[Images above] Credit: NIST
NANOMATERIALS
Living on the edge: How a 2D material got its shape
Scientists led by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory observed the dynamic growth of cobalt-oxide nanoparticles in a solution and their subsequent transformation into a flat 2D nanosheet. They found in addition to bulk energy and surface energy driving nanoparticle growth, edge energy is an important factor too.
BIOMATERIALS
Multifunctional nanoparticles show promise for cancer therapy and imaging
Researchers at Tsinghua University investigated the use of bismuth gadolinium oxide nanoparticles as a theranostic agent for enhancing radiation therapy, as well as acting as an imaging agent. They propose the nanoparticles might be appropriate for improving image-guided radiation therapy.
ENVIRONMENT
Building the iDock of the future
University of Miami researchers collaborated with scientists in the U.S. and Italy to develop concrete mixed with seawater. Because seawater can accelerate corrosion in steel rebar, they used glass fiber-reinforced and basalt fiber-reinforced polymer rebars instead.
Magnets sustainably separate mixtures of rare earth metals
University of Pennsylvania researchers found that by combining a magnetic field with a decrease in temperature to cause metal ions to crystallize at different rates, they could efficiently and selectively separate heavy rare earths like terbium and ytterbium from lighter metals such as lanthanum and neodymium.
Mechanism behind catalysis that neutralizes air-polluting NOx revealed
Researchers from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Lehigh University, and The University of Alabama found that tungsten oxide changes the structure of vanadium oxide from a less active form to a highly active form. This knowledge will guide future designs of improved catalysts for selective catalytic reduction of nitrogen oxides by ammonia.
Environmental chemist launches reusable glass bottle resistant to breaking
Environmental chemist turned entrepreneur Walt Himelstein created ShatterSafe, a reusable glass bottle coated in a plastic resin produced to combat the worldwide single use plastics problem. The ShatterSafe glass bottle allows for consumption of hot or cold beverages on the go and is also dishwasher safe.
MANUFACTURING
Army Research Lab researchers successfully 3D print tungsten carbide
To reduce the manufacturing costs of making tungsten carbide tools, a team of researchers at the U.S. Army Research Laboratory figured out how to 3D print it into the exact size and shape they want, with little to no post-machining required.
OTHER STORIES
Researchers test-drive Lamborghini’s carbon fiber materials in space
Houston Methodist Research Institute researchers are studying Italian sports car maker Automobili Lamborghini’s carbon fiber materials in space. The research payload, scheduled to launch no earlier than Nov. 2 to the International Space Station, is part of a collaborative project involving Houston Methodist, Lamborghini, and ISS U.S. National Laboratory.
Magnetics with a twist: Scientists find new way to image spins
Cornell University researchers found a new way to measure/control spins in nickel oxide. Rather than measuring magnetism with traditional forms of magnetic microscopy, they used a technique called magneto-thermal microscopy, in which heat is applied to the material in a tiny area and magnetism is gauged by the generated electrical voltage.
Cracking the mystery of nature’s toughest material
Researchers led by University of Michigan showed how nacre works. They found microscopic “bricks” of aragonite are actually multisided tablets only a few hundred nanometers in size. These tablets usually remain separate, but when stress is applied, the “mortar” squishes aside and the tablets lock together, forming an essentially solid surface.
Imperfect diamonds paved road to historic Deep Earth discoveries
By dating the pristine fragments of material trapped inside other super-deep diamond “inclusions,” Deep Carbon Observatory researchers could put an approximate time stamp on the start of plate tectonics.