Understanding nanoparticles at atomic scale in 3 dimensions could improve materials

02-04-2013

A team of scientists from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and Northwestern University has produced 3-D images and videos of a tiny platinum nanoparticle at atomic resolution that reveal new details of defects in nanomaterials that have not been seen before. Prior to this ...

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14-01-2013

Rice University's latest nanotechnology breakthrough was more than 10 years in the making, but it still came with a shock. Scientists from Rice, the Dutch firm Teijin Aramid, the U.S. Air Force and Israel's Technion Institute this week unveiled a new carbon nanotube (CNT) fiber that looks and ...

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'Crushed' porous silicon anodes show dramatic increase in charge-discharge cycles

05-11-2012

Researchers at Rice University have refined silicon-based lithium-ion technology by literally crushing their previous work to make a high-capacity, long-lived and low-cost anode material with serious commercial potential for rechargeable lithium batteries.The team led by Rice engineer Sibani ...

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Rice University study suggests possible method for increasing the strength of glass

27-09-2012

Glass is strong enough for so much: windshields, buildings and many other things that need to handle high stress without breaking. But scientists who look at the structure of glass strictly by the numbers believe some of the latest methods from the microelectronics and nanotechnology industry ...

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Rice University, Lockheed Martin researchers extract multiple anodes from a single wafer for lithium-ion batteries

18-07-2012

Researchers at Rice University and Lockheed Martin reported that they've found a way to make multiple high-performance anodes from a single silicon wafer. The process uses simple silicon to replace graphite as an element in rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, laying the groundwork for ...

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Rice University study details exactly how nanotubes bend and break

12-07-2012

What's 100 times stronger than steel, weighs one-sixth as much and can be snapped like a twig by a tiny air bubble? The answer is a carbon nanotube -- and a new study by Rice University scientists details exactly how the much-studied nanomaterials snap when subjected to ultrasonic vibrations ...

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02-07-2012

In the first side-by-side tests of a half-dozen palladium- and iron-based catalysts for cleaning up the carcinogen TCE, Rice University scientists have found that palladium destroys TCE far faster than iron -- up to a billion times faster in some cases. The results will appear in a new study ...

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Study IDs 'zeolite' minerals that are one-third more efficient for carbon capture

04-06-2012

A detailed analysis of more than 4 million absorbent minerals has determined that new materials could help electricity producers slash as much as 30 percent of the "parasitic energy" costs associated with removing carbon dioxide from power plant emissions.The research by scientists at Rice ...

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Rice University physicists find reversible way to alter VO2's unique electronic about-face

25-05-2012

If you are not a condensed matter physicist, vanadium oxide (VO2) may be the coolest material you've never heard of. It's a metal. It's an insulator. It's a window coating and an optical switch. And thanks to a new study by physicists at Rice University, scientists have a new way to ...

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Rice, Penn State nanotube blocks show promise for environmental cleanup, among many uses

18-04-2012

Researchers at Rice University and Penn State University have discovered that adding a dash of boron to carbon while creating nanotubes turns them into solid, spongy, reusable blocks that have an astounding ability to absorb oil spilled in water. That's one of a range of potential innovations ...

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