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Category: materials – Page 298

Ultrasonic waves form microscopic glass fibers into a pattern of lines, collectively creating a reinforcing microstructure that gives the printed component increased strength. (credit: Tom Llewellyn-Jones, Bruce Drinkwater and Richard Trask)

University of Bristol engineers have developed a new type of 3-D printing that can print strong composite materials.

The new method is based on a modification of an off-the-shelf 3D printer: mounting a switchable, focused laser module and an ultrasonic alignment apparatus.

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More VR Theme Parks and attractions opening this year. We have the Void opening this summer in Pleasant Grove, UT; a new VR roller coaster in UK’s Alton Towers that opens in April; there is real opportunity for entrepreneurs in the VR space to launch their own portable VR amusement/ entertainment centers for corporate events, parties, etc.

Virtual reality and theme parks may not seem like an obvious match, but these planned attractions may change your mind. Starting this spring we’ll start to see rides that take advantage of VR to offer new and exciting experiences.

Two British theme parks announced VR-powered attractions this month. Alton Towers will turn one of its roller coasters into an outer space adventure using Samsung’s Gear VR, while Thorpe Park is prepping a terrifying new interactive experience powered by the HTC Vive.

Continue reading “VR-powered theme park rides will blow you mind later this year” | >

This new material is remarkably soft, and it could revolutionize robotics and prosthetics.

Researchers from the Monash University have discovered a new sponge-like material called graphene elastomer. This revolutionary material is expected to be used for robots designed to help take care of elderly people.

The graphene-based elastomer is exteremely sensitive to pressure and vibrations. Also called G-elastomer, the material has the ability to bounce back despite the pressure given to it. It is described to be very soft and elastic compared to other substances such as rubber or foam.

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As much as some people fear getting dental fillings or root canals, what many of them are really afraid of is the needle that delivers the anesthetic into the mouth tissue. Even though the skin in the “jabbing area” is usually pretreated with a topical anesthetic, it can still hurt. Before long, however, a shot of electricity could make that topical treatment deep-acting enough that the needle isn’t even needed.

In a recent study, scientists from the University of Sao Paulo in Brazil combined two commonly-used anesthetic drugs – prilocaine hydrochloride and lidocaine hydrochloride – with a polymer to form a hydrogel. The polymer was included to make it sticky, so that it could be applied to the lining of a pig’s mouth.

Using a process known as iontophoresis, a mild and painless electrical current was then passed through the hydrogel. As a result, there was a 12-fold increase in how well the prilocaine hydrochloride permeated through the tissue. The anesthetic effect was claimed to be not only fast-acting, but also long-lasting.

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European Space Agency building a space colony by 2030.

The European Space Agency unveiled plans on Friday to build a “lunar village” by 2030 as a stepping stone to Mars.

ESA chief Jan Woerner said the lunar “village” would be a series of structures made by robots and 3D printers that use moon dust as building material.

“I looked into the requirements I see for a project after ISS. As of today, I see the moon village as the ideal successor of the International Space Station for [space] exploration,” Woerner said at a news briefing in Paris on Friday.

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The material to create space elevators will be developed by 2030, enabling a new golden age of space travel, according to a study published in the journal New Space.

“The material needed to have a 100,000 km rope will become real before 2030 and enable the creation of this low-cost access to space,” wrote Cathy W Swan, of SouthWest Analytic Network, Peter A Swan and John M Knapman, of the International Space Elevator Consortium, and David I Raitt, retired from the European Space Agency.

A space elevator would make launching people, satellites and craft into geostationary orbit dramatically cheaper than at present, with the researchers estimating it would drop from the current prices of $25,000 per kg for commercial launches and $40,000 per kg for governmental launches to $100 per kg for materials.

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