Plasmonics – a possible replacement for current computing approaches – may pave the way for the next generation of computers that operate faster and store more information than electronically-based systems and are smaller than optically-based systems, according to Tony Jun Huang, a Penn State engineer who has developed a plasmonic switch. “Plasmonics combines the speed and capacity of photonic circuits with the small size of electronic circuits,” said Huang. He suggests that applications like YouTube, which are very popular but have terrible resolution, could become places to see high-resolution images.

Huang’s team created a plasmonic switch from switchable bistable rotaxanes. Rotaxanes are complex molecules that consist of a dumbbell shape with a ring or rings encircling the shaft and are sometimes called molecular machines. The ring can either move from one end of the barbell to the other or rotate around the shaft. Changes in molecular shape are the basis of the plasmonic switch. The switches are activated by a chemical process, however, this is not the optimal choice for a working circuit. “Creation of a plasmonic circuit is probably five years away,” Huang said.

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Researchers at University of Toronto and Bloorview, Canada’s largest children’s rehabilitation hospital, have developed a technique that uses infrared light brain imaging to decode preference. When children with disabilities can’t speak or gesture to control their environment, they may develop a learned helplessness that impedes development. The researchers envision creating a portable, near-infrared sensor that rests on the forehead and relies on wireless technology, opening up the world of choice to children who can’t speak or move.

Most brain-computer interfaces designed to read thoughts require training, but the nine adults in this study received no training. Prior to the study they rated eight drinks on a scale of one to five. Wearing a headband fitted with fiber-optics that emit light into the pre- frontal cortex of the brain, they were shown two drinks on a computer monitor, one after the other, and asked to make a mental decision about which they liked more. After teaching the computer to recognize the unique pattern of brain activity associated with preference for each subject, the researchers accurately predicted which drink the participants liked best 80 per cent of the time.

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NASA and 11 other research groups are testing two non-petroleum-based fuels in the pursuit of alternative fuels that can power commercial jets and address rising oil costs. The tests, being conducted at NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center in California, are measuring the performance and emissions of two synthetic fuels derived from coal and natural gas, using the Fischer-Tropsch process.

The Fischer-Tropsch process is a chemical reaction in which a synthesis gas – a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen – is converted into liquid hydrocarbons of various forms. The process produces synthetic petroleum for use as a lubricant or fuel. The technology has been around for decades, but until now the high cost of building new plants to produce synthetic fuels has stymied interest.

The tests are using sampling probes placed downstream from the DC-8′s right inboard engine. Researchers are testing 100 percent synthetic fuels and 50-50 blends of synthetics and regular jet fuel, and looking primarily at engine performance and aircraft emissions. It is thought that synthetic fuels create fewer particles and other harmful emissions than standard jet fuel. If this is found to be true, use of synthetic fuels could improve the air quality around airports.

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The nation’s infrastructure uses concrete for millions of miles of roadways and 600,000 bridges, many of which are in disrepair. With a project called viscosity enhancers reducing diffusion in concrete technology (VERDICT), Engineers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) set out to double concrete’s lifetime. The key is a nano-sized additive that changes the viscosity of the solution in the concrete at the microscale to slow down penetration of chloride and sulfate ions from road salt, sea water, and soils into the concrete. Infiltrating chloride and sulfate ions cause internal structural damage over time that leads to cracks and weakens the concrete.

The NIST researchers demonstrated that the additives can be blended directly into the concrete with current chemical admixtures, but that even better performance is achieved when the additives are mixed into the concrete by saturating absorbent, lightweight sand. Research continues on other materials as engineers seek to improve this finding by reducing the concentration and cost of the additive necessary to double the concrete’s service life. The new technology could save billions of dollars and many lives.

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Researchers from Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems in Dresden have developed the first-ever biogas plant to run purely on waste instead of edible raw materials – transforming waste into valuable material. The plant generates 30 percent more biogas than its predecessors. A fuel cell efficiently converts the gas into electricity. Until now, biogas plants have only been able to process a certain proportion of waste material, as this tends to be more difficult to convert into biogas than pure cereal crops or corn, for example.

The researchers optimized the conversion of biogas into electricity by diverting the gas into a high-temperature fuel cell, with an electrical efficiency of 40 to 55 percent. By comparison, the gas engine normally used for this purpose only achieves an average efficiency of 38 percent. The fuel cell operates at 850 degrees Celsius. The heat can be used directly for heating, or be fed into the district heating network. The time for which the decomposing waste material, or silage, is stored in the plant is reduced by 50 to 70 percent.

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