Engineering news

Engineering

Pagoda-inspired floors reduce tower sway while cutting material needs

Imperial and Arup pioneer a new approach to designing tall buildings that uses the building's own weight to reduce movement in high winds and earthquakes. Inspired by traditional Japanese pagodas, it makes towers safer while ...

Engineering

Generative AI: Modeling a proper cuppa from a proper pot

The Yixing Zisha teapot sits neatly at the intersection of art, engineering and heritage. As such, it makes for an intriguing test case for a technology increasingly taking on creative tasks across almost every field of human ...

Engineering

Neutron imaging peers inside iron redox flow batteries

A renewable energy future will rely on cheap and scalable battery technologies. A promising option is an all-iron redox flow battery, which uses iron—an abundant, low-cost, and safe material. Battery performance depends on ...

Engineering

Waste heat becomes cooling energy: Research team develops next-generation heat pump system

A next-generation heat pump system that can provide cooling using low-temperature waste heat of approximately 40°C (104°F) from factories and data centers has been developed. Unlike conventional air conditioning systems, ...

Engineering

A cooling ceramic wall to combat urban heat

In light of rising temperatures and more frequent heat waves, the Institute of Architecture and Media at Graz University of Technology (TU Graz) is presenting an energy-efficient solution to urban heat islands: 3D-printed ...

Engineering

New system detects small defects for packaging seals

Every year, billions of products are sealed in film packaging. This packaging must be reliably leakproof, especially in regulated sectors such as in the medical and food industry. In the OCTInline project, researchers at ...

Engineering

Scientists map moon regolith to aid lunar bases

A strong foundation is key to any building, and this doesn't apply only to construction on Earth. As humanity slowly expands throughout the many worlds of our solar system, and possibly beyond, understanding planetary surfaces ...

Robotics

Porous 3D-printed feet cut quadruped robot power use

Quadruped robots, which walk on four legs, are increasingly used for tasks such as inspection, transportation and search-and-rescue operations. However, their repeated leg movements consume far more energy than the rolling ...

Engineering

Study advances solar desalination with multifunctional membrane

As the world's population grows and industry expands, many countries in Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia are facing a freshwater scarcity crisis. Finding sustainable ways to produce clean water has become an urgent ...

Engineering

Why making lighter and better batteries takes time

Lithium-ion batteries have revolutionized our lives since they first came onto the market in the early 1990s. They are now used in all sorts of devices, such as cellphones, laptops and electric vehicles.

Engineering

Charging drones mid-flight with lasers

Wireless charging is nothing new for our phones, watches, earbuds and other tech. Now, researchers want to bring wireless power to the skies—recharging drones in flight by beaming a laser under their wings.

Engineering

NASA's X-59 aircraft flies supersonic for first time

NASA's experimental X-59 aircraft marked a major milestone Friday, June 5, when it flew faster than the speed of sound for the first time, setting the stage for demonstrating its quiet supersonic capabilities later this year.

Engineering

Jumping spiders inspire ultra-efficient 3D camera

By borrowing a trick from tiny jumping spiders, Northwestern University engineers have developed an extremely energy-efficient 3D camera. Called SpiderCam, the new device senses depth the same way that jumping spiders judge ...

Engineering

Supercharging the grid: How to free up 20% more power

Implementing effective monitoring measures could yield much more energy from the cable network—all without digging a single new trench. Just a dream scenario? No, it is entirely possible, say researchers.

Engineering

Dust-prone desert of the Southwest may be ideal for solar energy

Solar energy developers eyeing parts of southern New Mexico may have less to worry about than expected when it comes to dust. A new study led by University of Texas at El Paso researchers concludes that photovoltaic panels ...

Engineering

Carbon ratios in concrete can improve carbon accounting

For the first time, researchers, including those from the University of Tokyo, have found out how to determine how much carbon dioxide (CO2) from either natural or anthropogenic sources can be absorbed by special concrete ...

Engineering

Why your building is often too hot, or cold—and the simple fix

In many cases, heating can be significantly improved simply by adjusting existing controls to account for sunlight, ventilation and how many people are inside, according to researchers at KTH Royal Institute of Technology ...