Collaborate Disseminate
Ice wreaks havoc on surfaces, but we might have a new way to prevent it building up. Scientists at Northwestern University have shown that textured surfaces with thin layers of graphene oxide can stay completely frost-free for long periods.Continue Rea… Continue reading Leaf-inspired graphene surfaces repel frost formation for a week
Metalworking usually requires very high heat and pressure, but scientists in Singapore have now demonstrated a way to make very pure metal structures at room temperature. It’s inspired by the exoskeletons of crabs and insects.Continue ReadingCategory: … Continue reading Room temperature metalworking inspired by insects and crab shells
Gels and glasses are on opposite ends of the material spectrum, but engineers at North Carolina State University (NCSU) have developed a new class called “glassy gels” that are both strong and flexible, as well as sticky and self-healing.Continue Readi… Continue reading New “glassy gel” materials are strangely strong, stretchy and sticky
Glass might soon have some competition from an unlikely rival – bamboo. Scientists in China have turned regular old bamboo into a transparent material that’s also resistant to fire and water, and suppresses smoke.Continue ReadingCategory: Materials, Sc… Continue reading Transparent bamboo: A fireproof and waterproof alternative to glass
You can stop skulking around labs trying to get bitten by radioactive spiders – a new breakthrough could make it easier than ever to get Spider-Man’s wall-crawling powers. Scientists in Singapore have created a strong and reusable adhesive out of a sha… Continue reading Strong shape-memory adhesive could put Spider-Man to shame
Graphene is a bit like the Novak Djokovic of materials – it’s so damn talented that each new achievement feels passé. But now, an exciting new upstart is challenging graphene’s title. Meet goldene, a two-dimensional sheet of gold that has its own stran… Continue reading Goldene: New 2D form of gold makes graphene look boring
We humans like to think we’re so clever, but in many cases nature has beaten us to the punch with a better version. The newest example comes from a humble insect that’s probably in your own backyard, which makes nanoscale soccer balls that hide it from… Continue reading Common bug’s tiny, complex balls bestow UV-blocking superpowers
Scraping ice off your car window might get a lot easier in the future thanks to a new spray coating developed by scientists in Austria. That’s because of the way the molecules line up – or don’t – during its high-tech creation process.Continue ReadingC… Continue reading Molecular chaos powers potent ice-busting coating
A plane wing that changes shape in flight to better handle the airflow crossing it could be on the horizon thanks to a materials science advance from researchers in Stockholm. The trick involves the melting and hole-punching power of lasers.Continue Re… Continue reading Laser-based morphing could lead to self-optimizing airplane wings
Prepare for a radical acceleration in technological development. A Google Deepmind AI has achieved “an order-of-magnitude expansion in stable materials known to humanity,” finding about 800 years’ worth of new materials with revolutionary potential.Con… Continue reading Deepmind AI tool catapults materials science 800 years into the future