Category Chemistry/Nanotechnology

A sample of heat – conducting polymer is tested for thickness in U-M’s Lurie Nanofabrication Facility. Image credit: Joseph Xu, Michigan Engineering

Advanced plastics could usher in lighter, cheaper, more energy-efficient product components, including those used in vehicles, LEDs and computers – if only they were better at dissipating heat. A new technique that can change plastic’s molecular structure to help it cast off heat is a promising step in that direction. Developed by a team of University of Michigan researchers in materials science and mechanical engineering and detailed in a new study published in Science Advances, the process is inexpensive and scalable.

The concept can likely be adapted to a variety of other plastics...

A look inside the energy density manganese dioxide-zinc battery developed at CCNY

A new generation of manganese dioxide-zinc batteries with unprecedented cycle life and energy density is the latest innovation at The City College of New York-based CUNY Energy Institute. The discovery has made the common household battery suitable for large grid Storage applications. City College Snr Research Associate Gautam G. Yadav and his team applied a new twist to the old chemistry behind batteries. The result is a battery that takes advantage of intercalation and complexation chemistry to make the cathodes rechargeable to a larger extent, greatly extending its life.

“A new layered crystal structure of manganese dioxide is used in this chemistry, which is intercalated with copper ions...

Hybrid nanoparticles as photoinitiators. a. Electron microscope image of hybrid nanocrystal. The inset shows a schematic of semiconductor nanorod with a metal tip. b. Bucky ball structure produced by rapid 3-D printing in water using HNPs as photoinitiators. c. Spiral printed with HNPs by two photon printer providing high resolution features.
Credit: Adapted with permission from Pawar et al., Nano Lett. DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.7b01870. Copyright (2017) American Chemical Society.

A new type of photoinitiator for 3D printing in water could further the development of biomedical accessories, bring advances in traditional industries such as plastics, and offer an environmentally friendly approach to additive manufacturing...

The image above depicts a new device for surface enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy. Infrared light (the white beams) is trapped by tiny gaps in the metal surface, where it can be used to detect trace amounts of matter. Credit: University at Buffalo.

Scientists searching for traces of drugs, bomb-making components and other chemicals often shine light on the materials they’re analyzing.This approach is known as spectroscopy, and it involves studying how light interacts with trace amounts of matter. One of the more effective types of spectroscopy is infrared absorption spectroscopy, which scientists use to sleuth out performance-enhancing drugs in blood samples and tiny particles of explosives in the air.

While infrared absorption spectroscopy has improved greatly in the last 100 yea...