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Researchers are using lasers to manufacture more efficient industrial tools. Image courtesy of DIPLAT
industry
11 January 2016

Ultra-short pulse lasers increase precision of diamond sculpting

Engineers are using laser pulses that last 10 trillionths of a second and self-learning cooling systems to craft new diamond tools that are more durable and efficient than ever before.

Researchers believe a calendar sky disc from Bronze Age Germany has tin that came from Cornwall, UK. Image credit: ‘Nebra Scheibe’ by Dbachmann is licensed under Creative Commons BY 3.0
industry | social sciences
07 January 2016

Sophisticated scans unlock Bronze Age mystery

There’s a 5 000-year-old mystery to the Bronze Age – where did people then get the tin needed to forge and smelt the dark yellow metal that gives the period its name?

Researchers are developing an exoskeleton prototype that makes it easier to carry heavy loads. Image courtesy of Robo-Mate
health | industry
30 November 2015

March of the exoskeletons

Body-enhancing robotic exoskeletons will soon be stepping out of movies such as Alien, Avatar and Edge of Tomorrow and into homes, clinics and workplaces across Europe. 

Forcefields emit frequencies that are too high for us to hear but powerful enough for us to feel. Image courtesy of Ultrahaptics
industry | frontier research
01 October 2015

Say goodbye to knobs and buttons

If you’ve ever stood close to a bass speaker in a nightclub, you know what it’s like to feel sound.

Graphene’s applications could range from bendy phones to night-vision cameras. Photo courtesy of Dr Amaia Zurutuza
industry | interview | women in science
14 September 2015

Graphene market could be attractive once applications are ready – Dr Amaia Zurutuza

Graphene production could become a very attractive market for small- and medium-sized enterprises, according to Dr Amaia Zurutuza, scientific director of the graphene production company Graphenea, but it might take a while. 

A porous graphene structure over a permeable substrate could be ideal sieves for water and gas filtration. Figure courtesy of Dr Wang Bo
industry
07 September 2015

Atom-level filtration - thanks to graphene membranes

Pure graphene is impenetrable to even the smallest atoms but with a few adjustments it is giving rise to a new generation of permeable membranes, with possible applications from water filtration to reducing power station emissions.

Before scaling up production to the first fully fledged graphene factories, researchers first need to come up with a graphene grading system. Image courtesy of Graphena
industry
01 September 2015

From bulk supply to single atom-thick, grading is graphene's next big challenge

Criteria such as the number of layers and the level of conductivity will help purchasers to know what they are buying, according to researchers who are investigating how to scale up production.

Industrial chemicals could be replaced by biomolecules made by algae plantations. Image: Shutterstock/abcphotosystem
industry
17 June 2015

Algae, fungi and bacteria set to give the beauty sector a facelift

Antioxidant-making bacteria and ultraviolet-resistant algae – natural products are being harnessed to create a new breed of health-giving ‘cosmeceuticals’.

Some of the extreme conditions endured by microbes are total darkness, acute salinity, and high pressures. Image: Shutterstock/Paul Cowell
industry
11 June 2015

Heat, salt, pressure, acidity - how 'extremophile' bacteria are yielding exotic enzymes

Bacteria that survive in the world’s harshest conditions produce enzymes that could be perfect for use in industrial processes, thanks to their ability to withstand high temperatures, high pressure and high salt environments.

Improved mining techniques can lead to the extraction of previously untapped deposits, according to Dr Sievers. Image: Shutterstock/Adam Ziaja
industry
25 March 2015

Politics not geology threaten Europe’s raw material supply – Dr Henrike Sievers

Political challenges rather than geological availability are what threatens the EU’s supply of raw materials, according to Dr Henrike Sievers from the German Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources, who is working on a project to map all of Europe’s own mineral resources.

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