Science News

The transition from traditional 2D to 3D microfluidic structures is a significant advancement in microfluidics, offering benefits in scientific and industrial applications. These 3D systems improve throughput through parallel operation, and soft elastomeric networks, when filled with conductive materials like liquid metal, allowing for the integration of microfluidics and electronics.

The electronics industry faces a new challenge. While transistors in computer chips are shrinking, the heat they produce is only increasing. Overheating can cause reduced circuit performance, increased leakage power or even the total breakdown of transistors.

An interdisciplinary review of how generative artificial intelligence (AI) may change work, education, health care, information, and misinformation focuses on the technology's potential impacts on social equality.

Dewatering during paper manufacturing is a highly energy-intensive process. New research, published in BioResources, shows how the process can be made more efficient concerning energy consumption.

Researchers at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the University of Maine have designed and 3D-printed a single-piece, recyclable natural-material floor panel tested to be strong enough to replace construction materials like steel.

In a study published in Energy Storage Materials , a team led by Prof. Hu Linhua from Hefei Institutes of Physical Science of the Chinese Academy of Science proposed a general principle for evaluating the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) energy level of molecules and employed it as a critical descriptor to select non-sacrificial anionic surfactant electrolyte additives for stabilizing Zn anodes, realizing sustainable regulation effect with inhibited Zn dendrite growth and side-reactions.

Many modern bridges use orthotropic steel bridge decks (OSBD), the decks being the surface sections of the bridge. OSBDs were designed to be lightweight and economical. However, this design has shown increasing issues with pavement cracking and fatigue damage at the welds that connect the bridge deck to the bridge superstructure. Fatigue damage is damage that accrues over time with use.

Consensus problems, where a group of agents, such as unmanned vehicles, machines, or robots, need to agree on certain variables only through local communication within themselves, have attracted considerable attention as a fundamental issue in cooperative control of multi-agent systems. Simply put, a multi-agent system comprises multiple decision-making agents that interact among themselves in a common environment to achieve common or conflicting goals depending on the situation.

Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed free data sets to estimate how much energy any building in the contiguous U.S. will use in 2100. These data sets provide planners with a way to anticipate future energy needs as the climate changes.

Artificial intelligence is poised to bring photovoltaic systems into a new era through revolutionary improvements in efficiency, reliability, and predictability of solar power generation.

With the escalating impacts of climate change and depletion of resources, dielectric capacitors are emerging as promising high-demanded candidates for high-performance energy storage devices. However, due to the shortcomings of various dielectric ceramics (e.g., paraelectrics, ferroelectrics, and antiferroelectrics), their low polarizability, low breakdown strength, and large hysteresis loss limit their standalone use in the advancing of energy storage ceramics. Therefore, synthesizing novel perovskite-based materials that exhibit high energy density, high energy efficiency, and low loss is crucial in achieving superior energy storage performance.

Thermoelectric technology, which enables the direct conversion of heat into electricity, has emerged as a promising alternative energy source. Notably, this technology can efficiently convert body heat into electrical energy, garnering significant attention in the field of wearable electronics.

Achieving the United States' ambitious emissions reduction goals depends in large part on the rapid adoption of wind and solar energy and the electrification of consumer vehicles. However, misinformation and coordinated disinformation about renewable energy is widespread and threatens to undermine public support for the transition.

In a significant development for the miniaturization of electronic devices, a study published in Engineering has reported the creation of a microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) clock that offers improved precision and stability. The paper is titled "MEMS Huygens Clock Based on Synchronized Micromechanical Resonators."

In a bid to tackle the enduring problem of infrastructure durability in the face of relentless freeze–thaw (F–T) cycles, a team of researchers have published a study in Engineering. The study, titled "Analysis and Zonation of Freeze–Thaw Action in the Chinese Plateau Region Considering Spatiotemporal Climate Characteristics," focuses on the Chinese Plateau region, where the harsh effects of F–T cycles on concrete structures have led to concerns regarding their aging and subsequent performance deterioration.

Safer, more efficient movements for factory workers and astronauts, and improved mobility for people with disabilities could someday become a more widespread reality, thanks to research published June 12 in the journal Nature.

In the thriving photovoltaic industry, all-polymer solar cells (all-PSCs) are gaining attention for their mechanical flexibility, lightweight design, and ability to be printed at low temperatures. However, the complex molecular structures of the polymer materials in all-PSCs pose challenges in controlling the microstructures of the active layers, limiting their performance metrics.

Robotic systems are already being deployed in various settings worldwide, assisting humans with a highly diverse range of tasks. One sector in which robots could prove particularly advantageous is agriculture, where they could complete demanding manual tasks faster and more efficiently.

Inspired by the material that makes up oyster and abalone shells, engineers at Princeton have created a new cement composite that is 17 times more crack-resistant than standard cement and 19 times more able to stretch and deform without breaking. The findings could eventually help increase the crack resistance of a wide range of brittle ceramic materials, from concrete to porcelain.

In facing life's many challenges, we often opt for complex approaches to finding solutions. Yet, upon closer examination, the answers are often simpler than we expect, rooted in the core "essence" of the issue. This approach was demonstrated by a research team at Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH) in their publication on addressing the inherent issues of solid-state batteries.