Advances in materials technology have a huge impact on improvements in science and technology. Whether it's the latest wonder material, such as graphene, or uncovering the secrets to the longevity of ancient Roman concrete, material science is the reason so much of our technology is more than the sum of its parts.
Sandia engineers have developed the most durable metal alloy ever created. Made up of a combination of platinum and gold, the new material is 100 times more wear-resistant than high-strength steel, and the first metal alloy to join the same class as diamond. It also produces its own lubricant.
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Carbon atoms can form graphene sheets and buckyballs. Scientists have theorized that a third variation should exist with negative curvature, known as schwarzite. An international team has now found a way to create these structures, which may have unusual electrical, magnetic and optical properties.
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Aerogels are among the best thermal insulators, but their cloudy appearance doesn't work for windows, one of the worst offenders for letting heat escape a building. Now, researchers at Colorado University Boulder have found a way to make them transparent, recycling a beer by-product in the process.
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Brazilian researchers have created a new two-dimensional material called hematene, which is made up of sheets of iron ore just three atoms thick. And as is often the case with 2D materials, hematene seems to have different properties to its regular form.
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For years, scientists have seen silicon as a hugely promising material in the world of lithium-ion batteries. Scientists at Norway’s Institute for Energy Technology are now claiming to have overcome some of its limitations with a new material it calls SiliconX.
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Harvard scientists have led an international team to develop a new surface that can reconfigure its shape, stickiness or slipperiness on demand, through the application of a magnetic field.
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You don’t want to be staring down the barrel of the mantis shrimp's immensely-powerful club. Now researchers have discovered the mechanism behind just how the creature wields this weapon without permanently damaging itself, and the design strategy could inspire a new class of super-tough materials.
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Metamaterials that cloak people and objects from radar, visible light or infrared are usually thick and heavy, but now engineers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have developed an ultrathin, lightweight sheet that absorbs heat signatures and can even present false ones.
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To make concrete more environmentally friendly, the industry has been adding by-products from coal-fired power plants, but doing so had its own problems. Now, Rice researchers have developed a new composite binder that requires no cement, and reduce waste from power plants at the same time.
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It was back in April that we heard about how scientists had made concrete stronger and more eco-friendly by adding graphene to it. Now, researchers at Lancaster University are reporting that they've achieved even better results using cheaper "nano platelets" derived from root vegetable fibers.
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