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• Engineers design ultrathin and ultralight nanocardboard that acts as thermal insulator

  Engineers from the University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, Pa.) demonstrated an ultrathin and ultralight equivalent to corrugated paper carboard composed of aluminum oxide film that is only tens of nanometers thick and is 10,000 times as stiff as a solid plate of the same mass. details>>

• Researchers develop novel approach to overcome condensation issues in omniphobic materials

  Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, Mass. designed a novel surface design for omniphobic materials to overcome the issue of condensation, which can limit the ability of the material to repel liquid. details>>

• Small tweaks to edges of graphene nanoribbons have significant impact on thermal conductivity

  Through simulations, researchers at the Agency for Science, Technology, and Research (A*STAR) in Singapore discovered that changing the orientation of the edges of black phosphorene nanoribbons can have a significant impact on their thermal conductivity. details>>

• Researchers have developed the first ultralight aerogel made from recycled plastics

  Scientists at the National University of Singapore (NUS) announced a new process for turning common polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastics into aerogels that have many real-world applications in a variety of industries. details>>

• MIT researchers create flexible semiconducting films from materials that outperform silicon

  Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, Mass. developed a technique for fabricating ultrathin semiconducting films from materials such as gallium arsenide, allium nitride, and lithium fluoride, which outperform silicon but had previously been too expensive to use in devices. details>>

• Researchers use ZnO nanowires to develop transparent thermoelectric films for energy recovery

  Researchers at Osaka University (Japan) developed a new method for enhancing thermoelectric power factor while decreasing thermal conductivity using films embedded with zinc oxide nanowires, according to a report from the university. details>>

• Modifying Kevlar sheets with copper-nickel nanowires leads to wearable heating pad

  According to a report from the American Chemical Society (ACS), researchers from the Ulsan Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) in South Korea have developed a wearable heater by modifying woven Kevlar fabric with copper-nickel nanowires. details>>

• Researchers design eco-friendly system that uses water to store electrical and thermal energy

  Researchers at the Graz (Austria) University of Technology (TU Graz) Institute of Hydraulic Engineering and Water Resources Management designed a hot-water pumped storage hydropower plant that stores and supplies electricity, heat and cooling energy as needed and with zero emissions. details>>

• Engineers design novel thermal regulator to keep lithium-ion batteries at optimal temperatures

  Engineers from the University of California Berkeley have developed a new thermal regulator that maintains optimal operating temperatures for lithium-ion batteries even in extreme heat or cold, which could be a boost for battery-powered vehicles or mobile devices. details>>

• New material and manufacturing process to turn solar thermal energy into renewable electricity

  Researchers from Purdue University (West Lafayette, Ind.), the Georgia Institute of Technology (Atlanta, Ga.), the University of Wisconsin - Madison, and Oak Ridge (Tenn.) National Laboratory developed a new manufacturing process for making plates with channels for heat exchange out of a composite material composed of zirconium carbide and tungsten. details>>