[Image above] Credit: ACerS
ENERGY
New hydrogen fuel cell design could unlock key clean energy technology
Researchers at the University of New South Wales redesigned hydrogen fuel cells to allow excess water and gas to escape before they can build up. Using high-precision microscale engineering, they introduced microscopic channels into the internal architecture of the cell. The redesigned fuel cell achieved 75% more power than traditional designs.
Engineers expose structural weakness driving lithium-ion battery failure
Researchers led by the University of Houston found that lithium dendrites are unexpectedly strong and brittle, signaling a need to rethink future battery design. They captured video of the dendrites in action by performing operando scanning electron microscope imaging.
More than a pretty picture, star-shaped nanomaterial changes energy storage
University at Buffalo researchers created the first-ever star-shaped vanadyl hydroxide and showed that this shape can fundamentally alter how the material stores energy.
MANUFACTURING
Researchers find way to reliably assess strength of used flat glass
Researchers at Munich University of Applied Sciences developed a reliable method to test the technical properties of used flat glass so it can be reused in new window systems. The research aims to increase the use of used window glass to reduce waste.
Polymer grid strengthens 3D-printed concrete
Researchers at the University of South Australia created a modified concrete printer that feeds a polymer mesh through a second nozzle just behind the concrete nozzle. Printing the reinforcement in place transformed the 3D-printed concrete into a material that carries 41% greater loads and bends 552% further before failure.
Production of ultraclean MXenes with outstanding electrical performance
An international team of researchers developed a breakthrough “gas–liquid–solid” process for producing MXenes with uniformly distributed halogen atoms on the surface and a precisely tunable surface composition.
OTHER STORIES
New method makes neural networks three times faster in wave propagation problems
Researchers at Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology proposed a new approach to training neural networks for wave propagation in absorbing media. Instead of approximating the wave field directly, the neural network learns a quantity related to the reflection coefficient, while the phase is recovered by quadrature.
Researchers reveal new method for dialing up superconductivity
By attaching twisted bilayer graphene to strontium titanate, researchers at The Ohio State University were able to see and control how strongly electrons in the system interacted with each other. By adjusting the electron pairs, the researchers were able to switch the material’s superconductivity on and off.
Researchers discover record-setting heat-conducting material
A multi-institution research team at the Advanced Photon Source discovered that metallic theta-phase tantalum nitride conducts heat nearly three times more efficiently than copper or silver, the best conventional heat-conducting metals.
Heat-proof memory device thrives at 700°C
Researchers at the University of Southern California unveiled a new type of memory device that continues to operate at 700°C (1,292°F). They built the device using tungsten for the top electrode, hafnium oxide ceramic in the middle, and graphene for the bottom layer.