Collaborate Disseminate
Incorporating a phase-change material into concrete, researchers have created a self-heating material that can melt snow and ice for up to 10 hours without using salt or shovels. The novel material could reduce the need for plowing and salting and help… Continue reading Phase-change concrete melts snow and ice without salt or shovels
Researchers have created a new class of robots that can shift between solid and liquid forms on demand. In a series of tests, these new bots could move and change shape to run obstacle courses, carry objects, or even escape from a jail cell like a Term… Continue reading “Robot” made of shape-shifting matter liquefies to escape jail
In an effort to find an efficient way to keep buildings cooler in hot weather and warmer in the colder months, researchers at University of Chicago’s Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering (PME) have developed a shape-shifting material that holds cop… Continue reading Cladding could regulate building temps by solidifying and liquefying
Heating and cooling systems are among the biggest guzzlers of energy, contributing to a vicious cycle of climate change that then drives higher use of heating and cooling. Now engineers at Berkeley Lab have developed a new technology that heats and coo… Continue reading Ionic cooling system melts and freezes material to cycle temperature
As useful as refrigerators and air conditioners are, the gases they use as refrigerants can leak into the atmosphere and become major contributors to climate change. Now engineers at Harvard have demonstrated a new prototype cooling device that uses a … Continue reading Solid-state refrigerant works under pressure for greener cooling
Researchers at EPFL have discovered a material that seems to be able to “remember” all of its past encounters with stimuli, such as electrical currents. The compound could come in handy for better data storage and processing.Continue ReadingCategory: M… Continue reading First material found to “remember” its own history
Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin have developed a strange new nanocrystal material that can switch between gel and liquid states in response to temperature or other triggers. This could be used to make light filters or even active therm… Continue reading State-switching nanocrystal gel makes for cooling or thermal camouflage
Windows may be important for letting natural light and warmth into a room, but sometimes they let in too much, or let your artificial warmth out instead. Researchers at Oxford have developed a new smart window coating that can be tuned on the fly to em… Continue reading Tuneable smart window coating traps heat in winter, reflects it in summer
There are many parts of the world which lack infrastructure, but that get a lot of sunlight … which makes buildings uncomfortably hot. A new system could help, as it uses a combination of sunlight and salt water – but no electricity – to produce a co… Continue reading Sunlight and salt water join forces in electricity-free cooling system
Heating and cooling systems are some of the biggest energy guzzlers in use, so passive temperature control could be a good way to reduce emissions. Phase-change materials (PCMs) show promise for this, and now engineers at Texas A&M have developed a new… Continue reading 3D-printable phase-change materials insulate buildings better at scale