Jun 17, 2024 (Nanowerk News) The first generation of lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles has been a remarkable success story. Yet, the question arises: What changes to battery materials will spur further advances to extend driving range and lower costs? A better positive electrode, or cathode, for lithium-ion batteries has...
Engineers develop highly efficient atmospheric water harvester with record-breaking clean water production
Jun 17, 2024 (Nanowerk Spotlight) Water scarcity is a growing global challenge, affecting two-thirds of the world's population to varying degrees. While atmospheric water harvesting has long been considered a potential solution, practical applications have been hindered by slow sorption kinetics (the rate at which water is absorbed), salt leakage,...
Chemical imaging more than just surface deep
Jun 17, 2024 (Nanowerk News) A new method in spectromicroscopy significantly improves the study of chemical reactions at the nanoscale, both on surfaces and inside layered materials. Scanning X-ray microscopy (SXM) at MAXYMUS beamline of BESSY II enables the investigation of chemical species adsorbed on the top layer (surface) or...
The nanotechnological revolution requires standardized ‘screws’
Jun 17, 2024 (Nanowerk News) A new nonlinear optical property of tiny particles has been discovered by an international team of scientists led by physicists at the University of Bath, with important implications for researchers working in fields as diverse as display technology, chemical catalysis and medicine. The new property...
Novel method for measuring micro- and nanoplastic concentrations in soil using spectroscopy
Jun 17, 2024 (Nanowerk News) Micro- and nanoplastics are a well-known menace, found practically everywhere in nature, including soil, oceans, drinking water, air, and even the human body. Studies show that soils in particular hold a significant portion of N/MPs. The problem with these N/MPs is their microscopic size, which...
Custom-made molecules designed to be invisible while absorbing near-infrared light
Jun 17, 2024 (Nanowerk News) Getting a molecule to do what you want it to do is not always easy. As an example, an organic molecule will absorb only certain wavelengths of light based on its arrangement of electrons, which can be difficult to fine tune. Even so, the ability...