Functional Materials– category –
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Swiss Innovation Unlocks Battery-Free Wearables with Novel Body-Heat Thermoelectric Material
Swiss Materials Science Research Institute Switzerland Overview Swiss engineers have developed bismuth-telluride-perovskite, a novel solid-state thermoelectric material capable of efficiently generating electricity from minimal temperatu... -
MIT Breakthrough: Light-Triggered Material Stores Heat for Weeks at -30°C, Releases On Demand
MIT USA Overview MIT researchers have engineered a novel thermal energy storage system that functions like a rechargeable battery, but for heat. This breakthrough integrates a phase-change material (PCM) with visible-light-responsive mol... -
AI-Optimized Thermal Meta-Emitters Outperform Paint, Slashing Building Cooling Loads by 15,000+ kWh Annually
University of Texas at Austin USA Overview Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin have harnessed machine learning to engineer novel thermal meta-emitters that dramatically enhance passive building cooling. These AI-optimized ma... -
Beyond Kirchhoff: Nanomaterial Achieves 43% Independent Control Over Heat Absorption and Emission
Physics Review Letters USA Overview Researchers have engineered a layered nanomaterial capable of independently regulating heat absorption and emission, defying Kirchhoff's law of thermal radiation by up to 43%. This groundbreaking mater... -
Power Roll’s Micro-Groove Perovskite Solar Film Advances Towards Commercialization with Launch of POP-PV Project
PV-Tech UK Overview The international POP-PV project has launched to accelerate the commercialization of Power Roll's micro-groove perovskite solar film technology. The consortium, comprising Power Roll, Dyenamo, and the University of Sh... -
ChemRxiv Proposes Multiscale Molecular Design Framework for Thermogelling Polymers Targeting Tissues as Next-Gen Synthetic Extracellular Matrices
ChemRxiv Unknown Overview This review proposes a framework for the multiscale molecular design of thermogelling polymers, positioning tissues as synthetic targets for next-generation synthetic extracellular matrices (ECMs). It outlines d... -
Flash Joule Heating Revolutionizes H2O2 Electrosynthesis with MWCNTs: Achieving 10.57 mol gcat-1 h-1 at 85% Faradaic Efficiency in Metal-Free Catalysis
ChemRxiv Unknown Overview This preprint reports on flash Joule heating (FJH)-engineered multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) for selective metal-free H2O2 electrosynthesis. FJH induces partial wall exfoliation and structural reconstruc... -
MDPI Publishes Study on Programmable Electroactive Bending of Dielectric Liquid Crystal Elastomer Sheets, Advancing Soft Robotics Applications via Mesogen Alignment Tuning
MDPI Unknown Overview This study systematically investigates the programmable bending behaviors of cantilevered dielectric liquid crystal elastomer (DLCE) sheets by manipulating their principal bending directions via mesogen alignments. ... -
ChemRxiv Preprint: Crosslinker Density Controls Strain Distribution, Not Particle Stretch, in Microparticle-Based Polymer Films, Offering New Insights for Ductility and Toughness
ChemRxiv Unknown Overview This preprint investigates microparticle-based polymer films, recognized as sustainable materials combining high toughness with closed-loop recyclability. The study found that crosslinker density primarily contr... -
Pusan National University Develops First 3D-Printable Liquid Crystal Elastomer Generating Opposite Motions from a Single Material, Expanding Soft Robotics Versatility
Pusan National University South Korea Overview Researchers at Pusan National University have developed the world's first 3D-printable smectic liquid crystal elastomer (LCE) ink that can switch molecular alignment during printing. This al...
