Scientists create lightweight 18-carat gold using ordinary plastic

64CF26AE-349B-4695-BAFE-5B694117A566

Researchers with ETHzurich have successfully used plastic to create lightweight gold that retains its purity, according to a recent announcement from the institution. The lightweight gold is ideally suited for products like jewelry and watches — things that would benefit from a reduction in weight without a loss in gold purity or beauty.

The gold found in jewelry is made with metallic alloys that help reduce the weight, though some pieces of jewelry may still be too heavy to suit some buyers. The newly created 18-carat gold replaces the metallic alloy elements with a ‘matrix of plastic,’ reducing the density from a typical 15 g/cm3 to 1.7 g/cm3.

Continue reading… “Scientists create lightweight 18-carat gold using ordinary plastic”

0

Imprint Energy is developing flexible, printed batteries for wearable devices

zinc.poly battery

Ultrathin zinc-polymer battery.

Imprint Energy is developing flexible, rechargeable batteries that can be printed cheaply on commonly used industrial screen printers. The California startup has been testing its ultrathin zinc-polymer batteries in wrist-worn devices and hopes to sell them to manufacturers of wearable electronics, medical devices, smart labels, and environmental sensors.

 

 

Continue reading… “Imprint Energy is developing flexible, printed batteries for wearable devices”

0

NEC’s ultra-thin organic battery is just 0.3mm thick

ORB

NEC’s organic radical battery (ORB)

NEC has been working on the “organic radical battery” (ORB) technology for some years, but has now announced its latest ORB breakthrough, the 0.3mm thick ORB. The output rated as 5kW/L with a capacity of 3mAh, according to Geek.com. On a full charge, the new battery prototype can refresh a screen 2,000 times. A recharge takes under a minute, about 30 seconds. The new batteries maintain 75 percent of their charge-discharge after 500 charges.

Continue reading… “NEC’s ultra-thin organic battery is just 0.3mm thick”

0

A Coating That Heals Itself with Light

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-fka0wfY8w&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]

 It would be great if you could take your car to the body shop and have it repaired in minutes, before your eyes, without anyone even laying hands on it.  There have been several developments in self-healing coatings recently.

 

Continue reading… “A Coating That Heals Itself with Light”

0

New Polymer That Heals Itself Could Lead to Medical Implants or Engine Parts That Fix Themselves

healingstacked

Broken polymer chains reform to repair a crack in this material when it is pressed together and exposed to UV light.

A new polymer material that can repeatedly heal itself at room temperature when exposed to ultraviolet light presents the tantalizing possibility of products that can repair themselves when damaged. Possibilities include self-healing medical implants, cars, or even airplane parts.

 

Continue reading… “New Polymer That Heals Itself Could Lead to Medical Implants or Engine Parts That Fix Themselves”

0

Chewing Gum Developed That Can Be Washed Off with Water

chewing_gum_pic

UK company invents chewing gum that can be washed off with water.

Pioneering Flintshire-based company Revolymer has come up with a gum which can be removed from the streets using only water. Anyone who has trodden in chewing gum, and parents in particular, will be delighted to know it can also be removed from shoes, clothes and hair with soap and water.

0

Window Fridge – Let’s You Decide What You Want Before Opening

windowrefrigerator01

Window refrigerator

Let me let you in on a little quote from a comedian I know: “OK you stand here. I’ll get the camera, and I’ll take a picture of the inside of the fridge and get it developed. When I come back, I’ll tape it to the fridge on the outside so you’ll know what’s in there, and then you can know what you want before you get in. How’s that.” – Bill Cosby (1982.) Little did Cosby know that only about 30 years later there’d be a real solution to this problem.

 

Continue reading… “Window Fridge – Let’s You Decide What You Want Before Opening”

0

Organic Solar Cells Starting To Take Off In The Renewable Energy Field

Organic Solar Cells Starting To Take Off In The Renewable Energy Field

 The flexible solar module is as small as the page of a book.

In the race to renewable energy, organic solar cells are now really starting to take off. They can be manufactured easily and cheaply, they have low environmental impact, and since they are compatible with flexible substrates, they could be used in many applications such as packaging, clothing, flexible screens, or for recharging cell phones and laptops.

Continue reading… “Organic Solar Cells Starting To Take Off In The Renewable Energy Field”

0

Cheaper And More Reliable Lithium-Ion Batteries

Cheaper And More Reliable Lithium-Ion Batteries

Lithium-ion cells that use polymer electrolytes can be affordably packaged in compact, flexible pouches  

A new incarnation of lithium-ion batteries based on solid polymers is in the works. Berkeley, CA-based startup Seeo, Inc. says its lithium-ion cells will be safer, longer-lasting, lighter, and cheaper than current batteries. Seeo’s batteries use thin films of polymer as the electrolyte and high-energy-density, light-weight electrodes. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory is now making and testing cells designed by the University of California, Berkeley spinoff.

Continue reading… “Cheaper And More Reliable Lithium-Ion Batteries”

0

Microtool Inspired By Human Hand

Microtool Inspired By Human Hand 

 The gripper closed around tissue.

Using the human hand as a model, scientists at Johns Hopkins University and its medical school have developed a microscopic tool that might one day be used inside the body. The tool, a clawlike gripper less than a millimeter in diameter, could grab cells from tissue for a biopsy, for example.

Continue reading… “Microtool Inspired By Human Hand”

0