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Category: materials

University of California, Los Angeles and University of California, San Diego researchers developed an injectable sealant for rapid hemostasis and tissue adhesion in soft, elastic organs.

Formulated with methacryloyl-modified human recombinant tropoelastin (MeTro) and Laponite silicate nanoplatelets (SNs), the engineered hydrogel demonstrated substantial improvements in tissue adhesion strength and hemostatic efficacy in preclinical models involving lung and arterial injuries.

Injuries to such as lungs, heart, and complicate surgical closure due to their constant motion and elasticity. Sutures, wires, and staples are mechanically fixed, risking when applied to tissues that expand and contract with each breath or heartbeat. Existing hemostatic agents, including fibrin-based sealants, aim to stem blood flow but may trigger intense coagulation responses in patients with clotting disorders.

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Artificial light, once a luxury, has become central to modern life, with its evolution spanning from fire to LEDs. Now, researchers have developed a new class of efficient light-emitting materials as promising candidates to be applied to lighten the darkness. They demonstrated easily accessible aluminum-based organometallic complexes that have the potential to be applied in optoelectronic devices.

The research team is from the Institute of Physical Chemistry, Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw and Warsaw University of Technology led by Prof. Janusz Lewiński in collaboration with Prof. Andrew E. H. Wheatley from Cambridge University. The paper is published in the journal Angewandte Chemie International Edition.

Growing demand for artificial light spurred the development of energy-efficient solutions like fluorescent lamps and, later, light-emitting diodes (LEDs). Once dropped, LEDs became ubiquitous in homes and portable devices.

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A new study by University of Kentucky researchers is helping change how scientists understand and control magnetic energy—and it could lead to faster, more efficient electronic devices.

Led by Ambrose Seo, Ph.D., a professor in the University of Kentucky Department of Physics and Astronomy in the College of Arts and Sciences, the study was recently published in Nature Communications.

The research focuses on magnons—tiny waves that carry magnetic energy through materials.

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This material can expand, change shape, move, and respond to electromagnetic commands like a remotely controlled robot, even though it has no motor or internal gears. In a study that echoes scenes from the Transformers movie franchise, engineers at Princeton University have developed a material c

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The vision of robotic materials—cohesive collectives of robotic units that can arrange into virtually any form with any physical properties—has long intrigued both science and fiction. Yet, this vision requires a fundamental physical challenge to be…

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A surprising effect was discovered through a collaborative study by researchers from TU Wien and institutions in Croatia, France, Poland, Singapore, Switzerland, and the US during the investigation of a special material: the atoms are arranged in a completely disordered manner but produce magnetic order.

The study is published in the journal Advanced Functional Materials.

Superconductivity is one of the central topics in modern materials science: certain materials can conduct electrical current without any resistance—at least below a certain temperature. However, how to produce materials that still exhibit this property at higher temperatures remains an unsolved problem.

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Fresh drinking water is a vital yet limited resource that will only grow scarcer over the next few years, according to the World Resources Institute. Desalination, the process of removing salt from water, is an established method used to increase the fresh water supply, especially in coastal regions. However, current desalination systems are dependent on large-scale centralized infrastructure and filtration membranes prone to fouling and degradation.

A team of Rice University engineers has developed a system that could transform practices, making the process more adaptable, resilient and cheaper.

The new system, described in a study published in Nature Water, is designed to be powered by sunlight and uses a creative approach to heat recovery for extended water production—with and without sunshine. In contrast to conventional systems, the setup is made from nondegradable materials and can handle high-salinity brines.

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A small team of engineers from the U.S., Chile and Ireland has found a way to extract more water from drier air, allowing for water production in arid places like the Atacama Desert. Their paper is published in Device.

Instead of looking for ways to improve sorbent materials, the team sought to optimize the way -based water-capture systems work.

Scientists believe there will be a global water crisis in the coming years. As the demand for fresh water increases and existing sources become depleted, new sources are required. One popular area of study involves extracting water from the air.

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Imagine a T-shirt that could monitor your heart rate or blood pressure. Or a pair of socks that could provide feedback on your running stride. It may be closer than you think, with new research from Washington State University demonstrating a particular 3D ink printing method for so-called smart fabrics that continue to perform well after repeated washings and abrasion tests. The research, published in the journal ACS Omega, represents a breakthrough in smart fabric comfort and durability, as well as using a process that is more environmentally friendly.

Hang Liu, a textile researcher at WSU and the corresponding author of the paper, said that the bulk of research in the field so far has focused on building technological functions into fabrics, without attention to the way fabrics might feel, fit, and endure through regular use and maintenance, such as washing.

“The materials used, or the technology used, generally produce very rigid or stiff fabrics,” said Liu, an associate professor in the Department of Apparel, Merchandising, Design and Textiles. “If you are wearing a T-shirt with 3D printed material, for example, for sensing purposes, you want this shirt to fit snugly on your body, and be flexible and soft. If it is stiff, it will not be comfortable and the sensing performance will be compromised.”

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