Category Technology/Electronics

‘Artificial leaf’ concept inspires research into solar-powered fuel production. Rice University researchers have created an efficient, low-cost device that splits water to produce hydrogen fuel.

The platform developed by the Brown School of Engineering lab of Rice materials scientist Jun Lou integrates catalytic electrodes and perovskite solar cells that, when triggered by sunlight, produce electricity...

Researchers at the University of Massachusetts and the Air Force Research Laboratory Information Directorate have recently created a 3D computing circuit that could be used to map and implement complex machine learning algorithms, such convolutional neural networks (CNNs). This 3D circuit, presented in a paper published in Nature Electronics, comprises eight layers of memristors; electrical components that regulate the electrical current flowing in a circuit and directly implement neural network weights in hardware.

“Previously, we developed a very reliable memristive device that meets most requirements of in-memory computing for artificial neural networks, ...

Engineering researchers have created ultrathin, stretchable electronic material that is gas permeable, allowing the material to “breathe.” The material was designed specifically for use in biomedical or wearable technologies, since the gas permeability allows sweat and volatile organic compounds to evaporate away from the skin, making it more comfortable for users – especially for long-term wear.

“The gas permeability is the big advance over earlier stretchable electronics,” says Yong Zhu, co-corresponding author of a paper on the work and a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at North Carolina State University...

New method turns foam into higher value rubber and hard plastics. Researchers have developed a new method for upcycling polyurethane foams, the spongy material found in mattresses, insulation, furniture cushions and shoes.

This process, developed by researchers at Northwestern University and the University of Minnesota, first involves mixing postconsumer polyurethane foam waste with a catalyst solution that allows the foam to become malleable. Next, the method uses a “twin-screw” extrusion process that both removes air from the foam to create a new material in the shape of a hard, durable plastic or soft, flexible film as well as remolds the material.

This allows foam waste to be processed into higher quality ru...