Swedish researchers have developed an antibacterial polymer that does not leach into the environment and does not promote the evolution of stronger, more resistant bacteria. The innovation takes advantage of the most common organic substance in nature: cellulose. “We have managed to find an antibacterial polymer that attaches stably to cellulose and therefore cannot be [...]
Thin-Film Solar Cell Improves Efficiency
February 18, 2013 By Leave a Comment
A breakthrough has been achieved in efficiency with silicon solar photovoltaic cells. EPFL (École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne in Switzerland) has produced a single-junction microcrystalline silicon solar cell that has a 10.7% efficiency rating, a world record, the institute claims. The rating passed the previous highest rating of 10.1% held by the Japanese company, Kaneka [...]
Artificial Lungs Eliminate Need for Animal Testing
November 19, 2012 By 1 Comment
Instead of testing a drug’s effectiveness — or its potential side effects — on animals or humans, we may soon have the ability to create an artificial organ and test it on that, thanks to work from U.S. scientists. The so-called lung-on-a-chip, developed at Harvard’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, is a flexible piece [...]
Thin Medical Device Dissolves in Water
November 15, 2012 By 1 Comment
Sliced thin enough, just about any material is pliable. Sliced thin enough, just about any material can dissolve in water. This was the concept put to medical use by researchers from Indiana University, and Northwestern and Tufts universities, who have developed medical devices that, when placed into the human body, will dissolve because of internal [...]
Robot Made From Polymers Moves, Hides Like Octopus
September 17, 2012 By 2 Comments
Scientists at Harvard University have invented a flexible robot, using polymers, that mimics the motion — and even the camouflage — of an octopus. The inventors say the robot has several applications: from helping scientists understand how camouflage is used in nature, helping doctors plan complex surgeries, to acting as a visual marker to help [...]
Scientists Create Plastic Solar Cell
April 27, 2012 By 3 Comments
Scientists have discovered a method using polymers that could allow improved solar cells to be manufactured more cheaply and with more flexibility. Manufacturers already print or roll material onto surfaces to produce an electronically functional device, writes Jennifer Hicks in Forbes. This process is used to make organic solar cells and organic light-emitting diodes that [...]
Boosting Polymer Microfluidic Chip Production
April 5, 2012 By Leave a Comment
We may see medical and environmental diagnostics on plastic chips the size of flash cards in the near future. In a story for MIT News, Jennifer Chu reports on how microfluidic technology, which is also known as lab-on-a-chip technology, could be used to shrink analytical power into a handheld device so that analyses can be [...]
