'Nano inks' could passively control temperature in buildings, cars

First 'phase-change' inks developed that could transform the way we heat and cool

28-Mar-2023 - World-first ‘phase change inks’ that could transform how we heat and cool buildings, homes and cars – to achieve sophisticated ‘passive climate’ control – have been developed, with enormous potential to help reduce energy use and global greenhouse gas emissions. New research published in The ...

Electric vehicle batteries could get big boost with new polymer coating

Scientists enhance lithium-ion battery performance at the atomic level

10-Mar-2023 - Scientists at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have developed a conductive polymer coating – called HOS-PFM – that could enable longer lasting, more powerful lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles. “The advance opens up a new approach to developing EV batteries that are ...

Catalyst to make renewable paints, coatings, and diapers discovered

Groundbreaking discovery will enable the manufacturing of biorenewable materials from trees and corn: A Startup wants to make it possible

11-Jan-2023 - A team led by University of Minnesota Twin Cities researchers has invented a groundbreaking new catalyst technology that converts renewable materials like trees and corn to the key chemicals, acrylic acid, and acrylates used in paints, coatings, and superabsorbent polymers. The new catalyst ...

Ceramic coatings do not fatigue

What determines the durability of high-performance coatings? Surprising results show: It is not material fatigue

18-Nov-2022 - Extremely thin ceramic coatings can completely change the properties of technical components. Coatings are used, for example, to increase the resistance of metals to heat or corrosion. Coating processes play a role for large turbine blades as well as for extremely stressed tools in production ...

BASF launches Chemetall Innovation and Technology Center for surface treatment solutions in China

01-Nov-2022 - The Surface Treatment global business unit of BASF’s Coatings division, operating under the Chemetall brand, opened its first regional innovation and technology center for applied surface treatment technology in Shanghai, China. The new 2,600 square meter center will focus on developing advanced ...

BASF to build Neopentyl Glycol plant at Zhanjiang Verbund site in China

Supporting customers’ growing demand in China, the world’s largest chemical market

12-Oct-2022 - BASF will invest in a new world-scale Neopentyl Glycol (NPG) plant with an annual production capacity of 80,000 metric tons at its new Zhanjiang Verbund site, China. With the new NPG plant expected to come on stream in Q4 2025, BASF’s global NPG capacity will be boosted from 255,000 metric tons ...

Spin-out company aiming to replace harmful plastic microbeads receives £1.3M investment

Sustainable cellulose start-up Naturbeads is poised to scale up

12-Jul-2022 - Naturbeads, a company set up by University of Bath researchers that aims to replace plastic microbeads with sustainable alternatives, is set to scale up its work after receiving £1.3M (€1.5M) in a recent funding round. The investment from Italian Venture Capital fund Progress Tech Transfer, Eos ...

Detecting fluorescence signals from nanoscale thin films

New possibilities in product labeling

01-Jul-2022 - Researchers from INNOVENT e.V. and Ferdinand-Braun-Institut gGmbH have developed a measurement technique that allows to detect nanoscale fluorescent thin films for the first time without using expensive laboratory equipment. The addressed fields of appli-cation of fluorescent thin films and the ...

A better wig — with chemistry

Hairs coated with a nanocomposite using the Langmuir-Blodgett technique generate much less static electricity than untreated hairs

15-Jun-2022 - For some people, wigs are a fun and colorful fashion accessory, but for those with hair loss from alopecia or other conditions, they can provide a real sense of normalcy and boost self-confidence. Whether made from human or synthetic strands, however, most hairpieces lose their luster after being ...

Writing with Light on Titania

Rewritable UV-sensitive surfaces made from doped TiO2 nanocrystals

02-Jun-2022 - Researchers have succeeded in producing a coating material that can be written on using UV light and the writing erased again using oxygen. Changes to rewritable paper could help reduce paper waste in a wide variety of applications. The material is made from three non-toxic components and is ...