Category Chemistry/Nanotechnology

The material, technically known as hexagonal boron nitride, features better transparency than its sister, graphene, is chemically inert, or non-reactive, and atomically smooth. It also features high mechanical strength and thermal conductivity. Unlike graphene, however, it is an insulator instead of a conductor of electricity, making it useful as a substrate and the foundation for the electronics in cell phones, laptops, tablets and many other devices.

Growth and transfer of 2-D material such as hexagonal boron nitride and graphene was performed by a team that included Yijing Stehle of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Credit: ORNL

“Imagine batteries, capacitors, solar cells, video screens and fuel cells as thin as a piece of paper,” said ORNL’s Yijing Stehle...

This is a scanning electron microscopy image of microdiamonds made using the new technique.

Q-carbon is distinct from known phases of graphite and diamond. They have also developed a technique for using Q-carbon to make diamond-related structures at room temperature and at ambient atmospheric pressure in air. “We’ve now created a third solid phase of carbon,” says Prof. Jay Narayan. “The only place it may be found in the natural world would be possibly in the core of some planets.”

Q-carbon has some unusual characteristics
~It is ferromagnetic -other solid forms of carbon are not.
“We didn’t even think that was possible,” Narayan says.
~It is harder than diamond, and glows when exposed to even low levels of energy.
~”Q-carbon’s strength and low work-function – its willingness to release el...

Assembling a cell to test sodium-ion (Na-ion), battery materials in a glove box. Credit: ©Cyril FRESILLON/CSE/CNRS Photothèque

An alternative technology to Li-ion has been designed for application in specific sectors. The researchers have developed the first battery using sodium ions in the usual “18650” format, an industry standard. The main advantage of the prototype is that it relies on sodium, an element far more abundant and less costly than lithium. The batteries have displayed performance levels comparable to their lithium counterparts, and this new technology is already attracting industrial interest. It could be used to store renewable energies in the future, say researchers.

The 1st step was to find the ideal “recipe” for the cathode of the battery...

Quick and easy coating process makes surfaces omniphobic. (© Wiley) Read more: Totally repellent – Quick and easy coating process makes surfaces omniphobic

Surfaces that repel all dirt and graffiti, are easy to clean, and cause liquids to bead up and slide off (like the frequently mentioned lotus blossom), are high on the wish lists of engineers and scientists. However, none of the technologies developed in the past has been a sweeping success. Scientists have now introduced a new method for making transparent, dirt-repellant coatings that can be applied very quickly and easily. The coatings repel both water and oily liquids and are stable at higher pressures and temperatures.

Prior approaches involved fluoropolymers (e.g. Teflon) and silicones...