Matter and Its Interactions
- Tech
Offshore wind farms could do far more than just make clean power
Offshore wind farms cost more than onshore ones. But their ability to make ‘green’ hydrogen and capture carbon dioxide could help this wind power pay off.
- Environment
New ultrathin materials can pull climate-warming CO2 from the air
To slow global warming, we’ll need help from CO2-trapping materials. Enter MXenes. They’re strong and reactive — and they love to eat up CO2.
- Physics
Heat makes water evaporate. Now it appears light can, too
In the lab, shining light on water made it evaporate faster. This never-before-seen effect, if real, might be happening naturally all around us.
- Tech
Particles from tree waste could prevent fogged lenses, windshields
A new coating made from a renewable resource — water-loving nanoparticles made from wood — could keep glass surfaces fog-free.
- Tech
Bits of trees can make and store energy for us to use
This cellulose and lignin, two major building blocks of trees, could lead to greener electronics.
- Tech
Engineers cook up a new way to tackle CO2: Make baking soda
Engineers have found a material that can collect carbon dioxide from the air. When later mixed with water, it forms baking soda that can be shed in the sea.
- Materials Science
A new hydrogel could help pull drinking water from the air
The salty gel absorbs more water from the air than similar gels, even in desert climates. This could provide clean water for drinking or farming.
- Earth
To get diamonds perfect for Barbie, make and break a supercontinent
Most pink diamonds may have formed billions of years ago during the tectonics that led to formation and breakup of Nuna, Earth’s first supercontinent.
- Tech
New tech 3-D prints ouchless COVID-19 vaccine patches
A new compact 3-D printer can produce COVID-19 vaccine patches. These are less painful than the jab and can be stored more easily than liquid vaccines.
- Materials Science
Made from fungi, this vegan leather can self-heal holes or rips
If made under gentle conditions, leather formed from the “roots” of mushrooms can retain the ability to regrow and repair minor damage.
- Tech
Gravity ‘batteries’ might help a weighty renewable-energy problem
To store the energy generated by wind and solar power, researchers are looking at mammoth systems that raise and lower weights.
- Tech
New device can harvest clean energy from humid air anywhere
Unlike solar power, this new source of electricity is available day or night.
