Scientists at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory are developing technology to improve the thermal performance of lithium-ion batteries. And that all starts with studying how batteries fail.
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There’s some interesting science behind Hollywood’s many renditions of fake blood. And ceramics even helped some of the earliest horror film directors achieve the perfect consistency to fake out—and freak out—moviegoers.
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An 11-year-old recently earned the distinction of America’s Top Young Scientist along with a $25,000 prize when she created a device that detects lead in water. The device incorporates carbon nanotubes and pairs with a mobile app to immediately provide water quality data.
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Researchers at Argonne National Lab now report that they’re working on a material that, like the human brain, can learn and forget. The electronic material, a quantum perovskite, adaptively responds to repeated stimuli.
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Researchers at Eindhoven University of Technology, in collaboration with BAM Infra, recently completed construction of the world’s first 3-D printed reinforced concrete bridge. The steel cables, added during printing, help prestress the concrete to support loads beyond its weight.
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There are many elements critical to today’s technology that are in danger of running out—and they’re the subject of a fascinating new BBC TV documentary called “Secrets of the Super Elements” hosted by Mark Miodownik.
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Researchers have successfully 3-D printed unweldable aluminum alloys, incorporating zirconium-based nanopowders into the additive manufacturing process, which prevents hot cracking. They say they can now make any unweldable metal weldable using this process.
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Researchers report a simple method to manufacture biocompatible structural colors using only melanin and silica. The silica shell provides a buffer layer of tunable thickness that allows customization of the particular color, offering the potential to fabricate a new breed of long-lasting pigments that don’t fade.
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A mechanical engineering student recently participated in a NIST summer project involving 3-D printed concrete—watch this video to see how the project team tested various cement paste samples to measure viscosity, yield stress, and printing defects.
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An international research team led by scientists at the University of Texas at Dallas and Hanyang University in South Korea has fashioned carbon nanotubes into “twistron” yarns that can generate electrical energy when pulled, stretched, tugged, or twisted.
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