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Category: engineering – Page 4

Advanced model unlocks granular hydrogel mechanics for biomedical applications

Researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have developed a novel framework for understanding and controlling the flow behavior of granular hydrogels—a class of material made up of densely packed, microscopic gel particles with promising applications in medicine, 3D bioprinting, and tissue repair.

The new study, published in Advanced Materials, was led by chemical and biomolecular engineering professors Brendan A. Harley and Simon A. Rogers, whose research groups specialize in biomaterials engineering and rheology, respectively.

Granular hydrogels have a unique ability to mimic the of living tissue, which makes them ideal candidates for encapsulating and delivering cells directly into the body. By integrating material synthesis and characterization with rheological modeling, the researchers created a that captures the essential physics of how granular hydrogels deform—reducing a complex problem to a few controllable parameters.

Snap-through effect helps engineers solve soft material motion trade-off

Everyday occurrences like snapping hair clips or clicking retractable pens feature a mechanical phenomenon known as “snap-through.” Small insects and plants like the Venus flytrap cleverly use this snap-through effect to amplify their limited physical force, rapidly releasing stored elastic energy for swift, powerful movements.

Inspired by this , researchers from Hanyang University have developed a polymer-based jumper capable of both vertical and directional leaps, triggered simply by uniform ultraviolet (UV) light irradiation.

Published in Science Advances, this study tackles a classic engineering dilemma: how to make produce strong, rapid motions.

Styrofoam-based hydrogen storage: New process offers safe, reusable solution

A research team affiliated with UNIST has unveiled a novel technology that enables hydrogen to be stored within polystyrene-derived materials, particularly those originating from Styrofoam. The research is published in the journal ACS Catalysis.

This advancement not only offers a solution to the low recycling rate of —less than 1%—but also makes hydrogen storage and transportation more practical and accessible, addressing the challenges associated with handling gaseous hydrogen.

Led by Professor Kwangjin An from the School of Energy and Chemical Engineering at UNIST, in collaboration with Dr. Hyuntae Sohn from KIST and Professor Jeehoon Han from POSTECH, the team successfully designed a comprehensive, closed-loop system to convert waste polystyrene into a liquid organic hydrogen carrier (LOHC). This innovative process enables efficient hydrogen storage, retrieval, and reuse.

Diagnosing diabetes may soon be as easy as breathing into a bag

In the U.S., one in five of the 37 million adults who has diabetes doesn’t know it. Current methods of diagnosing diabetes and prediabetes usually require a visit to a doctor’s office or lab work, both of which can be expensive and time-consuming. Now, diagnosing diabetes and prediabetes may be as simple as breathing.

A research team led by Huanyu “Larry” Cheng, James L. Henderson, Jr. Memorial Associate Professor of Engineering Science and Mechanics at Penn State, has developed a sensor that can help diagnose diabetes and prediabetes on-site in a few minutes using just a breath sample. Their results are published in the Chemical Engineering Journal.

Previous diagnostic methods often used glucose found in blood or sweat, but this sensor detects acetone levels in the breath. While everyone’s breath contains acetone as a byproduct of burning fat, acetone levels above a threshold of about 1.8 parts per million indicate diabetes.

Tiny defects deliver big gains: Controlling oxygen vacancies boosts thermoelectric efficiency by 91%

A research team has dramatically enhanced the efficiency of converting heat into electricity. The key lies in controlling tiny defects known as oxygen vacancies.

Their findings were published as a front cover article in the journal Advanced Science. The team was led by Professor Hyungyu Jin and Dr. Min Young Kim from the Department of Mechanical Engineering at POSTECH, in collaboration with Professors Donghwa Lee and Si-Young Choi from the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, and Professor Joseph P. Heremans from the Ohio State University.

Each day, enormous amounts of heat are lost around us: hot steam from factory chimneys, heat from car engines, and even the warmth generated by smartphones and computers. This is typically left unused, but if it could be converted back into electricity, it would offer a powerful solution to both energy inefficiency and environmental challenges.

NASA Astronauts to Answer Questions from Students in Ohio

NASA astronauts Michael Fincke and Zena Cardman will connect with students in Ohio as they answer prerecorded science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) questions aboard the International Space Station.

The Earth-to-space call will begin at 10:15 a.m. EDT on Wednesday, Aug. 27, and will stream live on the agency’s Learn With NASA YouTube channel.

Media interested in covering the event must RSVP by 5 p.m., Monday, Aug. 25, to Mary Beddell at: 330−492−3500 or at [email protected].

MIT mechanical engineering course invites students to “build with biology”

MIT Course 2.797÷2.798 (Molecular Cellular and Tissue Biomechanics) teaches students about the role that mechanics plays in biology, with a focus on biomechanics and mechanobiology: “Two words that sound similar but are actually very different,” says Assistant Professor Ritu Raman.

Increasing efficiency in artificial photosynthesis

Chemical engineers at EPFL have developed a new approach to artificial photosynthesis, a method for harvesting solar energy that produces hydrogen as a clean fuel from water.

“Artificial is the holy grail of all chemists,” says Astrid Olaya, a at EPFL’s Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering (ISIC). “The goal is to capture sunlight, on the one hand to oxidize water to generate oxygen and protons, and on the other to reduce either protons to hydrogen or CO2 to chemicals and fuels. This is the essence of a circular industry.”

With global energy demands increasing, we are in need of viable alternatives to fossil fuels, whose negative environmental impact has also become all too apparent. One of those alternatives is hydrogen, which can be consumed in simple fuel cells for energy, leaving behind only water.

Innsbruck develops new technique to improve multi-photon state generation

Quantum dots – semiconductor nanostructures that can emit single photons on demand – are considered among the most promising sources for photonic quantum computing.

However, every quantum dot is slightly different and may emit a slightly different color, according to a team at the University of Innsbruck, Austria, which has developed a technique to improve multi-photon state generation. The Innsbruck team states that, “the different forms of quantum dot means that, to produce multi-photon states we cannot use multiple quantum dots.”

Usually, researchers use a single quantum dot and multiplex the emission into different spatial and temporal modes, using a fast electro-optic modulator. But a contemporary technological challenge: faster electro-optic modulators are expensive and often require very customized engineering. To add to that, it may not be very efficient, which introduces unwanted losses in the system.

Nature Publishing: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41534-025-01083-0

Security wise: The team’s work combines years of research in quantum optics, semiconductor physics, and photonic engineering to open the door for next-generation quantum computers andunwanted losses in the system.

Communications. Here’s what you need to know. Securities IO: https://www.securities.io/passive-two-photon-quantum-dots-secure-communication

Continue reading “Innsbruck develops new technique to improve multi-photon state generation” | >

Pairing food waste and nanocatalysts to reduce carbon emissions in aviation

For researchers from The Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, a new avenue for reducing carbon emissions can be found on the side. A side of salad dressing, that is.

In 2020, the United States federal government committed to achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. An important step toward carbon neutrality is embracing sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), an alternative to conventional jet fuel that is made from renewable feedstocks. As part of this initiative, Grainger engineers have been hard at work creating the critical nanocatalysts for converting biocrude oil from food waste such as salad dressing into sustainable aviation fuel.

Hong Yang, a professor of chemical & biomolecular engineering, and Yuanhui Zhang, a professor of agricultural & , joined forces to tackle this problem.

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