Researchers from Drexel University and Trinity College in Ireland, have created ink for an inkjet printer from a highly conductive type of two-dimensional material called MXene. Recent findings, published in Nature Communications, suggest that the ink can be used to print flexible energy storage components, such as supercapacitors, in any size or shape. Conductive inks…
Expanding the Use of Silicon in Batteries, by Preventing Electrodes From Expanding
Cancer-fighting Nanoparticles Gain Strength from ‘Mushrooms’ and ‘Brushes’
For a number of innovative and life-saving medical treatments, from organ replacements and skin grafts to cancer therapy and surgery, success often depends on slipping past or fending off the body’s immune system. In a recent development, aimed at aiding cancer detection and treatment, Drexel University researchers might have found the ideal surface texture for…
A Stabilizing Influence Enables Lithium-Sulfur Battery Evolution
In late July of 2008 a British solar plane set an unofficial flight-endurance record by remaining aloft for more than three days straight. Lithium-sulfur batteries emerged as one of the great technological advances that enabled the flight -powering the plane overnight with efficiency unmatched by the top batteries of the day. Ten years later, the…
Spray-On Antennas Could Unlock Potential of Smart, Connected Technology
Innovative 2D Materials Have Wide Range of Uses
Is there anything MXene materials can’t do? Since the discovery of a large new family of two-dimensional materials by Drexel University researchers in 2011, continued exploration has revealed their exceptional ability to store energy, block electromagnetic interference, purify water, and even ward off bacteria. And, as recent research now suggests, MXenes are also very durable…
Lab-Grown Neurons Improve Breathing in Mice After Spinal Cord Injury
Researchers from Drexel University College of Medicine and the University of Texas at Austin improved respiratory function in rodents with spinal cord injuries after successfully transplanting a special class of neural cells, called V2a interneurons. Their results, published this week in the Journal of Neurotrauma, indicate that these lab-grown cells have the potential to one…
A Soft Solution to the Hard Problem of Energy Storage
It’s great in the lab, but will it actually work? That’s the million-dollar question perpetually leveled at engineering researchers. For a family of layered nanomaterials, developed and studied at Drexel University—and heralded as the future of energy storage—that answer is now, yes. For some time, researchers have been working on using two-dimensional materials, atomically thin…
25 Years of Fossil Collecting Yields Clearest Picture of Extinct 12-Foot Aquatic Predator
After 25 years of collecting fossils at a Pennsylvania site, scientists at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University now have a much better picture of an ancient, extinct 12-foot fish and the world in which it lived. Although Hyneria lindae was initially described in 1968, it was done without a lot of fossil…
“Chemical Net” Looks to Capture Pure Hydrogen
Hydrogen is one of the most abundant elements on Earth and an exceptionally clean fuel source. While it is making its way into the fuel cells of electric cars, busses and heavy equipment, its widespread use is hampered by the expensive gas-separation process required to produce pure hydrogen. But that process could soon become more…
‘Chemical Net’ Could Be Key to Capturing Pure Hydrogen
Hydrogen is one of the most abundant elements on Earth and an exceptionally clean fuel source. While it is making its way into the fuel cells of electric cars, busses and heavy equipment, its widespread use is hampered by the expensive gas-separation process required to produce pure hydrogen. But that process could soon become more…
Recipe for Safer Batteries—Just Add Diamonds
While lithium-ion batteries, widely used in mobile devices from cell phones to laptops, have one of the longest lifespans of commercial batteries today, they also have been behind a number of recent meltdowns and fires due to short-circuiting in mobile devices. In hopes of preventing more of these hazardous malfunctions researchers at Drexel University have…
Dinosaur-Era Plant Found Alive in North America for First Time
Electrodes Push Charging Rate Limits in Energy Storage
Can you imagine fully charging your cell phone in just a few seconds? Researchers in Drexel University’s College of Engineering can, and they took a big step toward making it a reality with their recent work unveiling of a new battery electrode design in the journal Nature Energy. The team, led by Yury Gogotsi, PhD,Distinguished University and…
In the Fast Lane—Conductive Electrodes Are Key to Fast-Charging Batteries
Can you imagine fully charging your cell phone in just a few seconds? Researchers in Drexel University’s College of Engineering can, and they took a big step toward making it a reality with their recent work unveiling of a new battery electrode design in the journal Nature Energy. The team, led by Yury Gogotsi, PhD, Distinguished…
Brain Imaging Headband Measures how our Minds Align When we Communicate
Great ideas so often get lost in translation — from the math teacher who can’t get through to his students, to a stand-up comedian who bombs during an open mic night. But how can we measure whether our audiences understand what we’re trying to convey? And better yet, how can we improve that exchange? Drexel…
Containing Our ‘Electromagnetic Pollution’
If you’ve ever heard your engine rev through your radio while listening to an AM station in your car, or had your television make a buzzing sound when your cell phone is near it, then you’ve experienced electromagnetic interference. This phenomenon, caused by radio waves, can originate from anything that creates, carries or uses an…
Ferroelectrics Innovator Assists Solar Energy Breakthrough
Designers of solar cells may soon be setting their sights higher, as a discovery by a team of researchers has revealed a class of materials that could be better at converting sunlight into energy than those currently being used in solar arrays. Their research shows how a material can be used to extract power from…
Swimming Microscale Transformer Robots Could Revolutionize Surgery
Drexel University researchers, led by MinJun Kim, PhD, a professor in the College of Engineering, have successfully pulled off a feat that both sci-fi fans and Michael Phelps could appreciate. Using a rotating magnetic field they show how multiple chains of microscopic magnetic bead-based robots can link up to reach impressive speeds swimming through a…
Weight-Loss Technologies Train the Brain to Resist Temptation
Can a computer game train your brain to resist sweets? That’s the question Drexel University researchers hope to answer with one of two new studies launching this month. They have developed a computer game and smartphone app to help people control unhealthy eating habits and ultimately lose weight. The game is designed to improve a…