Tag: nanotechnology
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NSF Grant Awarded for Nanotech Color-Enhanced MRI Scans
An engineering faculty member at University of Houston received a grant from National Science Foundation (NSF) for research on a process that adds color to the standard black-and-while MRI image. The three-year, $300,000 grant supports the work of mechanical engineering professor Li Sun (pictured left), as well as colleagues at Houston and the University of…
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University Studying Smart Polymer Film to Control Substrates
Researchers at Technische Universität Darmstadt in Germany are developing thin plastics with the ability to control the properties of materials to which they are attached. The films made of polymers — long, repeating chains of molecules — would contain elements that react to external stimuli, such as light or magnetic fields, and change the underlying…
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Electrolyte Nanocrystals Increase Efficiency of Fuel Cells
Researchers at Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) in the Netherlands found that adding small crystals to solid electrolyte material can raise the efficiency of fuel cells. The TU Delft team published its findings, the second recent article on this subject, in the journal Advanced Functional Materials (paid subscription required). Fuel cells are devices that…
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Student Creates Self-Strengthening Nanocomposite Material
A graduate student at Rice University in Houston, Texas has created a synthetic material combining nanotechnology and polymers that gets stronger from repeated stress. The results of the research by Brent Carey and colleagues appear this month in the journal ACS Nano (paid subscription required). Carey, a Ph.D. candidate in the lab of materials science…
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University Patents Peptide-Based Adhesive
The technology transfer arm of Kansas State University in Manhattan has received an international patent for an adhesive that increases in strength as moisture is removed. The patent covers an adhesive made from peptides — a compound containing two or more amino acids that link together. The adhesive was created by biochemistry professor John Tomich…
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Nanoscale Implant Surfaces Help Seal Skin Against Infections
Researchers at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island have created nanoscale surfaces for materials on prosthetic devices that mimic the contours of natural skin. Their findings appear in the April issue of the Journal of Biomedical Materials Research A (paid subscription required). The goal of biomedical engineers to develop more flexible, functional prosthetics for soldiers…
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University Engineers Develop Single Lens for 3D Microscope
Engineers at Ohio State University in Columbus have invented a lens that enables microscopic objects to be seen from nine different angles at once to create a 3D image. Engineering professor Allen Yi, and postdoctoral researcher Lei Li discuss the lens in the November 2010 issue of the Journal of the Optical Society of America…
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Organic Nanoparticle in Development for Cancer Drug Delivery
A research team at Ontario Cancer Institute in Toronto, Canada have created an organic nanoparticle that they say can potentially change the way tumors are treated. Their findings appear online in the journal Nature Materials (paid subscription required). The researchers, led by the institute’s Gang Zheng (pictured left), say these new nanoscale particles — 1…
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Solar/Thermal Power Alternative Being Developed for Soldiers
A new type of personal power pack in development by six universities in the U.K. could reduce the weight troops carry when engaged on the battlefield. The solar and thermoelectric-powered system aims to weigh up to fifty per cent less than conventional chemical battery packs used by British infantry. The two-year project is being developed…
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National Lab Develops Material for Safe Hydrogen Storage
Scientists with the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, California have designed a new composite material that allows hydrogen to be stored safely and at high densities, while still making it easily accessible.