Materials Sciences

New nanofabrication technique

Researchers have developed a new technique that could provide detailed information about the growth of carbon nanotubes and other nanometer-scale structures as they are being produced. The technique offers a way for researchers to rapidly and systematically map how changes in growth conditions affect the fabrication of nanometer-scale structures.
Instead of a large furnace that is normally used to grow nanotubes as part of the chemical vapor dep

UC Berkeley researchers borrow principles of resonance to develop a new material that captures a sound wave’s fine details

Using the same principles that help create a guitar’s complex tones, researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, have developed a new material that holds promise for revolutionizing the field of ultrasound imaging.

The substance, dubbed an “ultrasonic metamaterial,” responds differently to sound waves than any substance found i

’Science’ paper details potential as nanoscale extruders, cylinders, and jigs

Bombarding a carbon nanotube with electrons causes it to collapse with such incredible force that it can squeeze out even the hardest of materials, much like a tube of toothpaste, according to an international team of scientists. Reporting in the May 26 issue of the journal Science, the researchers suggest that carbon nanotubes can act as minuscule metalworking tools, offering the ability to process ma

Micronized silica for paint industry produced via fine grinding jet mill

In order to produce paint of the highest possible quality, the raw materials must be tightly controlled. This includes the mineral fillers that make up to 50% of the paint. Filler materials like calcium carbonate, talc, kaolin and silica largely govern paint properties like UV resistance, weatherability, abrasion resistance and sheen. Modern exterior latex paints typically use silica as a filler material, ho

Homogeneity in sintering of fine Ni-20Cr powder by PECS process

Pulsed Electric Current Sintering (PECS), also known as spark plasma sintering (SPS) or plasma activation sintering (PAS) is technique used for densifying power compacts or materials such as metals and ceramics and combination thereof. The attractive features of the process are that it allows compaction and sintering in a single stage and the process itself is quite rapid.

PECS also shows promise in being ab

Mechanical behaviour of hybrid SiO2-PMMA coatings measured by nanoindentation

Increasing the surface hardness of many materials opens them up for use in a wide variety of new applications. These new hybrid materials could be used in areas like anticorrosion coatings for metals, scratch and abrasion resistant coatings for plastics, antistatic films plus colour decorative coatings for glasses and plastics.

The sol-gel method of materials preparation is a suitable techniqu