Engineering & Technology
Towards in-line detection of thermal polymer degradation
Polymers are an indispensable part of modern society, found in almost every product we use, including machine and engine components. But polymers degrade, and they need close monitoring to make sure this doesn’t cause structural materials or devices to fail. We already have many ways to assess polymer degradation in the lab, but monitoring polymers while they’re in use is […]
Nonoverlap proportion and the point-biserial association problem
Dr Stanley Luck, a statistics consultant and founding member of Vector Analytics LLC, has developed a novel algorithm for cloud computing technology. Dr Luck demonstrates the use of his improved CART association algorithm in a high-dimensional search problem of nursing home performance, based on the publicly accessible Nursing Home Compare (NHC) database. The results highlight the importance of constructing a […]
Fixing the interface for enhanced perovskite solar cell performance
With millions of people in the world still having no access to electricity, it is easy to predict that the world’s already challenging energy demands will only increase. Solar power has long presented itself as a promising renewable energy source, but the solar cells used in photovoltaics still suffer from relatively low efficiency, even when novel materials such as perovskites […]
Superellipses to Superformula: The impact of Gielis Transformations
Devised to describe botanical shapes by Dr Johan Gielis, visiting Professor at the University of Antwerp, the Superformula has found applications across many areas of mathematics, science and technology. Dr Gielis’ single equation, which provides a unified description of abstract, natural and man-made shapes, from triangles to spirals, has now been tested on more than 50,000 specimens, and his original […]
Advanced chemiresistive materials for wireless sensor networks
When exposed to gases and vapours of certain chemicals in their surrounding environments, chemiresistive materials can change their electrical resistance, which makes them incredibly useful as sensors for air pollution. Through her work, Dr Esther Hontañón, a researcher at the Spanish Council of Research (CSIC) in Madrid, explores how the latest advances in materials science and 3D printing technology can […]
Pioneering materials informatics: Clean technologies from molecular design
Tackling global challenges in sustainable energy production calls for the rational design of new generations of clean materials, coupling efficiency with low environmental impact. Materials discovery offers a powerful means to predict structure-property relationships in novel materials, but often lacks the ability to account for the complex interplay of length- and timescales that ultimately determine the potential of a material […]
SUSSOL – Using AI for the selection and substitution of greener solvent
Solvents can be toxic, volatile, highly flammable, non-biodegradable and non-renewable. Searching for a suitable green alternative for a nonbenign solvent can be an onerous task. Hannes Sels, Herwig De Smet and Dr Jeroen Geuens from Karel de Grote University of Applied Sciences and Arts, in close collaboration with their industrial partners, have developed a user-friendly software tool based on an […]
Nanoparticle coating in heat pipe design for miniaturised cooling
Size reduction and increasing processing power are driving forces in the development of modern electronic devices, from portable computers to smartphones and wearable devices. In all these applications, efficient cooling of the electronic components of a device is paramount. By exploiting novel design approaches based on the use of nanoparticle layers, Prof Tomio Okawa and Ms Menglei Wang (The University […]
A new computational approach to Digital Holographic Microscopy
Digital Holographic Microscopy offers a unique way for researchers to precisely examine the 3D topography of microscopic objects. However, until now the capabilities of this technique have been limited by complications involving the complex computational method used. The Optical Imaging Research Laboratory at the University of Memphis, led by Dr Ana Doblas, and collaborators have constructed algorithms which can automatically […]
What media arts can teach us about technology and its use
What if? That’s the question behind the Synthesis Center, a unique institutional experiment at Arizona State University in the United States. Created by Professor Sha Xin Wei, the transdisciplinary ‘atelier’ or workshop brings like minds together to explore the interface between media arts, the environment, engineering and technology. With the potential for global social impact, the results generate significant insights […]