3,025.6 registrations per 100,000 people, according to Visual Capitalist. In second place is Washington, with an EV adoption rate of 1,805.4 per 100,000.

A recent survey by AAA revealed lingering reluctance among Americans to drive all-electric vehicles.

In the survey, just 16 percent of U.S. adults reported being “very likely” or “likely” to buy an all-electric vehicle as their next car. That’s the lowest level of interest in EVs recorded by AAA since 1999. The share of consumers indicating they’d be “very unlikely” or “unlikely” to buy an EV rose to 63 percent, the highest level since 2022.

Factors cited by EV critics included:

High cost to repair batteries (62 percent).
High purchase price (59 percent).
Ineffective transportation for long-distance travel (57 percent).
Lack of convenient public charging stations (56 percent).
Fear of battery running out of power while driving (55 percent).

“Since AAA began tracking consumer interest in fully electric vehicles, we’ve observed fluctuations in enthusiasm,” said Doug Shupe, corporate communications manager for AAA Texas. “While automakers continue investing in electrification and expanding EV offerings, many drivers still express hesitation — often tied to concerns about cost, range, and charging infrastructure.”

18 Houston-based energy companies land on Forbes Global 2000 list

Forbes 2000

More than 60 Texas-based companies appear on Forbes’ 2025 list of the world’s 2,000 biggest publicly traded companies, and nearly half come from Houston, the majority in the energy sector.

Among Texas companies whose stock is publicly traded, Spring-based ExxonMobil is the highest ranked at No. 13 globally.

Rounding out Texas’ top five are Houston-based Chevron (No. 30), Dallas-based AT&T (No. 35), Austin-based Oracle (No. 66), and Austin-based Tesla (No. 69).

Ranking first in the world is New York City-based J.P. Morgan Chase.

Forbes compiled this year’s Global 2000 list using data from FactSet Research to analyze the biggest public companies based on four metrics: sales, profit, assets, and market value.

“The annual Forbes Global 2000 list features the companies shaping today’s global markets and moving them worldwide,” said Hank Tucker, a staff writer at Forbes. “This year’s list showcases how despite a complex geopolitical landscape, globalization has continued to fuel decades of economic growth, with the world’s largest companies more than tripling in size across multiple measures in the past 20 years.”

The U.S. topped the list with 612 companies, followed by China with 317 and Japan with 180.

Here are the rest of the Texas-based companies in the Forbes 2000, grouped by the location of their headquarters and followed by their global ranking.

Houston area (those in the energy sector are in bold)

ConocoPhillips (No. 105)
Phillips 66 (No. 276)
SLB (No. 296)
EOG Resources (No. 297)
Occidental Petroleum (No. 302)
Waste Management (No. 351)
Kinder Morgan (No. 370)
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (No. 379)
Baker Hughes (No. 403)
Cheniere Energy (No. 415)
Corebridge Financial (No. 424)
Sysco (No. 448)
Halliburton (No. 641)
Targa Resources (No. 651)
NRG Energy (No. 667)
Quanta Services (No. 722)
CenterPoint Energy (No. 783)
Coterra Energy (No. 1,138)
Crown Castle International (No. 1,146)
Westlake Corp. (No. 1,199)
APA Corp. (No. 1,467)
Comfort Systems USA (No. 1,629)
Group 1 Automotive (No. 1,653)
Talen Energy (No. 1,854)
Prosperity Bancshares (No. 1,855)
NOV (No. 1,980)

Austin area

Dell Technologies (No. 183)
Flex (No. 887)
Digital Realty Trust (No. 1,063)
CrowdStrike (No. 1,490)

Dallas-Fort Worth

Caterpillar (No. 118)
Charles Schwab (No. 124)
McKesson (No. 195)
D.R. Horton (No. 365)
Texas Instruments (No. 374)
Vistra Energy (No. 437)
CBRE (No. 582)
Kimberly-Clark (No. 639)
Tenet Healthcare (No. 691)
American Airlines (No. 834)
Southwest Airlines (No. 844)
Atmos Energy (No. 1,025)
Builders FirstSource (No. 1,039)
Copart (No. 1,062)
Fluor (No. 1,153)
Jacobs Solutions (1,232)
Globe Life (1,285)
AECOM (No. 1,371)
Lennox International (No. 1,486)
HF Sinclair (No. 1,532)
Invitation Homes (No. 1,603)
Celanese (No. 1,845)
Tyler Technologies (No. 1,942)

San Antonio

Valero Energy (No. 397)
Cullen/Frost Bankers (No. 1,560)

Midland

Diamondback Energy (No. 471)
Permian Resources (No. 1,762)

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A version of this article originally appeared on CultureMap.com.

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