Tag

Materials Science

All articles tagged with #materials science

science2 days ago•5 min saved

Self-Organizing, Low-Temp Alloy Delivers Breakthrough Strength

Researchers report a Refractory High-Entropy Alloy (RHEAD) created by melting hafnium, niobium, tantalum, titanium and zirconium, then cooling to about 550°C and aging for hours to days. The atoms self-organize into smaller, well-packed grain structures, producing a material more than twice as strong as steel and up to three times stronger than aluminum, with a compressive yield over 2 GPa while remaining ductile. If scalable, this approach could enable new alloys with fewer elements and broad industrial impact, though understanding the mechanism and scaling the process remain challenges.

via ScienceAlert|

#grain-structure #high-entropy-alloy #materials-science

science11 days ago•46 min saved

Oxygen's active role could unlock big leaps in battery performance

Researchers at Dundee and Warwick universities have shown that oxygen actively participates in energy storage within lithium‑ion battery cathodes, overturning the view that oxygen is passive. By comparing layered oxide cathodes with phosphates and using advanced modeling and experiments, they demonstrate significant oxygen redox in the charging/discharging process. Published in Nature Nanotechnology, the findings could enable batteries that charge faster, last longer, and are safer for electric vehicles and portable electronics.

via Yahoo|

#battery-technology #energy-storage #lithium-ion-batteries

science12 days ago•11 min saved

Ambient-Pressure Superconductivity Breaks 30-Year Temperature Barrier

Researchers from the University of Houston and Argonne National Laboratory achieved superconductivity at 151 kelvin (-190°F) under ordinary pressure by applying a brief high-pressure pulse to the cuprate Hg-1223 and then rapidly decompressing it while cold, trapping a metastable state with a higher Tc that persists after pressure is removed. This breaks the long-standing 133 K ambient-pressure record and suggests pressure may not be required to reach higher temperatures, enabling study with standard lab instruments and guiding future efforts toward room-temperature superconductivity.

via Interesting Engineering|

#ambient-pressure #cuprate-superconductors #materials-science

science1 month ago•10 min saved

AI-guided route to powerful magnets without rare earths

US researchers at Ames National Laboratory have developed a physics-informed, AI-assisted workflow to discover permanent magnets that do not rely on rare-earth elements, integrating physics-based modeling, high-throughput simulations, and real-world material data to predict performance while considering cost and supply-chain viability, with the aim of reducing dependence on foreign refiners and bridging discovery to scalable production (published in Materials Science and Engineering).

via Interesting Engineering|

#ai #ames-national-laboratory #magnets

space1 month ago•10 min saved

Atomic Oxygen: The Hidden Material Menace in Low Earth Orbit

Atomic oxygen in low Earth orbit aggressively erodes carbon-based polymers, carbon composites, and optical surfaces on spacecraft such as the ISS. NASA tests exposed material trays outside the station to study damage and variations in material properties, leading to protective coatings like silicon dioxide or aluminum oxide to mitigate reactions with single oxygen atoms. In LEO, the atmosphere is a thin, UV-driven environment rather than a hard vacuum, so long-duration missions require careful material selection and protective measures; very low orbits demand extra care for satellites. Deep space exposure to atomic oxygen is much less of a concern, making this primarily a LEO issue.

via Hackaday|

#atomic-oxygen #coatings #low-earth-orbit

science1 month ago•5 min saved

ISS 2025 Highlights: Robotic Surgery, Bioprinted Bones, and Space-Ready Batteries

NASA's 2025 ISS Highlights show 750+ investigations advancing life in space, Earth benefits, and future Moon/Mars exploration, including a microgravity robotic surgery demo, magnetic-levitation bioprinted bone grafts, melanin-enhanced shielding materials, long-duration space battery tests with minimal degradation, and studies of post-flight piloting performance, reflecting global collaboration and thousands of publications.

via NASA (.gov)|

#batteries #bioprinting #materials-science

physics-and-chemistry1 month ago•17 min saved

Gold’s Surface Hexagon: The Atomic Trick Behind Its Lasting Shine

Researchers used computer simulations to show gold’s surface atoms rearrange into hexagonal patterns that dramatically suppress oxidation (by about a billion to a trillion), explaining its long-lasting shine and suggesting new ways to optimize gold-catalyzed reactions.

via Gizmodo|

#catalysis #gold #materials-science

science1 month ago•4 min saved

Ice-Templated Nacre-Inspired Ceramic Is 10× Tougher

French researchers have created a nacre-inspired ceramic that is ten times tougher than conventional ceramics by aligning alumina platelets with controlled ice growth (ice templating) using water and alumina powder; the resulting layered microstructure diverts cracks, boosting fracture resistance while maintaining performance up to at least 600°C, with potential uses in aerospace, energy systems, and ballistic protection.

via The Daily Galaxy|

#alumina #fracture-toughness #ice-templating

technology1 month ago•7 min saved

Bacteria-Directed Material Could Replace Plastics in Industry

Scientists developed a scalable rotational bioreactor process that aligns cellulose-producing bacteria to produce ultra-strong, multifunctional bacterial cellulose; tensile strength reaches 436 MPa (553 MPa with boron nitride additives) and heat dissipation improves threefold, enabling potential replacement of plastics in packaging, electronics and more.

via SciTechDaily|

#bacterial-cellulose #bioreactor #materials-science

science1 month ago•6 min saved

Trinity Sand Reveals Two Rare Crystals From the First Nuclear Blast

Researchers studying a Trinity test fragment of trinitite found two rare crystal structures formed by the explosion: a copper-rich red phase containing a quasicrystal and a silicon-based clathrate. Using nano-CT, electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and modeling, they show both structures coalesced in the detonation, offering new insights into how extreme events produce unusual crystals.

via Indian Defence Review|

#clathrate #materials-science #nuclear-explosion

science1 month ago•5 min saved

Trinity Test Unleashed a Brand-New Material: Calcium–Copper–Silicon Clathrate

Researchers analyzing remnants from the 1945 Trinity nuclear test identified a novel calcium–copper–silicon clathrate formed spontaneously under extreme heat and pressure, a material not seen in nature or in labs, alongside a silicon-rich quasicrystal; the finding shows that catastrophic events can create new materials with potential for future technologies.

via WIRED|

#calcium-copper-silicon #clathrate #materials-science

science1 month ago•1 min saved

Researchers Discover Unprecedented Clathrate Inside Trinity Test Crystal

A new study in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences used CT and X-ray scans to analyze a rare red crystal from the Trinity test’s trinitite and found a previously unseen clathrate that traps atoms in its lattice—a material never observed in nature or in nuclear debris—highlighting the extreme chemistry produced by nuclear weapons, with the reminder that collecting such material is illegal.

via Futurism|

#clathrate #ct-scans #materials-science

science1 month ago•35 min saved

1945 Trinity blast yields a crystal unlike any before

Scientists studying debris from the 1945 Trinity nuclear test report an extreme crystal with an unprecedented atomic arrangement, challenging existing theories of crystal growth under extreme conditions.

via Yahoo|

#crystal #materials-science #nuclear-test

science1 month ago•6 min saved

Ancient Glass Trick Enables Easier Manufacturing of MOF Glasses

Researchers revived a centuries-old glassmaking idea to tune metal–organic framework (MOF) glasses by adding small alkali-containing compounds (sodium or lithium). These additives loosen the glass network, lower the softening temperature, and improve flow, making MOF glasses easier to melt and reform. The team used high-temperature solid-state NMR and AI-driven modeling to show how sodium integrates into the glass, potentially expanding MOF glasses’ use in gas separation, storage, catalysis, and coatings, moving them closer to real-world manufacturing.

via SciTechDaily|

#alkali-ions #gas-storage #glass-engineering

science1 month ago•24 min saved

Picometer-precision atom steering yields mesoscopic defect crystal in CrSBr

Researchers demonstrate deterministic atomic engineering inside CrSBr by steering Cr atoms with sub-20-pm accuracy to create a mesoscopic 3D defect crystal (~40,000 defects) within a 150×100×13 nm volume. The engineered lattice is stable at room temperature and opens routes for deterministic colour-centre placement, quantum simulations of many-body systems, and scalable atomic-scale manufacturing outside the microscope.

via Nature|

#defect-engineering #electron-microscopy #materials-science