Human skeletal muscles have a unique combination of properties that materials researchers seek for their own creations. They’re strong, soft, full of water, and resistant to fatigue. A new study has found one way to give synthetic hydrogels this total package of characteristics: putting them through a vigorous workout. from Engineering and Construction News –… Continue reading Working out makes hydrogels perform more like muscle

A research team that has already conquered the problem of getting ketchup out of its bottle has now tackled a new category of consumer and manufacturing woe: how to get much thicker materials to slide without sticking or deforming. from Engineering and Construction News – ScienceDaily https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/04/190422170533.htm from Tumblr https://ndbasilica.tumblr.com/post/184374312994

A recent discovery explains a new family of gravitational instabilities in granular particles of different densities that are driven by a gas-channeling mechanism not seen in fluids. The team observed an unexpected Rayleigh-Taylor (R-T)-like instability in which lighter grains rise through heavier grains in the form of ‘fingers’ and “granular bubbles, similar to the bubbles… Continue reading Defying the laws of physics? Engineers demonstrate bubbles of sand

Researchers from the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have developed a new and improved snake-inspired soft robot that is faster and more precise than its predecessor. from Engineering and Construction News – ScienceDaily https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/04/190422112737.htm from Tumblr https://ndbasilica.tumblr.com/post/184371770899

Researchers have developed a new method for safely prolonging battery life by inserting a nano-coating of boron nitride (BN) to stabilize solid electrolytes in lithium metal batteries. The team focused on solid, ceramic electrolytes, which show promise in improving safety and energy density, compared with conventional, flammable electrolytes in Li-ion batteries. Rechargeable solid-state lithium batteries… Continue reading New technique produces longer-lasting lithium batteries

A pair of researchers describes a way of making a submicron-sized cylinder disappear without using any specialized coating. Their findings could enable invisibility of natural materials at optical frequency and eventually lead to a simpler way of enhancing optoelectronic devices, including sensing and communication technologies. from Engineering and Construction News – ScienceDaily https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/04/190422090852.htm from Tumblr… Continue reading Photonics: The curious case of the disappearing cylinders

Researchers have used carbon nanotube templates to produce nanowires of transition metal monochalcogenide (TMM), which are only 3 atoms wide in diameter. These are 50 times longer than previous attempts and can be studied in isolation, preserving the properties of atomically quasi ‘1D’ objects. The team saw that single wires twist when perturbed, suggesting that… Continue reading From 2D to 1D: Atomically quasi ‘1D’ wires using a carbon nanotube template

Researchers have demonstrated a theoretical type of unconventional superconductivity in a uranium-based material, according to a new study. from Engineering and Construction News – ScienceDaily https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/04/190419094032.htm from Tumblr https://ndbasilica.tumblr.com/post/184300086079

Lithium-ion batteries are expected to have a global market value of $47 billion by 2023, but their use in heavy-duty applications such as electric vehicles is limited due to factors such as lengthy charge and discharge cycles. Engineers are examining how the lithium moves in battery electrodes, important in designing batteries that charge and discharge… Continue reading Through thick and thin: Neutrons track lithium ions in battery electrodes

The inside of a fire might be the last place one would explore, but a new method to do just that could lead to advances in fighting fires, creating cleaner engines and even space travel. from Engineering and Construction News – ScienceDaily https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/04/190418131323.htm from Tumblr https://ndbasilica.tumblr.com/post/184297591349