materialsscienceandengineering: Novel new packaging products...

materialsscienceandengineering:

Novel new packaging products for a circular economy

The EU DIBBIOPACK project has developed a series of multifunctional packaging products that are bio-based, compostable and biodegradable, and will contribute to the growth of a truly circular economy.

The project has created its innovative packaging from polymers with three sectors in mind – pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and the food industry. These polymers are labelled as ‘smart’ due to bioplastic materials presenting new characteristics that turn them into real actors for product preservation. They do this by increasing product durability, maintaining quality, and reporting to the consumer on content preservation conditions.

Solutions for a circular economy

The materials used to create the packaging products are environmentally-friendly and produced from renewable sources. They are sustainable and contribute to the creation of a circular economy, which is currently a major European ambition following an ambitious package put forward by the European Commission in December 2015.

Currently an average of 200 plastic bags per person per year are used in Europe. The majority of these bags fall under the category of lighter plastic, thus being the least reused and the most difficult to recycle. The same can be said of thousands of bottles and packaging units, of any kind, made from petroleum products. Half of these will be dumped and will take centuries to degrade.

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Reusing materials. I like.

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materialsscienceandengineering: Smart skin made of recyclable materials may transform medicine...

materialsscienceandengineering:

Smart skin made of recyclable materials may transform medicine and robotics

Smart skin that can respond to external stimuli could have important applications in medicine and robotics. Using only items found in a typical household, researchers have created multi-sensor artificial skin that’s capable of sensing pressure, temperature, humidity, proximity, pH, and air flow.

The flexible, paper-based skin is layered onto a post-it note, with paper, aluminum foil, lint-free wipes, and pencil lines acting as sensing components. Being made of recyclable materials, this paper skin presents a large number of sensory functions in a cheap and environmentally friendly way.

“Democratization of electronics will be key in the future for its continued growth. In that regard, a skin-type sensory platform made with recyclable materials only demonstrates the power of human imagination,” said Prof. Muhammad Mustafa Hussain, senior author of the Advanced Materials Technologies paper. “This is the first time a singular platform shows multi-sensory functionalities close to that of natural skin. Additionally they are being read or monitored simultaneously like our own skin.”

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Cool.

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The Popularity of Anodising: Why People Opt for Anodised Aluminium

The Popularity of Anodising: Why People Opt for Anodised Aluminium:

badgeranodising:

There are a number of extremely beneficial properties in regards to anodised aluminium and numerous Birmingham clients are taking advantage of this modern technology.

Anodising is an electrolytic process which involves coating metals such as aluminium with a thick external layer of oxide materials. All science aside, there are countless benefits that this technique can provide.

Helping the Environment

Before delving into the physical characteristics of an anodised product, it is important to point out this this process is environmentally friendly. As opposed to traditional methods, anodising uses only a minimal amount of harmful substances such as volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Also, anodised products such as cans and mobile phone cases last much longer and less waste is ultimately produced. Individuals and companies who are embracing a “green” approach should appreciate these factors.

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fuckyeahfluiddynamics: What happens when you pour molten...

materialsscienceandengineering: It’s a 3-D printer, but not as we know it3D printing techniques...

materialsscienceandengineering:

It’s a 3-D printer, but not as we know it

3D printing techniques have quickly become some of the most widely used tools to rapidly design and build new components. A team of engineers at the University of Bristol has developed a new type of 3D printing that can print composite materials, which are used in many high performance products such as tennis rackets, golf clubs and aeroplanes. This technology will soon enable a much greater range of things to be 3D printed at home and at low-cost.

The study published in Smart Materials and Structures creates and demonstrates a novel method in which ultrasonic waves are used to carefully position millions of tiny reinforcement fibres as part of the 3D printing process. The fibres are formed into a microscopic reinforcement framework that gives the material strength. This microstructure is then set in place using a focused laser beam, which locally cures the epoxy resin and then prints the object.

To achieve this the research team mounted a switchable, focused laser module on the carriage of a standard three-axis 3D printing stage, above the new ultrasonic alignment apparatus.

Tom Llewellyn-Jones, a PhD student in advanced composites who developed the system, said: “We have demonstrated that our ultrasonic system can be added cheaply to an off-the-shelf 3D printer, which then turns it into a composite printer.”

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Weird

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Materials science and maths combine to print in four dimensions

materialsscienceandengineering: Arsenopyrite and pyrite in...

materialsscienceandengineering:

Arsenopyrite and pyrite in gangue
by Mr. Ivan Jimenez Boone

Characteristic rhombic crystals of arsenopyrite in gangue.

These are pretty. I wish I could make sense of them.

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additivism: Can Physicists Prove to Engineers That 3D-Printed...

additivism:

Can Physicists Prove to Engineers That 3D-Printed Metal Parts Are Safe?

There’s no denying that 3D printing is a fast and effective way to build new objects, but most engineers are taking tentative steps to its mass adoption because the results aren’t proven to be truly robust. Now, physicists hope to convince them once and for all.

I could believe in 3D printed metal…

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materialsscienceandengineering: Researchers’ metallic glue...

materialsscienceandengineering:

Researchers’ metallic glue may stick it to soldering and welding

Per­haps no startup was launched for a more intriguing reason than that of Northeastern’s Hanchen Huang. From the com­pany website:

“MesoGlue was founded by Huang and two of his PhD stu­dents: They had a dream of a better way of sticking things together.”

Those “things” are every­thing from a computer’s cen­tral pro­cessing unit and a printed cir­cuit board to the glass and metal fil­a­ment in a light bulb. The “way” of attaching them is, aston­ish­ingly, a glue made out of metal that sets at room tem­per­a­ture and requires very little pres­sure to seal. “It’s like welding or sol­dering but without the heat,” says Huang, who is pro­fessor and chair in the Depart­ment of Mechan­ical and Indus­trial Engineering.

In a new paper, pub­lished in the Jan­uary issue of Advanced Mate­rials & Processes, Huang and col­leagues, including North­eastern doc­toral stu­dent Paul Elliott, describe their latest advances in the glue’s devel­op­ment. Our curiosity was piqued: Sol­dering with no heat? We asked Huang to elaborate.

On new devel­op­ments in the com­po­si­tion of the metallic glue:

“Both ‘metal’ and ‘glue’ are familiar terms to most people, but their com­bi­na­tion is new and made pos­sible by unique prop­er­ties of metallic nanorods–infinitesimally small rods with metal cores that we have coated with the ele­ment indium on one side and galium on the other. These coated rods are arranged along a sub­strate like angled teeth on a comb: There is a bottom 'comb’ and a top 'comb.’ We then inter­lace the 'teeth.’ When indium and galium touch each other, they form a liquid. The metal core of the rods acts to turn that liquid into a solid. The resulting glue pro­vides the strength and thermal/?electrical con­duc­tance of a metal bond. We recently received a new pro­vi­sional patent for this devel­op­ment through North­eastern University.”

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Heat-less solder? Awesome.

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New material can harvest sunlight by day and release heat at night

New material can harvest sunlight by day and release heat at night:

mindblowingscience:

As solar power becomes a bigger part of our overall energy mix, scientists are working on more efficient ways of storing the power of the Sun for use during the night-time, or on particularly cloudy days. And now a new type of material has been developed that can do just that - store solar energy when it’s in abundance, and release it as heat later on as required.

The transparent polymer film developed by a team from MIT can be applied to many surfaces, including glass and clothing. So imagine a warm jumper that goes with you from room to room, so there’s no need to fiddle with your central heating controls. Or a windshield overlay system that can burn away the ice on your car first thing in the morning, thanks to energy it had built up from the previous day.

“This work presents an exciting avenue for simultaneous energy harvesting and storage within a single material,” the University of Toronto’s Ted Sargent, who wasn’t involved in the research, told MIT News. “The approach is innovative and distinctive.”

Continue Reading.

Woah. This is cool.

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materialsscienceandengineering: Move aside carbon: Boron...

materialsscienceandengineering:

Move aside carbon: Boron nitride-reinforced materials are even stronger

Carbon nanotubes are legendary in their strength – at least 30 times stronger than bullet-stopping Kevlar by some estimates. When mixed with lightweight polymers such as plastics and epoxy resins, the tiny tubes reinforce the material, like the rebar in a block of concrete, promising lightweight and strong materials for airplanes, spaceships, cars and even sports equipment.

While such carbon nanotube-polymer nanocomposites have attracted enormous interest from the materials research community, a group of scientists now has evidence that a different nanotube – made from boron nitride – could offer even more strength per unit of weight. They publish their results in the journal Applied Physics Letters, from AIP Publishing.

Boron nitride, like carbon, can form single-atom-thick sheets that are rolled into cylinders to create nanotubes. By themselves boron nitride nanotubes are almost as strong as carbon nanotubes, but their real advantage in a composite material comes from the way they stick strongly to the polymer.

“The weakest link in these nanocomposites is the interface between the polymer and the nanotubes,” said Changhong Ke, an associate professor in the mechanical engineering department at the State University of New York at Binghamton. If you break a composite, the nanotubes left sticking out have clean surfaces, as opposed to having chunks of polymer still stuck to them. The clean break indicates that the connection between the tubes and the polymer fails, Ke noted.

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Brb. Redesigning our lunar robot.

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More Than You Ever Wanted to Know About Mechanical Engineering: S-N Diagrams

materialsscienceandengineering: ‘Al dente’ fibers could make...

materialsscienceandengineering:

‘Al dente’ fibers could make bulletproof vests stronger and ‘greener’

Bulletproof vests and other super-strong materials could soon become even tougher and more environmentally friendly at the same time with the help of extra firm, or “al dente,” fibers. Researchers report in ACS’ journal Macromolecules an innovative way to spin high-performance polyethylene fibers from natural fats, such as oils from olives and peanuts.

These materials, which are powerful enough to stop speeding bullets, can also be used for many other tasks that require strength. They recently played a key role in lifting a sunken ferry from a delicate ecosystem off the coast of Italy. The fibers also can serve as sails to catch wind, ropes for climbing and tying, and thin, sturdy surgical sutures that ensure wound healing. But making fibers for these applications with today’s commercial processes has drawbacks. For example, one of the methods requires large amounts of solvents that are flammable and toxic. The research group led by Theo Tervoort and Paul Smith from ETH Zurich wanted to find a more environmentally friendly route to produce these ultra-strong fibers.

The researchers replaced the hazardous solvents with natural, safer alternatives, including extra virgin olive oil, peanut oil and stearic acid, which is a substance found in animal and vegetable fats. Their new approach was up to 250 percent more efficient than current methods. And resulting fibers were up to 2 times stronger than a current commercial version. With a nod to the culinary connection, the researchers dubbed their novel product al dente fibers.

Read more.

Weird.

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More Than You Ever Wanted to Know About Mechanical Engineering, Part 27: Strength Correction Factors

laboratoryequipment: Metallic Glasses are New Base for Micro...

laboratoryequipment:

Metallic Glasses are New Base for Micro Fuel Cell

Engineers at Yale Univ. have developed a new breed of micro fuel cell that could serve as a long-lasting, low-cost and eco-friendly power source for portable electronic devices, such as tablet computers, smart phones and remote sensors. The researchers describe the novel device in a paper published online in the journal Small.

An alternative to a battery, a fuel cell is an electrochemical device that combines hydrogen and oxygen to produce energy, giving off only water and heat as byproducts. But the materials and methods commonly used for making micro fuel cells are fragile, inefficient and expensive.

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Micro fuel cell? Awesome.

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materialsscienceandengineering: Amorphous metal, metallic...

Samples of amorphous metal, with millimeter scale.


Metallic glass - shiny, easy to mould and with a high strength-to-weight ratio.


A time-temperature-transformation diagram for the primary crystallization of V1.


The relations between mechanical properties of typical BMGs.


A sample of a fractured amorphous metal alloy.

materialsscienceandengineering:

Amorphous metal, metallic glass

In nature they prefer to form crystal structures but if liquid metals are cooled down fast enough then, just like glass, the atoms will arrange into a disordered amorphous structure. These amorphous metals, also called metallic glasses, don’t exist naturally because the cooling rates required can be on the order of millions of degrees a second. Methods of forming these materials include extremely rapid cooling, physical vapor deposition, solid-state reaction, ion irradiation, and mechanical alloying.

Metallic glasses are materials of interest because of the properties that can result. They typically have extremely high strength to weight ratios (higher than aluminium and titanium alloys) and are tougher and less brittle than oxide glasses and ceramics. Like crystalline metallic alloys, the properties of these materials also depends upon the composition. Alloys of boron, silicon, phosphorus, and other glass formers with magnetic metals have high magnetic susceptibility and electrical resistance. The fact that amorphous metals are true glasses also allows for easy processing because they soften and flow upon heating. Not all properties are favorable however, metallic glasses also typically have lower ductilities and fatigue strengths. 

Bulk metallic glasses, or BMGs, are alloys with critical cooling rates low enough to allow formation of the desired amorphous structure in thick layers (over 1 millimeter). They are made from alloys with typically three to five metallic components that have a large atomic-size mismatch and a composition close to a deep eutectic. Some examples include Vitreloy 1 (41.2% Zr, 13.8% Ti, 12.5% Cu, 10% Ni, and 22.5% Be), Ti₄₀Cu₃₆Pd₁₄Zr₁₀, and Mg₆₀Zn₃₅Ca₅.

Sources: (1, top left) (2, top right) (3, middle left) (4, middle right) (5, bottom)

Not all glasses are Glass, the clear compound made from silica used in windows and such. A glass is a kind of compound.

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materialsscienceandengineering: Semiconductors Metals are...

materialsscienceandengineering:

Semiconductors

Metals are considered conductors because they have “free” electrons that are capable of flowing throughout the material, insulators, on the other hand, don’t have electrons that are capable of this sort of movement. Materials whose conductivity falls between that of a conductor, like copper, and an insulator, like glass, semiconductors are the foundation of modern electronics. For the most part, semiconductors are made of materials that don’t conduct electricity but have a few atoms with loose electrons, enabling a current to pass through the material.

The most common semiconductor material, silicon, is naturally a poor conductor in its pure form. It’s only through doping, or the addition of impurities, that an excess or shortage of electrons is created, allowing for better conduction. 

Because these materials are not pure insulators or pure conductors, they are very useful for modulating electrical currents in ways that conductors can’t. Specifically controlling the amount and types of dopants added allows for further control of a semiconductor’s properties. 

Sources: ( 1 ) ( 2 ) ( 3 )

Image sources: ( 1 ) ( 2 )

All you ever wanted to know about semiconductors.

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uncannytech: Flat molybdenum oxide semiconductors may be more...

uncannytech:

Flat molybdenum oxide semiconductors may be more practical than graphene 

This is definitely possible, and I think it should be pursued further.

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More Than You Ever Wanted to Know About Mechanical Engineering, Part 23: Fracture Mechanics

thebeakerblog: A new wood product used in construction could...

thebeakerblog:

A new wood product used in construction could help create greater demand for materials from local forests. Some tree buffs say more desire for New England timber could actually be a good thing for preserving Connecticut woodlands.

It’s called cross-laminated timber, or CLT. It’s layered wood, glued together, that’s used in construction and is really strong.

It’s so strong, in fact, that one engineer said CLT is poised to compete with steel support beams and concrete. “What CLT is doing is getting wood into applications one would never associate with wood, like high rises,” said Peggi Clouston, an engineer who teaches at UMass Amherst. “We’re talking about envisioning buildings up to 42 stories, made out of CLT.”

Clouston just won a nearly $400,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to prove that wood harvested here in New England can be used in the CLT process, which could mean more money coming out of New England forests.

There is a market today for Connecticut timber, but it’s limited, said Thomas Worthley, an associate professor at UCONN. To make money, what you need is “the right quality log,” he said. “And that’s the key.”

For example, wood free from things like knots or cracks. Worthley said that means only high-quality timbers fetch a lot of money on the open market. But, he thinks cross-laminated timber could change that – creating a new market that would discourage landowners from selling off forest plots in New England and encouraging them to grow less-valuable, but still robust trees like pine.

“My own personal bias is for growing the best trees we can. That’s, to me, how those sort of low-grade markets will help the process,” Worthley said.

Peggi Clouston said she’ll be using her grant money to develop computer models that will simulate the CLT process with different Northeast trees and lumber grades. Work she hopes will one day create a bigger market for locally-grown forest products.

(Image Credits: Creative Commons, Lars Plougmann)

Layered wood as strong as steel? Cool.

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