Polymer

Hokkaido University’s ongoing research into hydrogels has borne fresh fruit: a new polymer-based material that, unlike other polymers, hardens when heated – by 1,800 times.

Helmets could soon offer better protection while also being more comfortable, thanks to a new padding material developed by HRL Laboratories. It's claimed to be better than foam at withstanding impacts, while also keeping heads cooler and drier.

It can be difficult for people such as army medics, carrying an assortment of bandages in every shape and size. Thanks to recent research, however, they may one day simply be able to spray medication-laced fiber dressings directly onto wounds.

​While many of us might think that concrete structures such as bridges simply stand unaided for decades at a time, the fact is that they require maintenance as often as once every five years. An experimental new type of rebar, however, could drastically change that.

​While shape-memory materials do have some interesting applications, many of them require the application of heat in order to change shape – and that could cause problems, in environments such as the human body. A new material, however, relies instead on a magnetically-responsive liquid.

Researchers at Cambridge University have managed to create the smallest pixels in the world, about a million times tinier than those in a phone. These new pixels could be used in huge, flexible displays that are relatively easy to manufacture and cheaper to run.

​It's always helpful if materials let you know when they're under stress, so that changes can be made before catastrophic failures occur. A new polymer is designed to provide such a warning, as it glows when stretched.

Utilizing tape to repair concrete structures may seem like some hillbilly fix-it joke, but in fact that's just what fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) sheets are used for. Now, scientists have developed a better FRP, that halves the number of people and amount of time required for application.

​Metal fibers are strong, but can't be stretched very far. Rubber fibers are stretchy, but they're not very strong. Well, scientists have combined the selling points of both materials into one type of hybrid fiber. It could be used in applications such as soft robotics.

​Although concrete doesn't burn, it can "spall" when subjected to extreme heat – this means that surface layers of the material break off, potentially causing structures made of it to collapse. According to a new study, however, fibers obtained from discarded tires can help keep that from happening.

Scientists have found a way to create materials that actually get stronger the more you use them. By mimicking the mechanism that allows living muscles to grow and strengthen after exercise, the polymer breaks down under mechanical stress, then regrows itself into a stronger configuration.

​Most 3D printers work by either depositing or melting building material in successive layers. Unfortunately, this results in the finished objects looking kind of chunky, as the ridges between layers are visible. A new process, however, uses light to create smooth-edged items out of resin.