Polymers and soft materials news

Making two-dimensional metals the easy way

easy way to make large, freestanding, thin sheets of metallic materials could open up novel applications in catalysis, flexible electronics, soft robotics

Knitted devices power up wearable electronics

3D supercapacitors knitted from cotton or nylon yarn coated with a novel conductive material could power smart textiles

No ice, ice, baby

Transparent, self-healing, ice-resistant polymers

Polymers take charge to produce conductive ink

By combining two different polymers, researchers have managed to produce an ink that does not require any doping to conduct electricity.

New catalyst and binder split water on the cheap

A novel nickel-iron catalyst and polymer electrode binder can produce hydrogen from water as well as a precious metal catalyst.

Professor’s work gave her a window into gender inequity, so she took action

Prof. Barbara Rothen-Rutishauser is using an Agents of Change grant to empower women in academia

Studying packed polymers at oil-water interface could lead to new biomaterials

Researchers used surface spectroscopy methods to track polymer self-assembly at the oil-water interface in real time.

Novel hydrogel traps the light within

By changing density in response to illumination with a beam of light, a novel hydrogel can trap light inside specific sections of itself.

New approach illuminates damage in polymer composites

Researchers have used small molecules that fluoresce after the impact of mechanical force to detect damage in fiber-reinforced polymers.

Naturally inspired ‘green’ membranes clean up

green membranes based on natural materials surpass state-of-the-art membranes for desalination, cleaning up wastewater, and purifying organic solvents

Polymer films prevent lead escaping from perovskite solar cells

Lead-absorbing polymer films can prevent toxic lead leaking from perovskite solar cells while have no effect on their performance.

Researchers discover why topological insulators can be surprisingly fragile

Researchers have found why some topological materials are 'fragile', unable to conduct current on their surface, and how to restore their conductivity.

Low-powered laser produces smaller graphene features

Using a low-powered laser, researchers have been able to fabricate graphene features as small as 12µm onto the surface of a polymer.

Materials & Design: Special Issue on Materials for Laser Additive Manufacturing

Elsevier - The Researcher Journey Through a Gender Lens

Novel polymer membrane could give boost to fuel cell vehicles

A novel co-polymer that can conduct ions and is also highly permeable to oxygen could make an ideal membrane for use in hydrogen fuel cells.

High-density protein pores create high-performance membranes

Researchers incorporated protein pores found in cell membranes at high density into polymer sheets to produce highly efficient filtration membranes.

Introducing the three new editors of Nuclear Materials & Energy