Collaborate Disseminate
Last year, engineers at Purdue University used their expertise in materials science to produce the world’s whitest paint, with an ability to reflect around 98% of incoming sunlight and therefore holds great potential when it comes to energy efficiency … Continue reading World’s whitest paint is now thin enough to coat cars and planes
Is there microbial life floating around in the clouds of Venus? Scientists have long pondered this question and soon we may get some answers. A new report outlines the Venus Life Finder Missions, starting with a cloud-skimming mission in 2023 to search… Continue reading 2023 mission to Venus will skim the acidic clouds for signs of life
Limiting how long electric vehicles need to be plugged in for before returning to the road is an important factor in driving their adoption, and much research focuses on reducing these charging times. A new advance leverages an alternative cooling tech… Continue reading Liquid-to-vapor-cooled cable beats the heat for 5-minute EV charging
Chronic wounds such as diabetic foot ulcers can be very difficult to treat, partially because of antibiotic-resistant “biofilms” that form over the affected tissue. A new type of microneedle patch, however, has been shown to deliver medication through … Continue reading Microneedle patch penetrates biofilms to treat chronic wounds
Purdue University engineers have developed a space-debris-clearing drag sail called Spinnaker3 that is designed to speed up the deorbiting of space junk up to 400 miles (645 km) high so it safely burns up in the Earth’s atmosphere. The sail will be put… Continue reading Space-junk sail to help deorbit its own launch vehicle
Electronics, and batteries in particular, are vulnerable to very high or very low temperatures, but a new thermal switch could help deal with both. It’s made from (what else) graphene foam that can dynamically trap heat when it’s cold out, or allow hea… Continue reading Graphene foam “thermal switch” keeps batteries warm or cool on demand
Electronics, and batteries in particular, are vulnerable to very high or very low temperatures, but a new thermal switch could help deal with both. It’s made from (what else) graphene foam that can dynamically trap heat when it’s cold out, or allow hea… Continue reading Graphene foam “thermal switch” keeps batteries warm or cool on demand
Various groups are currently working on tiny “robots” that could deliver medication to specific locations within the body. One of the latest such microbots, known as the MANiAC, is designed specifically for use in the delicate and challenging central n… Continue reading MANiAC microbots may one deliver drugs within the nervous system
Today’s astronauts are able to survive largely on freeze-dried, canned and dehydrated foods, but there are limitations in both nutrition and flavor to these dietary regimes. Refrigeration in space is a complex engineering challenge but one that would c… Continue reading Zero Gravity Fridge for astronauts shows promise in microgravity
Scientists at Purdue University and the Scripps Research Institute have identified a natural compound from a common shrub that could help fight cancer. The compound is the first found to inhibit a cancer protein that was previously considered “undrugga… Continue reading “Undruggable” cancer protein targeted by compound from shrub root