https://techxplore.com/rss-feed/engineering-news/ en-us The latest news on engineering technology, engineering science, computer engineering , civil engineering, chemical engineering, aerospace engineering and environmental engineering. Refrigerators, air-conditioning systems and data centers consume enormous amounts of electricity, and cooling demand is constantly rising. A research team from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and the University of Tsukuba in Japan is presenting a new approach demonstrated by a prototype in which heat assumes the role formerly played by an electric motor. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-ultrathin-grade-cooling-electric-motor.html Engineering Fri, 28 Aug 2026 13:00:10 EDT news707139961 A new study challenges one of the most deeply rooted assumptions in civil engineering: that using recycled materials in structural concrete inevitably means sacrificing strength. Researchers from Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral, in collaboration with the University of Surrey, have demonstrated that recycled aggregates can be incorporated into concrete without compromising performance—provided certain technical limits are respected. The findings are published in the journal Construction and Building Materials. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-recycled-aggregates-concrete-strength.html Engineering Fri, 28 Aug 2026 13:00:01 EDT news707138349 Lithium-ion batteries power transportation and grid storage and enable our digital lives, but these ubiquitous batteries require frequent recharging and can fail over time. To make batteries more reliable and longer-lasting, researchers are exploring how to replace liquids inside batteries with a solid ceramic material that could improve their performance. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-solid-state-batteries-short-circuiting.html Engineering Fri, 28 Aug 2026 10:20:03 EDT news707129281 Researchers from North Carolina State University have created teardrop-shaped soft robots that leap upward or forward when exposed to infrared light—and will keep jumping as long as the light is present. The work demonstrates a new mechanism for self-resetting jumping behavior in soft robotics. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-powered-soft-robots.html Robotics Fri, 28 Aug 2026 10:00:02 EDT news707128436 In nuclear power plants, primary coolant piping systems are designed to maintain the structural integrity of the nuclear reactor under normal operating conditions. A pipe rupture that can result in a loss-of-coolant accident is a key consideration in this design and an important safety concern. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-probabilistic-analysis-nuclear-safety.html Engineering Thu, 27 Aug 2026 15:00:07 EDT news707060944 A new set of modular components allows users to create reconfigurable smart devices with electrical connections that keep working no matter what shape the structure forms. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-bifur-circuits-devices-electrical-intact.html Engineering Thu, 27 Aug 2026 12:00:48 EDT news707050816 Packing isn't just about fitting everything into a certain space—it's also about being able to retrieve important items quickly and correctly. In a pair of new studies, researchers from North Carolina State University developed packing models that optimize spatial use while including item priority, location and weight distribution. The new models could improve efficiency in areas ranging from combat loading in military logistics to warehouse storage and multidrop delivery services. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-code-incorporate-item-priority-weight.html Engineering Thu, 27 Aug 2026 11:40:03 EDT news707049062 As the global push for cleaner energy intensifies, solid oxide fuel cells have emerged as a promising option. They turn hydrogen or other renewable fuels directly into electricity and heat without combustion, eliminating virtually all pollution and boosting efficiency to more than 60%. But a major downside has kept them out of everyday commercial use: They require extremely high temperatures to operate. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-forged-frozen-fuel-thermal-advances.html Engineering Thu, 27 Aug 2026 08:40:09 EDT news707038741 Today, anyone with a large enough artificial intelligence model can generate millions of new material designs in minutes. Unfortunately, that hasn't led to a huge leap in the number of new materials being used to improve the performance of products like computer chips and rockets. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-ai-unstable-material-chip-cooling.html Engineering Wed, 26 Aug 2026 12:40:10 EDT news706964457 "Swarms" of cyborg cockroaches with cameras and miniature medical injectors could deliver supervised emergency care to people trapped in collapsed buildings, caves or other places too dangerous for rescuers to reach. The "Paraborgs" developed by University of Queensland biorobotics researchers, working with biomedical engineers at the University of New South Wales (UNSW), move cyborg insects of the future beyond searching for survivors to actively assisting them. The research is published in the journal Advanced Science. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-giant-cyborg-cockroaches-people-rescuers.html Robotics Wed, 26 Aug 2026 12:20:05 EDT news706964223 Lithium metal batteries (LMBs) that use pure lithium (Li) for their negative electrodes are attracting significant attention because of their extremely high theoretical capacity. However, their practical applications are limited by low cycling stability and safety issues arising from dendrite formation, electrolyte breakdown and uneven solid-electrolyte interface formation. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-tri-layer-electrolyte-safety-lifespan.html Engineering Wed, 26 Aug 2026 11:20:08 EDT news706960742 Shine a light, and the real can be distinguished from the fake. KAIST researchers have developed a security technology that uses unique artificial fingerprints created by the random assembly of nanoparticles. Although extremely difficult to replicate, these fingerprints can be conveniently authenticated using only a smartphone flashlight and a laser pointer, opening up potential applications in anti-counterfeiting and electronic device authentication. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-distinguish-real-fake-hard-replicate.html Engineering Wed, 26 Aug 2026 10:20:08 EDT news706957741 A new, patent-pending underwater robot developed at Purdue University's College of Engineering could improve ocean research, underwater infrastructure inspection and search-and-rescue efforts by adapting to mission needs in real time, acting as a drifter, a glider or a thruster-driven vehicle when necessary. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-underwater-robot-ocean-missions-reliable.html Robotics Wed, 26 Aug 2026 09:40:01 EDT news706955401 Propeller-powered underwater vehicles have long helped scientists explore and monitor aquatic environments. But they're limited by their own mechanics: Spinning blades can snag on vegetation, stir up sediment and startle the wildlife they're often sent to study, making them poorly suited to shallow creeks, dense weeds or close encounters with fish. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-scafi-robot-fish-machine-feet.html Robotics Wed, 26 Aug 2026 09:00:03 EDT news706952581 Ground settlement, the downward movement of the ground surface or soil, is caused by changes in underlying soil or rock. With continuing development of underground spaces in urban areas, the frequency of ground surface settlement has increased, raising considerable concerns about infrastructure stability and public safety. It can particularly threaten the safety of critical infrastructure like subway systems. Since ground settlement is difficult to predict in advance, continuous monitoring over a wide area is essential. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-framework-ground-settlement-wide-urban.html Engineering Tue, 25 Aug 2026 16:40:03 EDT news706894742 Researchers at Princeton Engineering have created a semiconductor with unique properties: It is just a few molecules thick and can repeatedly change its properties in response to light. This is a step toward building more energy-efficient sensors, optoelectronic devices and computing technologies. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-erasable-semiconductor.html Engineering Tue, 25 Aug 2026 16:20:07 EDT news706893121 The U.S. is ready to build more nuclear reactors, but a dwindling network of research reactors capable of testing new nuclear fuels for commercial use presents a major bottleneck. With a long record of success in innovation and fuel experimentation, the Department of Energy's (DOE) High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is one of the few research reactors equipped to clear the backlog and support accelerated fuel development and qualification. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-high-flux-reactor-nuclear-fuels.html Engineering Tue, 25 Aug 2026 15:40:03 EDT news706890661 Cable tray systems are essential for supporting electrical and communication cables in buildings, but their failure during earthquakes can disrupt critical services and pose serious safety risks. Researchers have now validated Japan's seismic design guidelines through full-scale shaking table tests. While seismic supports proved sufficiently strong, the cable trays themselves were more vulnerable. The team also developed a simple steel-wire reinforcement method that significantly improves seismic performance in both new and existing buildings. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-simple-steel-wire-earthquake-resistance.html Engineering Tue, 25 Aug 2026 15:00:01 EDT news706888201 Researchers at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) and the University of Bordeaux in France have demonstrated a new way to send information through the atmosphere without correcting for the distortions that normally disrupt optical communication. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-encoded-survive-real-world-atmospheric.html Engineering Tue, 25 Aug 2026 12:20:44 EDT news706879193 Merchant ships, coastal infrastructure and maritime facilities are often built with iron and steel, which can corrode over time despite their strength, eventually to the point of failure. With lives and goods on the line, monitoring is essential, but visual inspections can be time-consuming and inexact. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-cheaper-easier-metal-corrosion.html Engineering Tue, 25 Aug 2026 09:00:03 EDT news706867082 Wind farms have received criticism in recent years for their potential to harm wildlife, a notable issue in western North America, where some farms are located near populations of protected bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) and golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos). https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-turbine-tactics-biologists-successfully-golden.html Engineering Tue, 25 Aug 2026 07:20:01 EDT news706855862 Cement is one of the most consumed materials globally, second only to water. However, the world's enormous appetite for cement also has an environmental cost: Its production generates more than a billion metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually, nearly 8% of total global emissions. Now, researchers at Stanford University are developing an electrically powered plasma-heating method to produce cement without burning fossil fuels. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-electrified-plasma-carbon-route-cement.html Engineering Tue, 25 Aug 2026 05:00:10 EDT news706777049 A passenger jet soars across the sky at 640 mph (1,030 kilometers per hour), its wings pummeled with wind and boundary-layer turbulence, challenging the plane's operation and efficiency. Advancing research from Mahmoud I. Hussein aims to prevent that turbulence with engineered microscopic vibrations from synthetic subsurface materials that can dramatically improve fuel efficiency. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-tailored-surface-vibrations-aerodynamic-passenger.html Engineering Mon, 24 Aug 2026 17:40:04 EDT news706811881 A technology that boosts condensation heat transfer performance by up to 5.5 times that of conventional copper surfaces has been developed by helping water droplets form more readily and detach more quickly. It is expected to improve the energy efficiency of power plants and desalination facilities and enhance the cooling performance of electronic devices. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-copper-tubes-gain-condensation-boost.html Engineering Mon, 24 Aug 2026 17:00:05 EDT news706806842 Concrete slowly absorbs small amounts of carbon dioxide from the air over its lifetime, a natural process sometimes proposed as a solution to the cement industry's heavy carbon footprint. But a new UCLA-led study finds that this passive absorption process is far too slow and too small in scale to meaningfully offset the emissions released when cement is made. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-concrete-natural-absorption-offset-emissions.html Engineering Mon, 24 Aug 2026 16:40:04 EDT news706805348 Persistent heat waves and below-average rainfall in spring and summer 2026 are causing drought conditions, falling groundwater levels and low river levels, including in the Rhine in Germany and elsewhere across Europe. At the same time, producing important raw materials such as green hydrogen and methanol requires considerable quantities of water. If renewable fuels are increasingly produced in regions with abundant sun and wind, the question arises as to where this water can come from. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-green-methanol-thin-air-captured.html Engineering Mon, 24 Aug 2026 12:20:05 EDT news706791602 For people who are blind or have low vision, moving around independently is a daily challenge. Harvard researchers have developed a new tool that could help people navigate more quickly and safely with nothing more than a device they likely already have—a smartphone. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-smartphone-app-vision-users-obstacles.html Consumer & Gadgets Mon, 24 Aug 2026 11:00:03 EDT news706535108 Despite significant advances in technology, knowing the atomic arrangement of metals in their microstructure—which defines their strength, deformability and other properties—is still tricky. In a new study, Yale researchers show that a mold about half the size of a fingernail could solve that problem and lead to the development of stronger, higher-performing materials for airplanes and other uses. Their results are published in Nature Communications. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-metals-small-square-billions-holes.html Engineering Mon, 24 Aug 2026 10:20:05 EDT news706784866 A new purple cooling fabric developed by Chinese and Australian researchers could help people stay cooler during scorching summer days without having to resort to wearing white. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-purple-fabric-sunlight-cooling-simulated.html Engineering Mon, 24 Aug 2026 10:00:07 EDT news706783202 When we watch a metal part being built by laser-based metal additive manufacturing (AM), we're only seeing part of the story. In one kind of metal AM process, a high-powered laser sweeps across a bed of metal powder, creating a tiny pool of molten material—often a few human hairs wide. In a fraction of a second, the metal powder beneath the moving laser spot heats up, melts, flows and solidifies into continuous metal. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-beneath-surface-metal-additive.html Engineering Fri, 21 Aug 2026 16:20:05 EDT news706528867