Chemistry: General Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Technology
Published

New method creates material that could create the next generation of solar cells      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Perovskites, a family of materials with unique electric properties, show promise for use in a variety fields, including next-generation solar cells. A team of scientists has now created a new process to fabricate large perovskite devices that is more cost- and time-effective than previously possible and that they said may accelerate future materials discovery.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics
Published

Neutrons reveal key to extraordinary heat transport      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Warming a crystal of the mineral fresnoite, scientists discovered that excitations called phasons carried heat three times farther and faster than phonons, the excitations that usually carry heat through a material.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Physics: General Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

Physicists give the first law of thermodynamics a makeover      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Physicists at West Virginia University have made a breakthrough on an age-old limitation of the first law of thermodynamics.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Technology Physics: Acoustics and Ultrasound
Published

Study offers details on using electric fields to tune thermal properties of ferroelectric materials      (via sciencedaily.com) 

New research sheds light on how electric fields can be used to alter the thermal properties of ferroelectric materials, allowing engineers to manipulate the flow of heat through the materials. Ferroelectric materials are used in a wide variety of applications, from ultrasound devices to memory storage technologies.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics
Published

Reactive fabrics respond to changes in temperature      (via sciencedaily.com) 

New textiles change shape when they heat up, giving designers a wide range of new options. In addition to offering adjustable aesthetics, responsive smart fabrics could also help monitor people’s health, improve thermal insulation, and provide new tools for managing room acoustics and interior design. 

Chemistry: Thermodynamics
Published

Solid-state thermal transistor demonstrated      (via sciencedaily.com) 

An effective, stable solid-state electrochemical transistor has been developed, heralding a new era in thermal management technology.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Add-on device makes home furnaces cleaner, safer and longer-lasting      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Natural gas furnaces not only heat your home, they also produce a lot of pollution. Even modern high-efficiency condensing furnaces produce significant amounts of corrosive acidic condensation and unhealthy levels of nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons and methane. These emissions are typically vented into the atmosphere and end up polluting our soil, water and air. Scientists have developed an affordable add-on technology that removes more than 99.9% of acidic gases and other emissions to produce an ultraclean natural gas furnace. This acidic gas reduction, or AGR, technology can also be added to other natural gas-driven equipment such as water heaters, commercial boilers and industrial furnaces.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Technology
Published

Chiral phonons create spin current without needing magnetic materials      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers chiral phonons to convert wasted heat into spin information -- without needing magnetic materials. The finding could lead to new classes of less expensive, energy-efficient spintronic devices for use in applications ranging from computational memory to power grids.

Ecology: Extinction Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: General
Published

Scientists develop new index based on functional morphology to understand how ancestors of modern birds used their wings      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Scientists have compared the relationship among the strength of flight bones, body mass, and the way modern birds fly to better understand the evolution of flight in birds and extinct animals, such as the Pteranodon.

Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Fossil Fuels Engineering: Nanotechnology Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

'Game-changing' findings for sustainable hydrogen production      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Hydrogen fuel could be a more viable alternative to traditional fossil fuels, according to University of Surrey researchers who have found that a type of metal-free catalysts could contribute to the development of cost-effective and sustainable hydrogen production technologies.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Technology
Published

A quasiparticle that can transfer heat under electrical control      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Scientists have found the secret behind a property of solid materials known as ferroelectrics, showing that quasiparticles moving in wave-like patterns among vibrating atoms carry enough heat to turn the material into a thermal switch when an electrical field is applied externally.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Technology Engineering: Nanotechnology Geoscience: Environmental Issues Physics: Optics
Published

Passive radiative cooling can now be controlled electrically      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Energy-efficient ways of cooling buildings and vehicles will be required in a changing climate. Researchers have now shown that electrical tuning of passive radiative cooling can be used to control temperatures of a material at ambient temperatures and air pressure.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Engineering: Graphene
Published

Researchers can 'see' crystals perform their dance moves      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers already knew the atoms in perovskites react favorably to light. Now they've seen precisely how the atoms move when the 2D materials are excited with light. Their study details the first direct measurement of structural dynamics under light-induced excitation in 2D perovskites.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Engineering: Robotics Research Offbeat: Computers and Math
Published

Person-shaped robot can liquify and escape jail, all with the power of magnets      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Inspired by sea cucumbers, engineers have designed miniature robots that rapidly and reversibly shift between liquid and solid states. On top of being able to shape-shift, the robots are magnetic and can conduct electricity. The researchers put the robots through an obstacle course of mobility and shape-morphing tests.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Computer Science: Quantum Computers Physics: Quantum Computing
Published

No 'second law of entanglement' after all      (via sciencedaily.com) 

When two microscopic systems are entangled, their properties are linked to each other irrespective of the physical distance between the two. Manipulating this uniquely quantum phenomenon is what allows for quantum cryptography, communication, and computation. While parallels have been drawn between quantum entanglement and the classical physics of heat, new research demonstrates the limits of this comparison. Entanglement is even richer than we have given it credit for.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Technology
Published

Polysulfates could find wide use in high-performance electronics components      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Flexible compounds made with Nobel-winning click chemistry can be used in energy-storing capacitors at high temperatures and electric fields.

Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Dinosaurs Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: General
Published

Researchers uncover 92 fossil nests belonging to some of India's largest dinosaurs      (via sciencedaily.com) 

The discovery of more than 250 fossilized eggs reveals intimate details about the lives of titanosaurs in the Indian subcontinent, according to a new study.

Ecology: Extinction Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Paleontology: Dinosaurs Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Fossils reveal dinosaurs of prehistoric Patagonia      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A study is providing a glimpse into dinosaur and bird diversity in Patagonia during the Late Cretaceous, just before the non-avian dinosaurs went extinct. The fossils represent the first record of theropods -- a dinosaur group that includes both modern birds and their closest non-avian dinosaur relatives -- from the Chilean portion of Patagonia. The researchers' finds include giant megaraptors with large sickle-like claws and birds similar to todays ducks and geese.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Alternative Fuels
Published

Improving perovskite solar cell resistance to degradation      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Despite their huge potential, the way perovskite solar cells respond to external stimuli -- such as heat or moisture -- has a considerable impact on their stability. Researchers have identified the cause of degradation and developed a technique to improve stability, bringing us closer to widespread adoption of these cost-effective and efficient solar cells.