Affordable Artificial Leaf to produce Clean Hydrogen Fuel: Nanowire Mesh for Direct Solar Water Splitting

Today nations across the world are trying to cut down their greenhouse gas emissions. Alternative energy sources are being tried and tested to replace non-renewable fuel sources and in this race, hydrogen fuel also known as zero emission fuel, definitely seems to have a promising future. Many automobile companies are doing R & D to come up with hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in the auto market. Unfortunately, availability of naturally occurring pure hydrogen on Earth is very limited and therefore, production of hydrogen gas requires tremendous energy. To overcome this…

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Nanoreactor developed for Discovering New Chemical Reactions: Virtual Chemistry Set

In order to replicate ecosystem and chemical origin of life, Stanley Miller, under the supervision of Harold Urey, performed the breakthrough Urey-Miller experiment in 1952. The experiment initiated more than 20 major molecules that form the integral part of life. A team of researchers at Stanford believes that they can do one-step better.

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Magnetic Nanoparticle Pill will detect Cancer: Searching Bloodstream with Google

Giant web search engine, Google is expanding its business in different technological areas, investing in research program to develop driver-less cars, goggle glasses, contact lenses, delivery drones, robots, providing internet facilities via balloons to name a few. Now Google is expanding into the field of advance medicine. With an aim of developing nanoparticles that would be delivered in the form of a pill in aiding cancer detection and other ailments, the big G unveiled its latest project called the “Nanoparticle Platform. 

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Nanodiamonds to be used for Delivering Drugs and Cancer Therapeutics: New Imaging Modality

Capturing ongoing processes within living cells in real time is usually done with fluorescent dyes made up of a fluorescent chemical compound, fluorophore. The compound’s unique property of re-emitting light upon excitation makes it the most deserving candidate for imaging cellular processes, however, with the passage of time, the compound becomes toxic thereby renders havoc to the cells in close proximity.

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Lighting Sheets to replace Bulbs: OLED, the Next Generation Lights

How about customizing light source in our rooms, something that resembles the photo frames. Sounds interesting, ain’t it? Researchers have already been working in the field of light and they have come up with an approach that targets the efficiency in half amount of energy being consumed by regular bulbs by developing ‘glowing sheets’. Technology used in these light sheets would resemble the mega thin TVs and smartphones as the sheets are expected to include organic LEDs or OLEDs.

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Photonic Circuits to replace Electronic Circuits: New Quantum Technology

Photonic circuits would soon be replacing electronic circuits in the near future of quantum circuits. Since a decade, researchers across the globe were working towards developing quantum circuits but circuits based on light had its limitations however, researchers at the Niels Bohr Institute, Copenhagen have been successful in bringing about the probability.

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Waste Tire Rubber to replace Graphite Anodes: Battery Technology

Shredded scrap car tires have already find their way by means of recycling into the field of construction, floor mats, shoe soles and rubberized asphalt road material. Now, they would be morphing into another innovative role by becoming an integral part of hybrid and electric cars. Researchers at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory are trying to resurrect life from the discarded used tires in form of carbon material that would be used for lithium-ion battery anodes. Conventionally graphite, a natural carbon material, is the basic building block for lithium anodes.

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Graphene Sheet morphs into Droplets: A Serendipitous Discovery

Graphene does not stop surprising researchers with its limitations when it comes to application in fields like electronics, energy storage and energy generation. The list does not end here, now the wonder material looks promising in domain of medical sciences as well. During routine tests, Monash University’s researchers discovered that sheets of graphene oxide morph into liquid crystal droplets on its own accord. With its new avatar, the graphene droplets have find a promising place in delivery of drugs and disease detection, claimed the researchers.

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Carbon on the Cathode of Li-ion Batteries: The New Electrochemistry Technology

The University of Alberta experts have fabricated next gen batteries from carbon nanomaterials. This novel product is standing tall in front of conventional lithium-ion batteries where the former is efficient enough to charge faster and happens to lasts longer relatively. The electrochemistry technology  As per Xinwei Cui, one of the lead researchers, they have worked upon an innovative approach towards electrochemistry technology consequent upon which, they it was able to yield higher energy density and power. The team has worked along a mechanism called the induced fluorination, a new concept…

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Skeletal Muscle Cell Powered Bio-Bots: Micro-Bots controlled by an Electric Field

Inspired from living organisms, researchers try to create robots that can simulate living creatures mechanically or chemically. This field of science is named as Biorobotics. A team of researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Campaign has made a miniature walking bio-bots that derive its power from living muscle cells. And their movement can be regulated externally using electrical pulses. 

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Self-folding Gripper for Capturing Single Cells: Wafer Fabricated for Cellular Analysis

Human body is composed of different biological cells. Each cell is unique. Research shows that a sample of biopsied tumor consists of various distinct cells. These cells differ in their rate of proliferation, responsiveness to drugs, potential metastasis and so on. Therefore, it is essential for researchers to understand the behavior of individual cells and then accordingly design therapy and treatments, for which seizing individual cell is very important.

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Polymer for a Shatterproof Smartphone Touchscreen: Copper-based Flexible Display

Polymer scientists at University of Akron have developed an electrode, which is transparent in nature. Researchers aim to create shatterproof screens for smartphones with this newly fabricated layer of electrode. It’s been quite some time now since, researchers were looking for alternatives to conventional indium-tin oxide, the ITO technology used for making the touchscreen. Brittleness is one of the major flaws with smartphone screens made up of ITO technology. Another equally important reason for looking at its alternative is its scarcity. Moreover, escalation of smartphone and tablet market is fueling…

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Stenocara beetle Inspired Hygroscopic Scaffold: Nanotubes for Storing Water

Water is essential for survival of almost all kinds of lives on Earth, hence it is imperative to conserve it at any cost. Researchers from around the world are working to find new and innovative methods to conserve water, especially in areas which are short of water resources. Inspired from an insect, researchers from Rice University have come up with an innovation method of water collection. 

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MagnetoSperm Microrobots for the Nanoworld: Biomimicry

Nature does not stop us marveling at its splendor be it at macro level or micro scale. There are limitless options to investigate and get inspired. Biomimicry is one such field in robotics, which is completely drenched with nature’s splash. Researchers do not leave any stone unturned when dealing with robos inspired from nature, lately a concept is put forward by experts at the University of Twente, Netherlands. They have taken inspiration from nature’s locomotion at microscale and have combined the process of two micro-scale entities like magnetotactic bacteria and…

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