Heat pumps can not only be used efficiently in residential buildings, but also in industrial processes with heating and cooling requirements. This conclusion was reached by a team from the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE as part of the joint project “ETA in Existing Facilities“. The application of a heat pump with propane refrigeration circuit in an industrial cleaning machine led to considerable savings in electricity and CO2. The research project focused on the development of a modular…

Accelerating the R&D of wearable tech: A “hassle-free” model to fabricate materials used in wearable sensors removes experimental barriers in design. Engineers at the University of Maryland (UMD) have developed a model that combines machine learning and collaborative robotics to overcome challenges in the design of materials used in wearable green tech. Led by Po-Yen Chen, assistant professor in UMD’s Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, the accelerated method to create aerogel materials used in wearable heating applications – published June 1 in…

Plastics made of polycarbonate are sought-after materials in industrial applications thanks to their versatility and high quality. However, recycling of plastic waste is still running up against limits these days, as mechanical recycling methods do not produce adequate qualities of recycled material for all applications. Together with chemical company Covestro Deutschland AG, Fraunhofer researchers have now developed a method that makes it possible to reclaim the substances originally used to make the polycarbonates. In catalytic pyrolysis, a controlled process of…

The Fraunhofer Institute for Photonic Microsystems IPMS presents a groundbreaking demonstrator for predictive maintenance of industrial equipment. The demonstrator uses advanced sensor technology combined with artificial intelligence (AI)-based data processing to detect potential machine damage at an early stage and avoid costly downtime. Based on the results of the iCampus project ForTune, Fraunhofer IPMS has developed a new demonstrator that combines sensor technology, data acquisition and AI-based data evaluation for condition monitoring and predictive maintenance. This opens up new possibilities…

… pave way to new physics and optoelectronic applications. Researchers have for the first time observed a time crystal on a microscale semiconductor chip oscillating at a rate of several billion times per second, unveiling exceptionally high non-linear dynamics in the GHz range. The results of the experiment, published today in Science, establish a firm connection between formerly uncorrelated areas of non-linear exciton-polariton dynamics and coherent optomechanics at GHz frequencies, say researchers from the Paul-Drude-Institute for Solid State Electronics (PDI)…

Great success for the research group led by Prof. Dr. Dr.-Ing. Yilmaz Uygun at Constructor University Bremen: The start-up “NebulaForm”, which emerged from the group, has been accepted into the space incubator of the European Space Agency ESA. The team wants to use the world’s largest delta 3D printer, which they developed, to produce components for the space industry. In addition, they are working on producing a 3D printer for applications in space. The space incubator “ESA BIC Northern Germany”,…

Columbia Engineers link oxygen to graphene quality and develop new techniques to reproducibly make the wonder material at scale. Graphene has been called “the wonder material of the 21st century.” Since its discovery in 2004, the material—a single layer of carbon atoms—has been touted for its host of unique properties, which include ultra-high electrical conductivity and remarkable tensile strength. It has the potential to transform electronics, energy storage, sensors, biomedical devices, and more. But graphene has had a dirty little…

In an impressive leap forward for robotics technology, researchers from Shanghai Jiao Tong University have unveiled a novel hybrid-driven origami gripper, designed to tackle the challenge of grasping and manipulating objects with unprecedented versatility and precision. This innovative device, highlighted in a recent study published in Cyborg Bionic Systems, promises to reshape the capabilities of robotic systems in industries ranging from manufacturing to healthcare. The newly developed gripper utilizes a combination of pneumatic and cable-driven mechanisms to control an origami-inspired…

TU Graz Opens New CD Lab. The “CD Laboratory for EMC-Aware Robust Electronic Systems” carries out research on the impact of electromagnetic emissions on electronic components in production and operation in order to eliminate the causes of failures. Electrical components, such as semiconductors, are becoming smaller and smaller thanks to technological advances. However, this reduction in size makes them potentially more sensitive to external influences such as electrostatic discharges or electromagnetic emissions from other electronic components. This not only increases…

Researchers from Osaka University show the control of ion passage through a nanopore membrane by applying a voltage to a gate electrode, paving the way for sustainable blue energy harvesting. Blue energy has the potential to provide a sustainable alternative to fossil fuels. In simple terms, it involves harnessing the energy produced when the ions in a salt solution move from high to low concentrations. A team including researchers from Osaka University has probed the effect of voltage on the…

… for remote sensing transforms crop monitoring. New work by researchers from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Transformative Meta-Optical Systems (TMOS) and City University of New York (CUNY) published today in Nature Communications realises a new, tuneable edge-detecting filter for flat-optic imaging systems that can switch between an image of an object’s outline and a detailed infrared image. The development of compact lightweight analogue edge detecting image processors is of particular interest for remote sensing applications such as environmental monitoring and…

How should tablets, pellets and briquettes be composed to prevent them from breaking during transport? Which microstructure should have an industrial filter to show the highest solid separation efficiency? How long can chemical catalysts withstand high mechanical loads in a high-pressure reactor? Kaiserslautern researchers are investigating these questions with a computed tomograph system that can recognise the smallest material structures non-destructively. The technique may be used in various areas of application. The team will be presenting its work at the…

CO2 Laser System Technology by Fraunhofer IWS Enables Efficient Joining of Large Volume Fiber Composite Aircraft Structures. The Fraunhofer Institute for Material and Beam Technology IWS has achieved decisive progress towards new ecological aircraft construction concepts. Within the EU programm Clean Sky 2 in the project “Multifunctional Fuselage Demonstrator” (MFFD), a team of researchers in Dresden provided proof of concept for the chipless joining of carbon fiber-reinforced thermoplastic component structures. The automated process approach developed joined the upper and lower…

Dr. Ifana Mahbub, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at The University of Texas at Dallas, has been awarded the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Director’s Fellowship to continue her research to develop wireless technology to recharge unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in flight. DARPA awards the fellowships to its Young Faculty Award recipients who demonstrate exceptional performance. Mahbub received a Young Faculty Award, which provided $500,000 over two years, in 2021. The fellowship provides an additional $250,000. Mahbub…

Researchers at KIT develop a transparent metamaterial for energy-efficient light and temperature regulation in buildings. Maximizing natural light in buildings is popular and can save on energy costs. However, traditional glass roofs and walls also present problems such as glare, lack of privacy, and overheating. Alternative solutions, such as coatings and light-diffusing materials, have not yet provided a comprehensive remedy. New Material Combines Multiple Functions Researchers at the Institute for Microstructure Technology (IMT) and the Light Technology Institute (LTI) at…

What if a common element rather than scarce, expensive ones was a key component in electric car batteries? A collaboration co-led by an Oregon State University chemistry researcher is hoping to spark a green battery revolution by showing that iron instead of cobalt and nickel can be used as a cathode material in lithium-ion batteries. The findings, published today in Science Advances, are important for multiple reasons, Oregon State’s Xiulei “David” Ji notes. “We’ve transformed the reactivity of iron metal,…