New textile could keep you cool in the heat, warm in the cold

Same fabric can perform both functions

17-Apr-2020 - Imagine a single garment that could adapt to changing weather conditions, keeping its wearer cool in the heat of midday but warm when an evening storm blows in. In addition to wearing it outdoors, such clothing could also be worn indoors, drastically reducing the need for air conditioning or ...

Laser-based ultrasound approach provides new direction for nondestructive testing

09-Sep-2019 - Many industrial buildings, including nuclear power plants and chemical plants, rely on ultrasound instruments that continually monitor the structural integrity of their systems without damaging or altering their features. One new technique draws on laser technology and candle soot to generate ...

Microtube with Built-In Pump

Rapid controlled transport of water droplets by sunlight-powered pump

19-Dec-2018 - Driven by natural or artificial sunlight, a novel “microtube pump” transports water droplets over long distances. As reported by Chinese researchers in the Journal Angewandte Chemie, the pump consists of a tube whose properties can be changed asymmetrically through irradiation. This results in ...

Simple, mass production of giant vesicles using a porous silicone material

01-Nov-2018 - A technique to generate large amounts of giant vesicle (liposome) dispersion has been developed. The technique involves adsorbing a lipid into a silicone porous material resembling a "marshmallow-like gel" and then squeezing it out like a sponge by impregnating a buffer solution. This work was ...

No assembly required

Self-assembling silicone-based polymers

24-Oct-2018 - Scientists at Tokyo Institute of Technology, RIKEN and Tohoku University have developed a silicone polymer chain that can self-assemble into a 3D periodic structure. They achieved this by using their recently reported self-assembling triptycene molecules to modify the ends of the polymer ...

Sculpting with graphene foam

18-Jun-2018 - Rice University scientists have developed a simple way to produce conductive, three-dimensional objects made of graphene foam. The squishy solids look and feel something like a child's toy but offer new possibilities for energy storage and flexible electronic sensor applications, according to ...

Lithium-related discovery could extend battery life and improve safety

08-Mar-2018 - Lithium-metal batteries are among the most promising candidates for high-density energy storage technology in an expanding range of digital "smart" devices and electrical vehicles, but uncontrolled lithium dendrite growth, which results in poor recharging capability and safety hazards, currently ...

3-D printing improves cell adhesion and strength of PDMS polymer

25-Jan-2018 - Combining two different polymer forms can switch manufacturing of silicone parts from molding, casting and spin coating of simple forms to 3-D printing of complex geometries with better mechanical characteristics and better biological adhesion, according to a team of Penn State researchers. "So ...

Breakthrough on brittle smart phone screens

27-Oct-2017 - Scientists at the University of Sussex may have found a solution to the long-standing problem of brittle smart phone screens. Professor Alan Dalton and his team have developed a new way to make smart phone touch screens that are cheaper, less brittle, and more environmentally friendly. On top of ...

Artificial 'skin' gives robotic hand a sense of touch

15-Sep-2017 - A team of researchers from the University of Houston has reported a breakthrough in stretchable electronics that can serve as an artificial skin, allowing a robotic hand to sense the difference between hot and cold, while also offering advantages for a wide range of biomedical devices. The work ...