Sometimes big things start small, and that’s certainly true of filament manufacturer Fiberthree. This Darmstadt-based company has developed a process that recycles carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic and significantly minimizes its carbon footprint. At the same time, the recycled material involves no additional costs and offers almost the same mechanical properties. While recycled material still accounts for less than 10 percent its total sales, Klaus Philipp, co-founder and managing director of Fiberthree, wants to position his company more strongly in this field.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1742801418406-Abfall_content.webp.1280.webp" style="width:100%px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" />New filaments are created from support structures, rejects or misprints. Image: Fiberthree.An important driver of this development was the mechanical engineering company Andritz Kaiser, which has been sourcing its filament from Fiberthree for many years. “We generate a lot of waste, particularly when developing new components – be it in the form of support structures, rejects, or misprints,” says Paolo Matassoni, head of development at Andritz Kaiser. “Material is a precious raw material and it's far too good to simply throw away.” Matassoni and his team collect the waste from the 120 kilograms of carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic that is printed at Andritz Kaiser each year and send it back to Darmstadt, along with their empty filament spools. As Andritz Kaiser also has the components for its series machines 3D-printed at Fiberthree, further residual materials from Fiberthree’s PA-CF Pro plastic are collected here, as well.<table><tbody><tr><td><h3>Stay Informed on the Latest FormNext 2025 Updates! Sign up to the FormNext newsletter to get notified as soon as tickets are available.</h3><a href="https://info.mesago.de/-lp/5HKPB14784/p4jkP173" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" class="button-main-action">Sign up here</a></td></tr></tbody></table><h2>Recycling process presents challenges</h2>Klaus Philipp is particularly motivated by the desire to ensure that the remnants of PA-CF Pro do not end up as waste. “In this day and age, we can no longer afford to simply throw away a high-performance material. We have to realize that plastics have value.” This recycling approach is also important because “we have young employees who are very committed to the issue of sustainability,” as Philipp explains.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1742801452704-Fiberthree-02.webp.768.webp" style="width:100%px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" />According to Fiberthree, the recycled material achieves around 90 percent of the performance of the original filament. Images: Fiberthree Fiberthree, which employs four people and sells around three tons of plastic per year, now collects 250 kilograms of PA-CF Pro per year for recycling. In the first step, the material is shredded by a partner in the region. What sounds trivial is a challenge with a material like carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic: “It puts a lot of strain on the machine and can wear it out,” Philipp points out. Next, the shredded material is processed into granulate and then into filament. The intermediate step to granulate takes place “for safety reasons,” Philipp continues. “Otherwise, any contamination could damage the filament extruder.” This makes clean separation even more important.<h2>Technical properties almost like the original</h2>“Technically, the recycled material is almost as good as before; we achieve around 90 percent of the performance of the original filament,” Philipp reports. For Matassoni, the material’s slightly diminished strength is not a problem: “We don't use the recycled material for high-strength applications, but for support structures, for example, or for components such as oil pipes that are not exposed to high tensile or compressive forces.” Further tests are currently underway at Andritz Kaiser to determine the exact technical properties of the material. The results should be available by the end of 2024.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1742801504348-druckservice.webp.1280.webp" style="width:100%px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" />Filament production and tests on the company's own printers are carried out in-house in Darmstadt. Images: Fiberthree<h2 id="isPasted">Up to 90 percent less CO2</h2>PA-CF Pro is a polyamide 6 with a carbon fiber content of 15 percent. Philipp has calculated that producing one kilogram of this material generates 10 to 12 kg of CO2 emissions. This is based on the CO2 footprints of polyamide (around 5 kg of CO2 / kg of material) and carbon fiber (30 kg of CO2 / kg of material) and that of compounding and filament production.Philipp anticipates that Fiberthree’s recycling process will lead to significant reductions in CO2. For large tonnages, the rates achieved can reach 90 percent, and 60–80 percent can still be achieved with smaller quantities. One variable here is the use of electricity – that is, whether you include green electricity or the electricity mix in Germany. On average, Philipp has calculated three kilograms of CO2 emissions for each kilogram of recycled material.Recycling has not yet saved any money, but there are no additional costs, either. The price of the recycled material is the same as that of new filament. “And that's already a strong argument,” asserts a happy Paolo Matassoni. “You reduce CO2 at practically zero cost.” This means that recycling will also be of interest to companies and corporations that are committed to sustainability and are pursuing set goals in this area. “The great thing about this application is that it’s very honest. Sustainability is not glossed over here; it is tangible,” Matassoni points out.<table><tbody><tr><td><h3>Stay Informed on the Latest FormNext 2025 Updates! Sign up to the FormNext newsletter to get notified as soon as tickets are available.</h3><a href="https://info.mesago.de/-lp/5HKPB14784/p4jkP173" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" class="button-main-action">Sign up here</a></td></tr></tbody></table>

Sometimes big things start small, and that’s certainly true of filament manufacturer Fiberthree. This Darmstadt-based company has developed a process that recycles carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic and significantly minimizes its carbon footprint.

Reducing CO2 at zero cost

In addition to lowering the carbon intensity of the cement and concrete industry, the process could enable new uses for construction and demolition waste, of which concrete is a significant component. In 2018 in the United States, the total amount of <a href="https://www.epa.gov/facts-and-figures-about-materials-waste-and-recycling/construction-and-demolition-debris-material">construction and demolition waste</a> was more than twice that of household waste. “Construction waste typically ends up either in a landfill, or, if it’s recycled, will be used in low-grade applications such as in pavements or in soils,” said research leader <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Sergio-Angulo-7">Sérgio Angulo</a>, a professor of Civil and Urban Construction Engineering at the University of São Paulo. “It’s exciting to show that we can, in fact, recycle this recovered cement waste into a high-quality application.”In their <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acssuschemeng.4c06567">paper</a>, published in ACS Sustainable Chemistry &amp; Engineering, the researchers demonstrated that mixtures containing up to 80% of this recycled cement were just as strong as conventional Portland cement by itself while generating a fraction of the carbon emissions. Portland cement is the most common binder used to create concrete, but its high carbon intensity is the main reason the cement and concrete industry is responsible for around 8% of global emissions.If fully realized and deployed in coordination with other emerging technologies that replace cement, the researchers estimated that emissions from the cement industry could be cut by up to 61%. The estimated reductions blow past the 9% emissions cuts that the Global Cement and Concrete Association <a href="https://gccassociation.org/concretefuture/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/GCCA-Concrete-Future-Roadmap-Document-AW-2022.pdf">projected</a> to be possible with so-called clinker replacement approaches.“The leap forward here is that you can now get short- and long-term properties that are essentially the same as Portland cement by itself with a low-carbon alternative overwhelmingly composed of recycled materials,” said co-author <a href="https://engineering.princeton.edu/faculty/claire-white">Claire White</a>, a professor of <a href="https://cee.princeton.edu/">civil and environmental engineering</a> and the <a href="https://acee.princeton.edu/">Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment</a>.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1742519589778-recycled_cement-scaled-2-2048x880.jpg" style="width:100%px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" />A comparison of recycled cement by itself (left), ordinary Portland cement (middle), and the researchers’ optimized blend of recycled cement and finely ground Portland cement (right), before the addition of water. The optimized cement blend demonstrates similar water requirements, strength gain, and workability to ordinary Portland cement while generating a fraction of the carbon emissions. (Photo courtesy of first author Mateus Zanovello, a Ph.D. student working with Angulo at the University of São Paulo).<h2 id="isPasted">Enabling circular cements</h2>At the core of the recycling approach is heat.After pulverizing or crushing concrete into a fine powder ­— the researchers estimated that of the five gigatons of concrete waste produced annually, around one gigaton of this powder could be recovered by the industry — the team heated it to 500 °C. This temperature was high enough to dehydrate the cement powder and restore its properties as a binder but low enough to prevent the decomposition of carbonate components in the material, which would lead to additional carbon dioxide emissions.While this ‘thermoactivated’ cement could be used on its own to make concrete, the researchers found that its high surface area and water demand during the mixing process led to a final material with high porosity and diminished strength. But by combining the recycled cement with small amounts of finely ground Portland cement or limestone, the resulting cement binder demonstrated strength gains and workability on par with industry standards.The strength gain occurs because the finely ground Portland cement or limestone fills the pores in the recycled cement with a material other than water, reducing the overall water demand and even forming new products after the mixing process, called hydration products, that increase the material’s strength.“Previously, if you only used thermoactivated recycled cement, it didn’t perform well enough to be an acceptable replacement,” White said. “But by lowering the surface area and optimizing the packing of particles in the material’s microstructure, we get something that behaves quite comparably to Portland cement.”<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1742519613689-recycled_cement_2-scaled-2-2048x638.jpg" style="width:100%px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" />A comparison of recycled cement by itself (left), ordinary Portland cement (middle), and the researchers’ optimized blend of recycled cement and finely ground Portland cement (right), after the addition of water. (Photo courtesy of Mateus Zanovello).Since the process repurposes construction waste, the researchers said the process could move the world toward a more circular carbon economy while generating fewer carbon emissions than other emerging low-carbon cement alternatives. In the paper, for instance, the team estimates their cement emits between 198 to 320 kilograms of carbon dioxide per metric ton, up to 40% fewer emissions than a commercially available low-carbon alternative known as limestone calcined clay cement (LC3).“With this technology, you could imagine cities becoming much more circular than today,” Angulo said. “Materials from demolished infrastructure can be directly used in new building projects.”Despite such benefits, Angulo and White noted several technological, economic, and policy hurdles to the technology’s wide-scale deployment.For instance, they explained that scaling the recycled cement would require a better approach for sorting and processing demolition waste, one that considers circularity rather than the landfill. The technology would also be most practical in mature cities with a reliable supply of aging building stock instead of rapidly developing areas with primarily new buildings.Lastly, building codes developed when Portland cement was the dominant binder for concrete production would need to be updated, moving away from ‘recipe-based’ standards that specify certain cement compositions to ones that instead focus on performance-based requirements. Angulo said that several countries in Europe and Latin America have already begun to adopt such performance-based standards, which could permit the use of not just the recycled cements he studies but also a wide array of low-carbon alternatives.“In Brazil, we are already beginning to implement performance-based standards for non-structural building envelopes and floors,” said Angulo. “Updating construction codes is important for allowing innovation in the building sector.”<h2>Laying the foundations for an ongoing collaboration</h2>The work on recycled cements results from a collaboration formed when Angulo came to Princeton as a visiting researcher in White’s group for a year, beginning in 2023.Both researchers said that the collaboration — which has been ongoing even after Angulo’s return to Brazil — unlocked new research capabilities and perspectives that have improved their groups’ work.For Angulo, tapping into White’s expertise in characterization techniques such as total X-ray scattering has helped him to better understand the driving mechanisms behind the materials he studies. For example, White and Angulo performed experiments during Angulo’s visit that will help them better understand how the atomic structure of the material changes as it undergoes thermal activation. This will help them answer questions about the durability of the recycled cement over multiple cycles of use and whether it is truly a ‘circular’ material.For White, the collaboration allowed her to work on a class of cements that she had previously never studied, despite her extensive background in low-carbon concrete. Even beyond the recycled cement project, White said that Angulo’s visit provided her group with a totally new perspective on many of their projects, even those that appear far-removed from the world of recycled cements.“This collaboration has had benefits in both directions,” White said. “Sergio’s brought his domain knowledge, my group has brought our expertise in advanced characterization techniques, and together, we’ve been able to tackle some of the biggest challenges about this material.”<hr />The paper, “<a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acssuschemeng.4c06567">Engineered Blended Thermoactivated Recycled Cement: A Study on Reactivity, Water Demand, Strength-Porosity, and CO2 Emissions</a>,” was published December 27, 2024 in ACS Sustainable Chemistry &amp; Engineering. In addition to Angulo and White, co-authors include Mateus Zanovello and Vanderley M. John of the University of São Paulo. The work is part of the National Institute on Advanced Eco-Efficient Cement-Based Technologies project, which is funded by Brazil’s National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq), the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP), and the University of São Paulo. The work was also supported by the <a href="https://cmi.princeton.edu/">Carbon Mitigation Initiative</a> at Princeton University, which is sponsored by bp and administered by the High Meadows Environmental Institute.

A construction worker levels a concrete pavement. (stock.adobe.com)

Giving a second life to construction materials after demolition, engineers at the University of São Paulo and Princeton have developed an approach for recycling cement waste into a sustainable, low-carbon alternative that is comparable in performance to the industry standard.

Recycled cements drive down emissions without slacking on strength

In this episode, we discuss how Harvard researchers cracked the code of 3D printing “shapeshifting” materials and why their efforts lay the groundwork for other innovations in the material science field.

Podcast: 3D Printing Robot Muscles

<html><head></head><body>MXenes are a lightweight two-dimensional, or 2D, material capable of protecting everything from spacecrafts, mechanical components, and maybe even people, from harmful radiation. Because traditional synthesis requires multi-step processes that can take up to 40 hours, MXene is difficult to produce.By introducing a rapid single-step microwave synthesis method, Reeja Jayan has reduced MXene production time to ninety minutes and cut energy consumption by 75%.<iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/QHTSzywEa0Y?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0&amp;enablejsapi=1&amp;origin=https://www.wevolver.com" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable" data-lf-form-tracking-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" data-lf-yt-playback-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" data-lf-vimeo-playback-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" data-gtm-yt-inspected-28="true" id="204480504" title="Reeja Jayan: Increasing Energy Efficiency of Ceramics Production">&nbsp;</iframe>“Our work has implications for the global production of chemicals because almost a third of green-house gas emissions come from chemical manufacturing and production,” said Jayan, a professor of mechanical engineering at Carnegie Mellon University.<blockquote>Our work has implications for the global production of chemicals because almost a third of green-house gas emissions come from chemical manufacturing and production.<cite>Reeja Jayan, Professor, Mechanical Engineering</cite></blockquote>The research, published in <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S136980012400862X" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Materials Science in Semiconductor ProcessingOpens in new window</a>, also demonstrates a unique ability to customize MXene’s composition to change the type of radiation that the material can protect against. To date, the team has tested their material across the X-band–radio frequencies ranging from 8.0-12.0 GHZ–but to protect against electronic materials in outer space, more testing against cosmic radiation is needed.“We assumed that, because we sped up the process, we would lose some of the shielding performance in return,” said Jayan. “We were pleasantly surprised that, although there are subtle structural differences, we didn’t see any shielding efficiency tradeoff at the lab scale.”<img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNzQxODQ3Mzk4MzUwLTAzMTAtZW0tc3VzdGFpbmFibGUtc3ludGhlc2lzICgxKS5wbmciLCJlZGl0cyI6eyJyZXNpemUiOnsid2lkdGgiOjk1MCwiZml0IjoiY292ZXIifX19" style="width: 100%px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Moving forward, Jayan will test her synthesis process at a larger scale. In partnership with an aerospace materials manufacturer, her team will integrate MXene into test panels for radiation testing.“We’ve developed a low carbon process that significantly saves energy. If it can be scaled up now, more than ever before, we stand to create a critically needed and substantial environmental impact.”</body></html>

Microwave synthesis produces MXene 25x faster than traditional methods while using 75% less energy, according to new research from the Department of Mechanical Engineering.

What do popcorn and sustainable synthesis have in common?

<html><head></head><body>3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing, is a relatively new but rapidly maturing production method that is transforming how products are developed and manufactured across industries like healthcare, aerospace, energy, and electronics. The technology, which dates back to the 1980s, is based on the principle that components are constructed additively rather than subtractively, which <a href="https://xtpl.com/understanding-the-additive-manufacturing-process-from-design-to-finished-product/">results in benefits</a> like greater design freedom and less material waste.&nbsp;Historically, 3D printing has primarily been used as a prototyping technology, allowing for the rapid iteration of physical prototypes from a 3D CAD model without the need for any costly tooling. Today, however, the technology is increasingly being used for end-use applications in addition to prototyping, as the quality of the manufacturing processes improves and material options continue to grow.&nbsp;When talking about 3D printing materials, you’d be forgiven for first thinking of spools of thermoplastic filament or vats of photopolymer resin. While these are among the more common types of 3D printing consumables, there are actually a wide range of additive manufacturing processes that require different types of materials, from thermoplastic filaments, to photopolymer resins, to polymer, ceramic, and metal powders, to nanomaterials.&nbsp;<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1741248119212-rob-wingate-nHRfTeqAxjs-unsplash.jpg" style="width: 100%px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Photo by Rob Wingate on Unsplash<h2>What Are Nanomaterials?&nbsp;</h2>Today, nanomaterials are at the frontier of additive manufacturing technology as they allow for the production of parts with superior properties compared to neat materials. In the simplest terms, nanomaterials are made up of a matrix material, such as a polymer, which is embedded with nanoparticles (measuring between 1 and 100 nanometres in diameter). The nanoparticles used in nanomaterials or nanocomposites can vary and the type of nanoparticle plays a central role in determining the properties and functions of the material in question.&nbsp;For example, there are different categories of nanomaterials including: carbon-based nanomaterials that are filled with carbon nanotubes or graphene and are notable for their conductive properties; metallic nanomaterials with silver or gold nanoparticles; semiconductor nanomaterials like quantum dots; and ceramic nanocomposites with insulating and strengthening properties. Typically, these nanoparticles are contained within a matrix material of polymer, metal, or ceramic, which can be used in various 3D printing technologies.<h2>3D Printing Nanomaterials: Challenges and Outlook</h2>Unlike more conventional nanomaterial production methods, like chemical vapour deposition (CVD), 3D printing offers a number of benefits, including more complex geometries, greater customization, and more control over material distribution. There are several different additive manufacturing processes that can use nanomaterials, including directed energy deposition (DED), fused filament fabrication (FFF), powder bed fusion (PBF), photopolymerization processes like stereolithography (SLA) and digital light processing (DLP), and material jetting.&nbsp;Among the main challenges of bringing nanomaterial 3D printing more into the mainstream is achieving uniform dispersions of nanoparticles in the matrix material. This is a challenge across different additive manufacturing processes, including extrusion, resin, and material jetting technologies, since nanoparticles can agglomerate in the matrix, which can result in inconsistent results and uneven material properties. If you can imagine a 3D printed wound dressing where the antimicrobial properties are concentrated in just one area, you can understand the severity of this challenge. Other challenges are associated with how the addition of nanoparticles can alter the printability of materials, whether the viscosity of an ink, the curing properties of a resin, or the abrasiveness of a filament. On top of that, the processing conditions, such as temperature and speed, need to be precisely controlled in the 3D printing process to prevent the degradation of nanomaterial properties.&nbsp;Presently, the use of nanomaterials or nanocomposites in 3D printing technologies is still largely limited to the research realm. However, the potential applications for the materials in the 3D printing process are highly promising. For example, integrating silver nanoparticles into a 3D printed structure could add antimicrobial properties useful for applications like medical implants and wound dressing.[1] Graphene nanoparticles and carbon nanotubes, for their part, are being investigated for their ability to add conductive properties to parts made using FFF 3D printing.[2] And at a university in Oklahoma, researchers are investigating the use of flame-retardant nanoparticles in a biopolymer matrix to make certain plastics more fire resistant.[3]&nbsp;Despite the fact that 3D printing nanomaterials is still a nascent field, there are commercialized products that integrate nanoparticles. SLA specialist Formlabs, for example, sells a nano- ceramic filled Class II biocompatible material for the dental industry. The photopolymer resin offers superior strength and wear resistance thanks to its ceramic nanoparticles.[4]&nbsp;<a href="https://xtpl.com/nanomaterials-in-3d-electronics-printing-xtpl/">Nanomaterial additive manufacturing</a> technology is also expanding into areas like microelectronics, facilitating the fabrication of complex, miniaturized components with enhanced electrical conductivity and mechanical properties using a combination of conductive and dielectric nanomaterials. Companies like XTPL are leading on this front, bringing to market a range of conductive inks and pastes as well as a precision dispensing process for creating miniaturized electrical circuits.&nbsp;<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1741248190075-andrea-g-Yc9ROfBvWEw-unsplash.jpg" style="width: 832px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Photo by Andrea G on Unsplash<h2>The Future of 3D Printing is Nanomaterials</h2>These applications are just the tip of the iceberg: as it advances, nanomaterial additive manufacturing can and will transform 3D printing applications in industries like healthcare, aerospace, and electronics through the development of stronger, more lightweight components as well as products with unique characteristics, like antibacterial properties, conductivity, and more.&nbsp;<hr><h3>Resources&nbsp;</h3>[1] Astaneh ME, Fereydouni N. Silver Nanoparticles in 3D Printing: A New Frontier in Wound&nbsp; Healing. ACS omega. 2024 Sep 16;9(40):41107-29. [2] Bajpai A, Jain PK. Investigation on 3D printing of graphene and multi-walled carbon&nbsp; nanotube mixed flexible electrically conductive parts using fused filament fabrication. Journal of&nbsp; Materials Engineering and Performance. 2023 Jul;32(14):6319-28. [3] OSU research focuses on improving fire safety in 3D-printed materials [Internet]. Oklahoma&nbsp; State University, January 30, 2025.&nbsp;https://news.okstate.edu/articles/engineering-architecture- technology/2025/ osu_research_focuses_on_improving_fire_safety_in_3d_printed_materials.html#h_6010598121 71738267359042 [4] Formlabs’ Premium Teeth Resin Receives FDA 510(k) Clearance for Temporary Crowns and Bridges [Internet]. Formlabs, August 6, 2024.&nbsp; https://dental.formlabs.com/company/press/premium-teeth-resin-receives-fda-clearance- temporary-crowns-and-bridges/</body></html>

3D printing materials filled with precise quantities of nanoparticles are making a profound impact on industries like electronics, healthcare, and aerospace

New Horizons in Additive Manufacturing Technology: Utilizing Nanomaterials in 3D Printing

In this episode, we chat about the efforts of researchers at ETH Zurich to dehumidify indoor spaces using waste material in an effort to reduce energy consumption & help Switzerland hit their net zero emissions goal by 2050!

Podcast: Dehumidifying Walls Help Switzerland Hit Net Zero By 2050

<h2 id="isPasted">Beyond the Microscope: How Nanopastes and Nanoinks Are Shaping Tomorrow’s Electronics</h2>Open up an old radio or TV – if you can find one. You’ll spot large components, heavy wires, and thick, heavy metal traces connecting them all. Early electronics relied heavily on materials like copper and silicon, but as devices grew smaller and more complex, the need for advanced materials became apparent. Enter nanoinks and nanopastes, two cutting-edge materials that are driving innovation in the electronics industry.These nanoparticle-based materials are reshaping how circuits are designed and produced. The transition from traditional materials to nanoparticles is critical because it allows for more precise manufacturing, better conductivity, and enhanced performance in smaller, more efficient devices. As industries move towards higher-density electronics, materials like nanoinks and nanopastes are becoming essential for developing the next generation of electronics.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1741153651287-Firefly-silver-nanoparticles-chemistry-nanoink-nanopaste-make-it-look-more-like-SEM-picture-48403-2048x1170.jpg.webp" style="width: 100%px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"><h2 id="isPasted">Understanding Nanoinks and Nanopastes</h2><a href="https://xtpl.com/product/high-performance-materials/">Nanoinks and nanopastes</a> are composed of nanoparticles suspended in a solution or paste. These materials can be printed or applied to surfaces with extreme precision, making them ideal for electronic manufacturing. The primary difference between the two is their viscosity and application method. Nanoinks are more fluid and typically used for high-resolution nano ink printing on delicate substrates, while nanopastes are thicker and used for filling gaps or creating thicker conductive layers.One of the key components of both materials is silver. Silver nano ink is widely used due to its excellent conductivity and stability. In the nano silver conductive ink market, silver nano ink has emerged as a leading solution for improving the performance of microelectronics. The ability of silver-based nano-materials to provide superior electrical properties at such small scales has revolutionized how circuits are designed and manufactured.<h3>Advancements with Silver Nanoinks and Nanopastes</h3>Silver nanoinks&nbsp;and nanopastes&nbsp;have been at the forefront of innovation due to their high bulk silver conductivity. Their exceptional conductive properties make them ideal for a range of applications, from flexible circuits to photovoltaic devices. With their superior aspect ratios and ability to print on various substrates, silver nanoink is driving advances in everything from <a href="https://xtpl.com/consumer-electronics/">consumer electronics</a> to<a href="https://xtpl.com/healthtech/">&nbsp;medical devices</a>.The advantages of silver-based <a href="https://xtpl.com/nanomaterials-in-3d-electronics-printing-xtpl/">nanomaterials&nbsp;</a>extend beyond conductivity. For instance, these materials are highly stable, making them suitable for long-lasting devices. They also offer flexibility, which is crucial for wearable electronics that must bend and move without losing functionality. The high resolution provided by&nbsp;nanoink printing allows manufacturers to create complex circuits with fine details, enabling more sophisticated electronic designs. The growth of the nano silver conductive ink market is a testament to the increasing demand for these materials. As companies seek to improve the electrical performance of their devices while reducing size and weight, silver nano ink has become a go-to solution.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1741153676513-offshelf0.jpg.webp" style="width: 100%px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"><h2 id="isPasted">Exploring Gold-Based Alternatives</h2>While silver nanoinks dominate the market, gold-based nanoinks and nanopastes offer an intriguing alternative. Gold nanoparticles, though more expensive, provide unique benefits, particularly in specialized applications. One of the key advantages of gold over silver is its biocompatibility, making gold-based nanoinks ideal for medical devices, sensors, and implants. Comparing silver nano ink to gold-based nanoinks, the choice often comes down to the specific requirements of the application. Silver offers excellent conductivity and is more affordable, while gold provides greater stability, especially in harsh environmental conditions where oxidation can be a concern. In areas like aerospace or medical electronics, where long-term durability and resistance to corrosion are critical, <a href="https://xtpl.com/material/high-performance-materials-gold-nanopaste/">gold-based nanopastes</a> may be preferred.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1741153690760-6_3pipe.jpg.webp" style="width: 100%px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Gold nanoparticles<h2 id="isPasted">Future Directions: Innovations &amp; Challenges Ahead</h2>As the demand for miniaturization and <a href="https://xtpl.com/deep-dive-ultra-high-resolution-dispensing-in-flexible-hybrid-electronics-fhe/">high-performance electronics&nbsp;</a>continues to grow, the development of nano-materials is accelerating. One emerging trend is the creation of hybrid materials that combine the best properties of both silver and gold-based nanoinks. These hybrid materials aim to offer the conductivity of silver with the stability and biocompatibility of gold, opening new possibilities for advanced electronic applications.Despite the rapid advancements, challenges remain. One of the most significant hurdles is the cost of production. While the nano silver conductive ink market is expanding, the scalability of these materials remains a challenge. The production processes for nanoinks and nanopastes are still costly, which can hinder widespread adoption. Additionally, there are environmental considerations, as the manufacturing of nanoparticle-based materials can have ecological impacts if not managed properly.Ongoing research aims to address these issues by developing more cost-effective and environmentally friendly production methods. As these technologies evolve, the potential for broader adoption in mainstream electronics manufacturing grows. Nanoinks and nanopastes are shaping the future of electronics by offering improved performance, flexibility, and precision. Silver nano ink has already proven itself as a game-changer in the nano silver conductive ink market, and the potential of gold-based alternatives adds to the excitement surrounding these materials. As research continues to push the boundaries of what is possible with nanoparticles, the future of electronics looks increasingly promising. Embracing these advanced materials will not only enhance the performance of today’s devices but also pave the way for sustainable growth in the tech industry, ensuring that tomorrow’s electronics are more efficient, durable, and innovative than ever before.

Nanoinks and nanopastes are composed of nanoparticles suspended in a solution or paste. These materials can be printed or applied to surfaces with extreme precision, making them ideal for electronic manufacturing.

How Nanopastes and Nanoinks Are Shaping Tomorrow's Electronics

The same material you drink your morning coffee from could transform the way scientists detect disease, purify water, and insulate space shuttles, thanks to an entirely new approach to ceramic manufacturing.Published in <a href="https://advanced.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/advs.202405334" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Advanced ScienceOpens in new window</a>, 3D-AJP is an aerosol jet 3D nanoprinting technique that allows for the fabrication of highly complex ceramic structures that at just 10 micrometers (a fraction of the width of human hair) are barely visible to the naked eye. These 3D structures are made up of microscale features including pillars, spirals, and lattices that allow for controlled porosity, ultimately enabling advances in ceramic applications.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1741135450193-0225-em1-3d-printing-ceramics.png" style="width: 100%px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">CAD design (left) and SEM images (right) of multi-spiral, pyramidal micro-lattice and wavy microwalls“It would be impossible to machine ceramic structures as small and as precise as these using traditional manufacturing methods,” explained <a href="https://engineering.cmu.edu/directory/bios/panat-rahul.html">Rahul Panat</a>, professor of <a href="https://www.meche.engineering.cmu.edu/index.html" rel="noopener" target="_blank">mechanical engineeringOpens in new window</a> at Carnegie Mellon University and the lead author of the study. “They would shatter.”Ceramics are believed to be the key to emerging engineering systems because of their wear resistance, thermal stability, thermal insulation, high stiffness, and biocompatibility. While existing 3D printing techniques have opened doors for ceramics fabrication, oftentimes severe shrinkage and/or defects are observed during post-printing processing due to the removal of additives from the ink that were needed to support the material during printing. With shrinkage ranging from 15-43%, it is challenging for fabricators to set printing parameters that would output the ideal part.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1741135468685-0225-em2-3d-printing-ceramics.png" style="width: 100%px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Chunshan Hu and Rahul Panat working in the lab3D-AJP does not rely on additives in the ink and therefore sees only a 2-6% shrinkage rate, so manufacturers can feel confident that the structure they want is the structure they’ll print. To ensure this, the team performed a detailed manufacturability study to identify the CAD programs needed to produce the final shape.Additionally, the team, including postdoc Chunshan Hu, demonstrated 3D-AJP’s unique ability to print two ceramic materials in one single structure which allows for advanced applications.“Using these structures, we can detect breast cancer markers, sepsis, and other biomolecules from a blood sample in just 20 seconds,” said Panat.<blockquote>Using these structures, we can detect breast cancer markers, sepsis, and other biomolecules from a blood sample in just 20 seconds.<cite>Rahul Panat, professor, Mechanical Engineering</cite></blockquote>This application, which is an extension of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZYiHrOrs86I&embeds_referring_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.meche.engineering.cmu.edu%2F&embeds_referring_origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.meche.engineering.cmu.edu&source_ve_path=Mjg2NjY" rel="noopener" target="_blank">past researchOpens in new window</a> wherein he developed a metal biosensor to detect Covid-19 in just ten seconds, is advantageous because compared to metal, ceramic sensors can be manufactured nearly five times faster.Panat also cites the benefit of this technology in water purification and thermal insulation.“In the presence of UV light and zinc oxide, chemicals can be degraded, so by creating a 3D structure with a higher surface area, we can increase the speed and the effectiveness of water purification by four times,” he said. “Additionally, our ability to control the porosity of these structures, allows us to control and tailor thermal conductivity of structures such as the insulators used in space shuttles.”

New 3D printing technique fabricates highly complex and controllable ceramic nanostructures that could be the key to emerging engineering systems.

3d printing tomorrow's ceramics for high-performance systems

<section id="isPasted">Collaboration efforts between the Texas A&amp;M University Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering and the U.S. Department of Energy Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) have led to innovative research on how petroleum coke is processed.This almost $3 million three-year research project will convert petroleum coke to graphite for energy storage. The newer process uses a lower temperature and shorter time to produce graphite from petroleum coke.&nbsp;This new catalytic graphitization technology will decrease the emissions, cost, and processing time associated with conventional synthetic graphite production.&nbsp;The research team includes groups from Associate Department Head Dr. Micah Green, Associate Professor Dr. Faruque Hasan, and the National Energy Technology Laboratory.&nbsp;The project is part of the ARPA-E VISION OPEN program that looks to transform energy in critical areas across the energy spectrum, like nuclear fusion, grid reliability and approaches to developing chemicals and fuels, according to the ARPA-E website. &nbsp;&nbsp;Petroleum coke is produced from crude oil. Petroleum coke can then be turned into graphite through a long, high-temperature process, Green said.&nbsp;Ultimately, this new study looks to develop new technologies to process petroleum coke to graphite where it converts fossil feedstocks into valuable carbon products rather than fuels.“Our grant is about changing the process by using catalysts so we can make petroleum coke into synthetic graphite that's good for applications like batteries and for reducing American reliance on foreign sources of graphite,” Green said.&nbsp;</section><blockquote>We are not only just solving one problem, in a sense this also reduces emissions.<cite>- Dr. Faruque Hasan</cite></blockquote><section>Graphite is valuable for its use in batteries. If converted from petroleum coke, this approach could lead to new sources for components in Li-ion batteries, according to the ARPA-E website.&nbsp;“We are not only just solving one problem, in a sense this also reduces emissions,” Hasan said.Typically, the process involves heating petroleum coke to 3000 °C in a days-long process where the petroleum coke is formed into a powder. It is then mixed with an iron powder and is heat-treated. &nbsp;“My group is very involved in the actual synthesis and developing the catalyst and showing how that process can be scaled up,” Green said. “We have already done some proof-of-concept experiments at the lab scale, but to transition into industry, we need to show that it can be done at a large scale.”&nbsp;Hasan's group plans on analyzing the technology for its impact in terms of reducing cost, life cycle emissions, and greenhouse gases.&nbsp;With new technologies, challenges arise to scale-up due to lack of reliable designs and estimates on their techno-economic viability at different scales, Hansan said. The goal is to bridge this gap.“My group specializes in computational modeling, simulation and optimization of emerging technologies,” Hasan said. “In particular, we will determine optimal process design and operability domains for this exciting new technology developed in Dr. Green’s lab for producing highly value-added chemical products from petroleum coke in a sustainable manner.”&nbsp;Once the scaleup demonstration is successful, an industry partner, Oxbow Carbon, will do pilot-plant runs for the preliminary assessment for large-scale processing.</section>

Research teams are developing a new technology for producing graphite for improved energy storage.

Graphite Production Gets a Makeover

The AI revolution has ushered in an era of exponential power and energy consumption. According to the <a href="https://www.energy.gov/articles/doe-releases-new-report-evaluating-increase-electricity-demand-data-centers" rel="noopener" target="_blank">US Department of EnergyOpens in new window</a>, energy consumed by AI data centers could triple by 2028. Today, up to 40% of data center power use comes from cooling high-power chips—an astounding amount equivalent to the state of California’s entire electricity consumption.To combat this, Sheng Shen, professor of mechanical engineering at Carnegie Mellon University, has developed an innovative thermal interface material (TIM) that outperforms existing state-of-the-art solutions. His design, now published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-56163-8" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Nature CommunicationsOpens in new window</a>, achieves ultra-low thermal resistance while increasing cooling efficiency via improved heat dissipation. It also proves to be highly reliable.<blockquote>While an immediate need is cooling data centers, this innovation can break through in industries that have been stuck using outdated thermal interface materials.<cite>Sheng Shen, Professor, Mechanical Engineering</cite></blockquote>“The material is like a bridge between the nano- and macroscopic worlds,” explained Zexiao Wang, Ph.D. candidate in Shen’s lab. “Because the nanoscale material can be created using macroscale approaches, we can see with our own eyes the impact of the material on the world.”Not only is Shen’s thermal interface material the best-performing on the market, it is also highly reliable. The team tested the material at extreme temperature ranges from -55 to 125 degree Celsius for more than 1,000 cycles, and the material showed no performance degradation.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1740445088809-0211-em-ai-data-center-cooling-breakthrough.png" style="width: 100%px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Novel thermal interface material designed by Sheng Shen.&nbsp;Source:&nbsp;College of Engineering“This material solves a lot of existing challenges, and is ready to be used today,” said Shen. “While an immediate need is focused on cooling data centers, the application for this innovation is extensive. It can break through in industries that have been stuck using outdated thermal interface materials. It can be used for pre-packaging, reworked when using non-adhesives, and enables thermal bonding of two substrates at room temperature.”“Oftentimes work at the nanoscale is foundational for a device that we might not see for decades,” said Qixian Wang, Ph.D. candidate. “It’s been exciting to see the real-world impact our material can have today because it is so easy to use.”“Our material will have great benefits to the field of AI computing,” said Rui Cheng, postdoc and innovation commercialization fellow of CMU and the lead author of the paper published in Nature Communications. “Beyond reducing energy consumption, we can make AI development more affordable, more renewable, and more reliable.”<iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BG4Ct4jYh3k?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;enablejsapi=1&amp;origin=https://www.wevolver.com" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable" data-lf-form-tracking-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" data-lf-yt-playback-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" data-lf-vimeo-playback-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true"></iframe>This research was supported by the National Science Foundation and ARPA-E (Advanced Research Projects - Energy). Collaborators included Tianyi Chen and Ana V. Garcia-Caraveo from the Oregon State University, and Navid Kazem and Loren Russell from Arieca, Inc.<hr>Sheng Shen and Rui Cheng are making this technology commercially available via their startup company,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.novolinc.com/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">NovoLINC, Inc.Opens in new window</a>

Novel thermal interface material cools chips better than existing state-of-the-art solutions.

Slashing AI data center cooling cost, GPU-CPU power use

A new test developed at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign can predict the performance of a new type of cementitious construction material in five minutes — a significant improvement over the current industry standard method, which takes seven or more days to complete. This development is poised to advance the use of next-generation resources called supplementary cementitious materials — or SCMs — by speeding up the quality-check process before leaving the production floor.Due to declining coal production, traditional SCMs like coal-based fly ashes are in short supply. One promising alternative is newer SCMs like calcined clays, which can partially replace ordinary Portland cement and result in durable, low-cost concrete that produces less carbon dioxide during production.&nbsp;The study, led by <a href="https://cee.illinois.edu/">civil and environmental engineering</a> professor <a href="https://cee.illinois.edu/directory/profile/nishantg">Nishant Garg</a>, uses a low-cost analysis called colorimetry and camera technology for real-time quality control of calcined clays in industrial settings. Calcined clays are SCMs that contain aluminum- and silicon-containing minerals that become chemically reactive when heated to 600 to 900 degrees Celsius.The study findings are published in the journal Cement and Concrete Research, and Garg’s team is enthusiastic to connect with other research teams and industry partners working in this area.After heat treatment, the aluminum and silicon in calcined clays become very chemically reactive, which allows them to contribute to the reactions that lead to long-term strengthening in mortar and concrete. The level of reactivity can be measured, and researchers can use this to predict the product’s final strength and quality.&nbsp;“There are testing methodologies currently in place for measuring the chemical reactivity of the aluminum and silicon in calcined clays, but they require expensive testing equipment and consume a lot of laboratory time,” said Garg, who also is affiliated with the <a href="https://sustainability.illinois.edu/">Institute for Sustainability, Energy and Environment</a>. &nbsp;“Our new test can be run on the fly by the people working in the plant for real-time quality control. Our technique introduces an analyzer that can be used on the production line every five minutes, allowing workers to collect a small sample from their conveyor belt and quickly determine if the quality is consistent.”In the lab, Garg’s team developed a way to measure calcined clay’s reactivity very rapidly. To do it, the researchers first expose the clay to a heated, aggressive alkaline solution for five minutes, which dissolves the clays, freeing the aluminum and silicon ions for measurement. “We spent quite a bit of time optimizing the alkalinity and temperature of our solution so that it can be done in minutes rather than hours or days like the conventional tests currently available,” Garg said.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1740097224252-cr_garg_2-m.jpg" style="width: 100%px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">A schematic diagram of the dissolution and analysis setup. Clays were dissolved in sodium hydroxide solutions for 1-15 minutes. The solution samples were then filtered, diluted and analyzed with standard methods using the spectrophotometer and camera-based method developed in this study. Graphic courtesy Nishant Garg and Cement and Concrete ResearchOnce the solution was ready, the researchers measured the concentration of aluminum and silicon ions dissolved in the solution and then combined those values into a single dissolution index. “And this is where our new approach becomes exciting,” Garg said. “We found that instead of sending these solutions off to a lab to be analyzed using expensive analytical equipment, we could simply add a coloring agent to the solution that reacts with the ions to produce distinct colors depending on the concentrations of aluminum and silicon. We can then quantify the color using a low-cost colorimeter, which is a device that measures how much light a solution absorbs at a specific wavelength.”The team ran many experiments to calibrate the colors corresponding to the clay solution’s aluminum and silicon concentrations. With increasing concentrations of aluminum and silicon, the solutions show stronger pink and blue colors, respectively, the study reports.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1740097243761-cr_garg_1-m.jpg" style="width: 100%px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">A schematic diagram of the camera method: (a) The solutions used for colorimetric analysis of aluminum. (b) The solutions used for colorimetric analysis of silicon. (c) The color range used camera-image analysis. (d) Camera images of standard solutions of aluminum and silicon with concentrations of 20, 100, 300, 500, and 700 ppb. Graphic courtesy Nishant Garg and Cement and Concrete Research“Both colors are in the visible light spectrum, so we can photograph the colored solutions using a low-cost, say $30, camera, and assign the corresponding RGB values from the images to previously established calibration curves to determine the precise amount of aluminum and silicon in the solution based on color,” Garg said. “We ran statistical analysis and found that using this camera image analysis method is comparable with the results obtained using a quantitative analytical device called a UV-VIS spectrophotometer. On 47 diverse clay samples, our five-minute test strongly correlates with the seven-day industry standard test, thus enhancing speed, reducing cost and still maintaining accuracy. “These results show that camera-based colorimetry can be used as an alternative to the absorbance at certain wavelengths for quantitative analysis, the study reports.“This study is exciting for our team here at Illinois and the cement and concrete industry in general because of the opportunity it will present to reduce the testing time while screening for new materials and ensure consistent quality during production at a low cost,” Garg said.Partnerships will be key to refining and implementing this technology because there are a few more hurdles to clear, Garg said.So far, the team said the method works only for calcined clays but there are many other types of supplementary cementitious materials being considered for use in future sustainable cement and concrete mixes. Newer materials called natural pozzolans, reclaimed ashes, as well as older materials like coal fly ashes and blast furnace slags could be potential targets.“We call on industrial producers to share samples and help us verify if our ultra-rapid test can be honed and extended to these systems so that we can predict the performance of any material in a few minutes,” Garg said. “We also call on original equipment manufacturers to help us automate the test into a commercial device.”<hr>The U.S. Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation partially supported this study. Garg and his coauthors have a pending patent application for this technology, filed through The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Office of Technology Management.

A University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign team developed a new test that predicts the performance of a new class of sustainable cementitious construction materials in five minutes. Pictured are Illinois researchers Yujia Min, Hossein Kabir, Nishant Garg, Chirayu Kothari and M. Farjad Iqbal. Photo by Fred Zwicky

A new test developed at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign can predict the performance of a new type of cementitious construction material in five minutes — a significant improvement over the current industry standard method, which takes seven or more days to complete.

Researchers develop a five-minute quality test for sustainable cement industry materials

In this episode, we explore how porous plastic sheets are being used to cool buildings by radiating heat into space and how this could reduce global energy consumption by 10% and CO2 emission by 7%.

Podcast: Cooling Buildings With Porous Plastic Sheets

What is the most flexible 3D printing material? Here we discuss the options, from consumer TPU and TPE filaments to industrial-grade elastomers used in SLA and SLS.

What Is the Most Flexible 3D Printing Material?

Superconducting materials are similar to the carpool lane in a congested interstate. Like commuters who ride together, electrons that pair up can bypass the regular traffic, moving through the material with zero friction.But just as with carpools, how easily electron pairs can flow depends on a number of conditions, including the density of pairs that are moving through the material. This “superfluid stiffness,” or the ease with which a current of electron pairs can flow, is a key measure of a material’s superconductivity.Physicists at MIT and Harvard University have now directly measured superfluid stiffness for the first time in “magic-angle” graphene — materials that are made from two or more atomically thin sheets of&nbsp;graphene twisted with respect to each other at just the right angle to enable a host of exceptional properties, including unconventional superconductivity.This superconductivity makes magic-angle graphene a promising building block for future quantum-computing devices, but exactly how the material superconducts is not well-understood. Knowing the material’s superfluid stiffness will help scientists identify the mechanism of superconductivity in magic-angle graphene.The team’s measurements suggest that magic-angle graphene’s superconductivity is primarily governed by quantum geometry, which refers to the conceptual “shape” of quantum states that can exist in a given material.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1739925452399-MIT-SuperFluidStiffness-02-press.jpg" style="width: 100%px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">“There’s a whole family of 2D superconductors that is waiting to be probed, and we are really just scratching the surface,” says Joel Wang. Credit: Eli Krantz, Krantz NanoArtThe results, which are <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08494-7" target="_blank">reported today in the journal Nature</a>, represent the first time scientists have directly measured superfluid stiffness in a two-dimensional material. To do so, the team developed a new experimental method which can now be used to make similar measurements of other two-dimensional superconducting materials.“There’s a whole family of 2D superconductors that is waiting to be probed, and we are really just scratching the surface,” says study co-lead author Joel Wang, a research scientist in MIT’s Research Laboratory of Electronics (RLE).The study’s co-authors from MIT’s main campus and MIT Lincoln Laboratory include co-lead author and former RLE postdoc Miuko Tanaka as well as Thao Dinh, Daniel Rodan-Legrain, Sameia Zaman, Max Hays, Bharath Kannan, Aziza Almanakly, David Kim, Bethany Niedzielski, Kyle Serniak, Mollie Schwartz, Jeffrey Grover, Terry Orlando, Simon Gustavsson, Pablo Jarillo-Herrero, and William D. Oliver, along with Kenji Watanabe and Takashi Taniguchi of the National Institute for Materials Science in Japan.<h2>Magic resonance</h2>Since its first isolation and characterization in 2004, graphene has proven to be a wonder substance of sorts. The material is effectively a single, atom-thin sheet of graphite consisting of a precise, chicken-wire lattice of carbon atoms. This simple configuration can exhibit a host of superlative qualities in terms of graphene’s strength, durability, and ability to conduct electricity and heat.In 2018, Jarillo-Herrero and colleagues discovered that when two graphene sheets are stacked on top of each other, at a precise “magic” angle, the twisted structure — now known as magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene, or MATBG — exhibits entirely new properties, including superconductivity, in which electrons pair up, rather than repelling each other as they do in everyday materials. These so-called Cooper pairs can form a superfluid, with the potential to superconduct, meaning they could move through a material as an effortless, friction-free current.“But even though Cooper pairs have no resistance, you have to apply some push, in the form of an electric field, to get the current to move,” Wang explains. “Superfluid stiffness refers to how easy it is to get these particles to move, in order to drive superconductivity.”Today, scientists can measure superfluid stiffness in superconducting materials through methods that generally involve placing a material in a microwave resonator — a device which has a characteristic resonance frequency at which an electrical signal will oscillate, at microwave frequencies, much like a vibrating violin string. If a superconducting material is placed within a microwave resonator, it can change the device’s resonance frequency, and in particular, its “kinetic inductance,” by an amount that scientists can directly relate to the material’s superfluid stiffness.However, to date, such approaches have only been compatible with large, thick material samples. The MIT team realized that to measure superfluid stiffness in atomically thin materials like MATBG would require a new approach.“Compared to MATBG, the typical superconductor that is probed using resonators is 10 to 100 times thicker and larger in area,”&nbsp;Wang says. “We weren’t sure if such a tiny material would generate any measurable inductance at all.”<h2>A captured signal</h2>The challenge to measuring superfluid stiffness in MATBG has to do with attaching the supremely delicate material to the surface of the microwave resonator as seamlessly as possible.“To make this work, you want to make an ideally lossless — i.e., superconducting — contact between the two materials,” Wang explains. “Otherwise, the microwave signal you send in will be degraded or even just bounce back instead of going into your target material.”Will Oliver’s group at MIT has been developing techniques to precisely connect extremely delicate, two-dimensional materials, with the goal of building new types of quantum bits for future quantum-computing devices. For their new study, Tanaka, Wang, and their colleagues applied these techniques to seamlessly connect a tiny sample of MATBG to the end of an aluminum microwave resonator. To do so, the group first used conventional methods to assemble MATBG, then sandwiched the structure between two insulating layers of hexagonal boron nitride, to help maintain MATBG’s atomic structure and properties.“Aluminum is a material we use regularly in our superconducting quantum computing research, for example, aluminum resonators to read out aluminum quantum bits (qubits),” Oliver explains. “So, we thought, why not make most of the resonator from aluminum, which is relatively straightforward for us, and then add a little MATBG to the end of it? It turned out to be a good idea.”“To contact the MATBG, we etch it very sharply, like cutting through layers of a cake with a very sharp knife,” Wang says. “We expose a side of the freshly-cut MATBG, onto which we then deposit aluminum — the same material as the resonator — to make a good contact and form an aluminum lead.”The researchers then connected the aluminum leads of the MATBG structure to the larger aluminum microwave resonator. They sent a microwave signal through the resonator and measured the resulting shift in its resonance frequency, from which they could infer the kinetic inductance of the MATBG.When they converted the measured inductance to a value of superfluid stiffness, however, the researchers found that it was much larger than what conventional theories of superconductivity would have predicted. They had a hunch that the surplus had to do with MATBG’s quantum geometry —&nbsp;the way the quantum states of electrons correlate to one another.“We saw a tenfold increase in superfluid stiffness compared to conventional expectations, with a temperature dependence consistent with what the theory of quantum geometry predicts,” Tanaka says. “This was a ‘smoking gun’ that pointed to the role of quantum geometry in governing superfluid stiffness in this two-dimensional material.”“This work represents a great example of how one can use sophisticated quantum technology currently used in quantum circuits to investigate condensed matter systems consisting of strongly interacting particles,” adds Jarillo-Herrero.This research was funded, in part, by the U.S. Army Research Office, the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research, and the U.S. Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering. The work was carried out, in part, through the use of MIT.nano’s facilities.A complementary study on magic-angle twisted trilayer graphene (MATTG), conducted by a collaboration between Philip Kim’s group at Harvard University and Jarillo-Herrero’s group at MIT appears in the same issue of Nature.

Physicists measured how readily a current of electron pairs, represented in yellow and white, flows with no resistance through “magic-angle” graphene, represented as the black lattices. Credit: Eli Krantz, Krantz NanoArt

By determining how readily electron pairs flow through this material, scientists have taken a big step toward understanding its remarkable properties.

Physicists measure a key aspect of superconductivity in "magic-angle" graphene

<html><head></head><body>This article was discussed in our <a href="https://www.wevolver.com/profile/the.next.byte" rel="noopener noreferrer">Next Byte podcast</a>.&nbsp;<iframe height="200px" width="100%" frameborder="no" scrolling="no" seamless="" src="https://player.simplecast.com/2ef1442c-9a8a-497c-87aa-be29b55ca940?dark=false" class="fr-draggable" data-lf-vimeo-playback-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" data-lf-yt-playback-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" data-lf-form-tracking-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true"></iframe> The full article will continue below.<hr>A class of synthetic soft materials called liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs) can change shape in response to heat, similar to how muscles contract and relax in response to signals from the nervous system. 3D printing these materials opens new avenues to applications, ranging from soft robots and prosthetics to compression textiles.Controlling the material’s properties requires squeezing elastomer-forming ink through the nozzle of a 3D printer, which induces changes to the ink’s internal structure and aligns rigid building blocks known as mesogens at the molecular scale. However, achieving specific, targeted alignment, and resulting properties, in these shape-morphing materials has required extensive trial and error to fully optimize printing conditions. Until now.In a new study, researchers at the <a href="https://seas.harvard.edu/">Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences&nbsp;</a>(SEAS), Princeton University, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, and Brookhaven National Laboratory worked together to write a playbook for printing liquid crystal elastomers with predictable, controllable alignment, and hence properties, every time. By using an X-ray characterization method during the printing process that enables quantification of mesogen alignment at the microscale, the researchers have established a fundamental framework to guide their rapid design and fabrication across multiple scales.By tuning the microscale nozzle design, printing speed, and temperature, one can induce the desired molecular-scale alignment, which translates into prescribed shape-morphing and mechanical behavior at the macroscale.<img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNzM5MjMyNzE0ODExLUhfc2hhcGVzLmpwZyIsImVkaXRzIjp7InJlc2l6ZSI6eyJ3aWR0aCI6OTUwLCJmaXQiOiJjb3ZlciJ9fX0=" style="width: 100%px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">The researchers demonstrated on-the-fly control of liquid crystal molecular alignment by printing ‘H’ shapes. Red consists of highly aligned molecules while black consists of poorly aligned molecules.Published in <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2414960122" target="_blank">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>, the study’s senior author is <a href="https://lewisgroup.seas.harvard.edu/" target="_blank">Jennifer Lewis</a>, the Hansjörg Wyss Professor of Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard SEAS. Lewis’s lab has decades of experience in molecular and nanoscale design of 3D printing inks for new, functional materials. The study was co-led by former Harvard postdoctoral researcher <a href="https://cbe.princeton.edu/people/emily-davidson" target="_blank">Emily Davidson,&nbsp;</a>now a faculty member at Princeton University, with expertise in the design, nanoscale assembly, X-ray characterization, and 3D printing of soft materials.Liquid crystal elastomers exhibit their best shape-morphing and mechanical properties when individual chains composed of liquid crystalline parts are aligned with each other. The researchers printed these liquid crystalline chains through fine nozzles, driving their flow-induced alignment.“When this project began, we simply didn’t have a good understanding of how to precisely control liquid crystal alignment during extrusion-based 3D printing,” said first author Rodrigo Telles, a SEAS graduate student, Academic Cooperation Program scholar and collaborator with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. “Yet it is their degree of alignment that gives rise to varying amounts of actuation and contraction when heated.”<img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNzM5MjMyNzM0NzgzLXByaW50ZXJfbm96emxlcy5qcGciLCJlZGl0cyI6eyJyZXNpemUiOnsid2lkdGgiOjk1MCwiZml0IjoiY292ZXIifX19" style="width: 100%px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Flow simulations of ink through tapered (top) and hyperbolic nozzles.To investigate alignment of molecules during printing, the researchers used different-shaped nozzles – tapered and hyperbolic. The nozzle shape affected how the ink flowed out, which in turn controlled molecular alignment. By varying extrusion speed and nozzle shape, they were able to create two types of filaments: one with an outer layer of well-aligned molecules surrounding a poorly aligned core, and another with uniform alignment throughout.Their calculations and experiments showed that the distribution of flow type and speed inside the nozzle determined the filament type. While there were many factors that mattered, the researchers showed they could combine most of these into a single parameter called a Weissenberg number to describe how different printing conditions align the molecules.“In the 3D printing community, most of us use a relatively small number of commercially available printheads. This study showed us that it’s important to pay attention to the details of both nozzle geometry and flow – and that we can exploit them to control material properties," Davidson said.&nbsp;<img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNzM5MjMyNzU1NTc5LVgtcmF5X21pY3JvYmVhbS5qcGciLCJlZGl0cyI6eyJyZXNpemUiOnsid2lkdGgiOjk1MCwiZml0IjoiY292ZXIifX19" style="width: 100%px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">The researchers used an X-ray microbeam, during printing, to locally measure liquid crystal alignment and direction inside the printer nozzle.The team worked with researchers at a wide-angle X-ray scattering beamline at the Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory to take detailed X-ray measurements during 3D printing. This method allowed them to look inside the nozzles to visualize LCE alignment using different nozzle geometries and flow conditions. The X-ray measurements helped them determine the precise degree of alignment of the liquid crystalline molecules at any given position within the nozzles, providing a road map for their flow-induced alignment that is linked to tunable nozzle designs and printing parameters.<img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNzM5MjMyNzcyNjc4LUxld2lzX0JOTF9ncm91cC5qcGciLCJlZGl0cyI6eyJyZXNpemUiOnsid2lkdGgiOjk1MCwiZml0IjoiY292ZXIifX19" style="width: 100%px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Emily Davidson and Rodrigo Telles, far right, at the X-ray instrument with former and current Brookhaven National Laboratory researchers. From left: Benjamin Yavitt, Lutz Wiegart, Guillaume Freychet and Mikhail Zhernenkov.Among their results was that a nozzle with a hyperbolic shape created better and more uniform alignment than conventional nozzles.The work opens new avenues for fabricating LCE structures with programmed shape morphing and mechanics, for use in applications such as adaptive structures and artificial muscles.“The ability to ‘see’ into liquid crystal elastomers and quantify their alignment at the microscale during printing via wide angle X-ray scattering measurements has provided a fundamental framework of their processing-structure-property relationships for the first time,” Lewis said.Supporters of the research included the National Science Foundation through the Harvard Materials Research Science and Engineering Center, and the U.S. Army Research Office Multidisciplinary University Research Initiatives Program. Additional funding came from a Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Directed Research and Development project on Shape Changing of Responsive Elastomer Structures. The researchers used Department of Energy resources at the National Synchrotron Light Source II at Brookhaven National Laboratory.</body></html>

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