Polymers

Bionic muscles that are stronger, faster, and more efficient

IEEE Spectrum: Artificial muscles, once a tangle of elaborate servomotors, and hydraulic and pneumatic actuators, is now a thing of shape-memory alloys and hair-thin carbon nanotube (CNT) fibers. Bionics are, in brief, getting smaller—though perhaps not simpler. Electrochemical CNT muscles are…

67% energy savings with polymer tailored for 3D printing

Design News: Ineos Styrolution has announced the first results of the PolySLS project, which is focused on developing a new energy-saving styrenics-based material for additive manufacturing, otherwise known as “3D printing.” The project has been able to show that significant overall…

Ultrasound tops traditional synthesis in hunt for elusive golden polymer

Chemistry World: By unzipping fused ring molecules using mechanical force, researchers have made an elusive fluorinated polymer for the first time. The work is a proof-of-principle for mechanochemistry as a…

5 new chemical engineering technologies that are making an impact

C&EN: COVID-19 infection and hospitalization rates in the US shot back up in early November, closing bars, preschools, and other public amenities across the country. Public health officials are reemphasizing the cornerstone roles that handwashing, masks, and social distancing have…