Stories
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Articles: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
Proper filtration plays an important role in ensuring that hydraulic systems operate trouble-free. High-performance filters maintain the cleanliness of the hydraulic fluid over its entire service life. In...
Facility Focus: Materials
The Department of Energy’s (DOE) Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) in Richland, WA, has been operated by Battelle and its predecessors since the lab’s inception in 1965. For more than 50...
Briefs: Materials
NASA’s Langley Research Center has developed a deployable and stowable mechanical design for filling the cavity behind the leading-edge slat (i.e., slat cove) when it is extended upon landing an aircraft....
Articles: Test & Measurement
This column presents technologies that have applications in commercial areas, possibly creating the products of tomorrow. To learn more about each technology, see the contact information provided for that innovation.
Briefs: Materials
NASA Langley Research Center has developed a method to create Sequential/Simultaneous Multi-Metallized Nanocomposites (S2M2N) via supercritical fluid (SCF) sequential or...
INSIDER: Materials
Physicists at the University of California, Riverside have developed a photodetector by combining two distinct inorganic materials and producing quantum mechanical...
News: Materials
A reversible fabric from Stanford University could warm up or cool down its wearers, depending on their preference – and which side of the material faces out.
INSIDER: Test & Measurement
iSoft, a new type of soft and stretchable sensor, is capable of sensing in real time, and can perform “multimodal” sensing of stimuli such as continuous contact and stretching in all...
Sound-Off: Materials
New plastics are helping automotive manufacturers reduce the weight of their vehicles. But how do thermoset composites stack up against traditional metals? A Tech Briefs reader asks our automotive expert.
INSIDER: Materials
Although spills inside a lab can often spell trouble, a University of Washington scientist found a way to turn an accidentally doused conductive material into an inventive new sensor. The lab...
Articles: Photonics/Optics
The challenges in achieving greater accuracy in optical thin-film coatings, both historically and in today's coating processes, are many and deserve our scrutiny. The...
Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems
NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) developed a foam-rigidized, inflatable, tubular space boom that can be transported, deployed, and inflated at remote locations. The lightweight device...
Q&A: Materials
Dr. Zheng and her team of scientists from Berkeley Lab and Nanyang Technical University in Singapore made metal-organic spongy photocatalysts that convert carbon dioxide...
INSIDER: Materials
Looking to nature for inspiration, scientists from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) and Northeastern University have used carbon nanotubes to mimic the...
INSIDER: Energy
Electronics design is often limited by the shape of the battery – a critical, but frequently uncompromising product component. A new kind of battery conforms to meet the...
INSIDER: Imaging
In the galaxy NGC 4993, located approximately 130 million light-years from Earth, two neutron stars collided. And, for the first time, scientists detected the...
Sound-Off: Materials
Conformal coatings like Parylene protect a variety of components, including LEDs, sensors, and circuit card assemblies. If a board component needs to be replaced, however, how easily can the Parylene...
INSIDER: Semiconductors & ICs
A rubber “skin” developed at the University of Houston allows a robotic hand to sense the difference between hot and cold temperatures. The semiconductor material supports new...
Briefs: Materials
NASA Langley Research Center has developed a functionally graded metal-metal composite structure. The structure is created using a method that avoids deleterious reactions between the...
Briefs: Materials
Self-Healing, Self-Lubricating Tribofilm
Tribologists have developed a diamond-like film that is generated by the heat and pressure of an automotive engine. The ultra-durable, self-lubricating tribofilm — a film that forms between moving surfaces — can be made to develop self-healing, diamondlike carbon (DLC) tribofilms. The film generates...
Briefs: Materials
Self-Lubricating Hard Coatings for Extreme Environments
NASA’ s space goals include a permanent presence on the Moon and an expedition to Mars. The success of habitats and vehicles on the Moon and Mars — and ultimately, of the human exploration of and permanent human presence on the Moon and Mars — is critically dependent on the correct and...
Briefs: Materials
Customizable Recyclable Launch Packaging
NASA is developing a sustainable in-space manufacturing ecosystem by providing both the capability to create 3D printer filament from currently used packaging material as well as the development of new, high-performance packaging architectures created with materials that are well suited for use in 3D...
Briefs: Materials
TiBor Skin Composite Coatings
TiBor Skin is a two-part technology that creates toughened, corrosion- and wear-resistant composite structures. The technology consists of coatings or surface materials for application on metals, plus methods of applying these materials. It also provides methods of integrating the applied coatings with their substrates...
Briefs: Materials
Absorbent Polymer Reinforcing Fiber
Absorbent polymers can be used, for instance, to absorb hydrocarbons from an aqueous medium such as the absorption of oil from water. In some configurations, conventional absorbent polymers are contained within a permeable material; for example, conventional spill “socks” and booms can hold an absorbent...
Question of the Week: Energy
Will we drive on piezoelectric highways?
Today's lead INSIDER story showcased efforts from Lancaster University to create road-ready piezoelectric tiles. The electricity generated from the ceramics (and the vehicles driving over them) could someday be used to power street lamps and traffic lights.
INSIDER: Energy
Researchers from Lancaster University are looking to pave the next generation of smart road surfaces — with piezoelectric ceramics. When embedded in road surfaces, the tiles convert...
INSIDER: Materials
A new mechanical innovation unfolded this month at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign as a team of engineers built a new kind of crawler robot. The wheel-less design takes...
Question of the Week: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Our lead INSIDER story today showcased a new Kapton-like material, developed by a team at Virginia Tech. The researchers hope that the 3D-printed polymer will support new applications,...
News: Electronics & Computers
Kapton, a material used in electronics and aerospace applications, has only been available in sheet form. Researchers from Virginia Tech have found a way to 3D-print a polymer with Kapton's structural...
Top Stories
Blog: Manufacturing & Prototyping
2025 Holiday Gift Guide for Engineers: Tech, Tools, and Gadgets
Blog: Power
Using Street Lamps as EV Chargers
INSIDER: Semiconductors & ICs
Scientists Create Superconducting Semiconductor Material
Blog: Materials
This Paint Can Cool Buildings Without Energy Input
Blog: Software
Quiz: Power
Webcasts
Upcoming Webinars: AR/AI
The Real Impact of AR and AI in the Industrial Equipment Industry
Upcoming Webinars: Motion Control
Next-Generation Linear and Rotary Stages: When Ultra Precision...
Podcasts: Manufacturing & Prototyping
SAE Automotive Engineering Podcast: Additive Manufacturing
Podcasts: Defense
A New Approach to Manufacturing Machine Connectivity for the Air Force
On-Demand Webinars: Manufacturing & Prototyping
Streamlining Manufacturing with Integrated Digital Planning and Simulation
On-Demand Webinars: Automotive
