[Image above] Credit: NIST
Arrays of tiny conical tips that eject ionized materials could fabricate nanoscale devices cheaply
A group of MIT researchers has developed dense arrays of microscopic cones that harness electrostatic forces to eject streams of ions, with promising applications that include fabricating features onto nanoscale mechanical devices, spinning nanofibers, and creating propulsion systems for fist-sized nanosatellites.
Liquid crystal skin monitors cardiovascular and skin health
A new wearable medical device can quickly alert a person if they are having cardiovascular trouble or if it’s simply time to put on some skin moisturizer, reports a Northwestern University and University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign study. The wireless technology uses thousands of tiny liquid crystals on a flexible substrate to sense heat and changes color to alert the wearer.
Navy uniforms bring textile welding to US
The U.S. Navy could be turning to ultrasonic welding to make its uniforms lighter, stronger, and cheaper. And if the project by a Rhode Island company and the Navy Clothing and Textile Research Facility is a success, it could help bring manufacturing back from overseas.
Wind turbines could take the punch out of hurricanes
If 78,000 giant wind turbines had been positioned off the coast of New Orleans in 2005, they would have sucked so much energy out of Hurricane Katrina that the storm surge would have been cut by 71% and wind speeds would have been reduced by as much as 57%.
Manufacturing more efficient transformer materials with optimized lasers
Almost every electronic device contains a transformer, which contains an iron-silicon alloy called electrical steel. Researchers at Fraunhofer Institute have now found a way to improve the performance of electrical steel and manufacture it more efficiently, using an optimized laser process.
NRL researchers develop novel method to synthesize nanoparticles
Scientists at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory Materials Science and Technology Division have developed a novel one-step process using, for the first time in these types of syntheses, potassium superoxide (KO2) to rapidly form oxide nanoparticles from simple salt solutions in water.