Researchers of Kiel University model future urban development on European coasts. Europe’s coasts are densely populated and already affected by the impacts of sea level rise. In addition to traditional, cost-intensive coastal protection measures, spatial land use planning strategies are becoming increasingly important to protect coastal communities from damage during high tides or storm surges. Such planning tools include managed retreat or even the establishment of so-called “setback zones,” coastal areas where further development is restricted. A research team from…

Small, clean, efficient and affordable: Deforestation in African regions and many other parts of the world is increasing rapidly. The reasons for this are growing population and the increased use of wood/charcoal as cooking fuel. Against this background, a cookstove was developed for special requirements in Togo as part of the “LabTogo” project funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). The DBFZ’s new development not only requires significantly less fuel than traditional stoves, but also has lower…

… allows researchers to create important materials for quantum, electronic, and spintronic applications. New technique paves the way for easy oxidation of historically “stubborn” metals. A University of Minnesota Twin Cities-led team has developed a first-of-its-kind, breakthrough method that makes it easier to create high-quality metal oxide thin films out of “stubborn” metals that have historically been difficult to synthesize in an atomically precise manner. This research paves the way for scientists to develop better materials for various next-generation applications…

Project aims to understand — and use — this quasiparticle’s role in next-gen optoelectronics. In the U.S. military, the use of sensors can make the difference between life or death and success or failure on the battlefield. In everyday life, sensors perform indispensable roles in our health, safety and security. Optoelectronic sensors — those that use the physics of light particles to interact with electrons to produce a beautiful TV picture, allow a soldier to see at night or detect…

The “DeMoBat” research project came to an end in April. For this, twelve project partners developed concepts and applications for handling and reprocessing electric car components in a sustainable and economical manner. The aim here was to avoid valuable raw materials going to waste. The project was coordinated by Fraunhofer IPA, with funding provided by the Ministry of the Environment, Climate Protection and the Energy Sector Baden-Württemberg. The European Parliament’s decision to ban combustion engines from 2035 has ensured that…

This year’s Venice Architecture Biennale sees itself as a “Laboratory of the Future”. Bio-composites are not just dreams of the future in architecture. The German Institutes of Textile and Fiber Research (DITF) have developed a sustainable material for support profiles and connecting nodes, which will be on display at Palazzo Mora during the Biennale from May 20 to November 26. The ultralight components are the result of a joint project between partners from research and industry, funded by the German…

A research group led by Professor Minoru Osada (he, him) and postdoctoral researcher Yue Shi (she, her) at the Institute for Future Materials and Systems (IMaSS), Nagoya University in Japan, has developed a new technology to fabricate nanosheets, thin films of two-dimensional materials a couple of nanometers thick, in about one minute. This technology enables the formation of high-quality, large nanosheet films with a single click without the need for specialized knowledge or technology. Their findings are expected to contribute…

An international research team led by the german University of Jena has now developed a promising approach to significantly reducing blood clotting on the heart valve material titanium. Around 25,000 artificial heart valves are implanted in Germany per year because the original heart valve is damaged, for example, by an infection. The mechanical heart valves are made of titanium dioxide, among other materials, and last for many years. However, because blood tends to clot on contact with these material surfaces,…

Researchers have developed a solar-powered technology that converts carbon dioxide and water into liquid fuels that can be added directly to a car’s engine as drop-in fuel.   The researchers, from the University of Cambridge, harnessed the power of photosynthesis to convert CO2, water and sunlight into multicarbon fuels – ethanol and propanol – in a single step. These fuels have a high energy density and can be easily stored or transported. Unlike fossil fuels, these solar fuels produce net…

University of Missouri researchers designed a prototype of a small, lightweight active ‘metamaterial’ that can control the direction and intensity of energy waves. For more than 10 years, Guoliang Huang, the Huber and Helen Croft Chair in Engineering at the University of Missouri, has been investigating the unconventional properties of “metamaterials” — an artificial material that exhibits properties not commonly found in nature as defined by Newton’s laws of motion — in his long-term pursuit of designing an ideal metamaterial….

Sensitive, reliable and durable sensors created for multiple industries. Extreme environments in several critical industries – aerospace, energy, transportation and defense – require sensors to measure and monitor numerous factors under harsh conditions to ensure human safety and integrity of mechanical systems. In the petrochemical industry, for example, pipeline pressures must be monitored at climates ranging from hot desert heat to near arctic cold. Various nuclear reactors operate at a range of 300-1000 degrees Celsius, while deep geothermal wells hold…

… in the Form of a Pill Finds Weak Spots in Machines and People. Imagine a scenario where you simply just throw in a pill to identify an error—this is now one step closer to reality thanks to the work done by researchers at Fraunhofer IZM in cooperation with Micro Systems Technologies (MST) and Sensry GmbH. As small as a piece of candy, the waterproof IoT sensor can reliably measure the properties of liquids even in hard-to-reach places. This can…

Rice U. engineers improve prelithiation, uncover lithium-trapping mechanism. Silicon anode batteries have the potential to revolutionize energy storage capabilities, which is key to meeting climate goals and unlocking the full potential of electric vehicles. However, the irreversible depletion of lithium ions in silicon anodes puts a major constraint on the development of next-generation lithium-ion batteries. Scientists at Rice University’s George R. Brown School of Engineering have developed a readily scalable method to optimize prelithiation, a process that helps mitigate lithium loss and improves battery…

The Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE has developed a unique modular test stand for photovoltaic inverters with integrated arc fault detection. These integrated warning systems in inverters increase the safety of solar installations by initiating an automatic shut down in the event of arcing. With the newly published international standard IEC 63027, more reliable and realistic tests can be carried out on detectors. Fraunhofer ISE was involved in the development of the new test standard, which was published…

In cooperation with SURAGUS GmbH, the Fraunhofer FEP has succeeded in realizing non-contact in-situ measurements under high vacuum conditions at temperatures of up to 220°C within the HotSense project (grant number 100547507/4102) funded by the Saxon State Ministry of Economics, Labor and Transport (SMWA). Thus, measurements of the sheet resistance or -conductivity, or the metal layer thickness can be carried out in close proximity to the process directly after hot layer deposition or layer modification processes by means of non-contact…

Rigorous tests on photovoltaic (PV) modules, integrated PV systems, solar thermal collectors, inverters and other solar technologies are carried out, for the most part, in an indoor laboratory environment. Accompanying these are the long-term tests under real weather conditions lasting several years. Now re-searchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE want to use the newly constructed, three-hectare test field near Freiburg, Germany, to combine the results from both test approaches. In particular, PV modules will be able…