Process Engineering

Penn State engineer has developed a new technology that uses light-activated glue to hold workpieces in position for machining, grinding and other manufacturing processes.

Dr. Edward De Meter, professor of industrial and manufacturing engineering, who developed the concept, says, “This new technology offers an alternative to mechanical clamping, the approach industries most often use. Capital investment for automated clamping is typically high and mechanical clamps can deform the w

A method that creates smooth and strong interfaces between metals and metal oxides without high-temperature brazing has been patented by researchers at the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Sandia National Laboratories, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, and the University of North Texas.

The method can improve magnetic random-access memories, which allow next-generation computers to boot up instantly yet retain their entire memories after power interruptions. Depositin

A University at Buffalo research team has invented a new way to synthesize quantum dots — luminescent nanocrystals made from semiconductor material.

Sometimes called artificial atoms, quantum dots have the potential to be used to build exciting new devices for biological and environmental sensing, quantum computing, lasers and telecommunications, among other applications.

The new technique developed by a team led by T.J. Mountziaris, Ph.D., professor of chemical and biolog

A nanocrystalline metal is one whose average grain size is measured in billionths of a meter, much smaller than in most ordinary metals. As the grain size of a metal shrinks, it can become many times stronger, but it also usually loses ductility. To take advantage of increasing strength with decreasing grain size, researchers must first understand a fundamental problem: by what processes do nanosized crystals of metal stretch, bend, or otherwise deform under strain?

A team of re

Scientists at the University of Chicago have discovered a better way to measure a confounding property of microscopic high-tech particles called quantum dots.

Quantum dots, also called nanocrystals, emit light in a rainbow of colors and are used in lasers, biological studies and other applications, but their tendency to blink hinders their technological value. Imagine the annoyance caused by a randomly flickering light bulb.

“A quantum dot might blink for just a millionth of a sec

Polystyrene foam is widely used in a variety of applications, including building insulation, packaging and drinking cups. These different types of foam are all commercially produced from a single starting material – high-density spherical beads of expandable polystyrene (EPS).

The beads are expanded and moulded by the end product manufacturers using a blowing agent. Currently, pentane is used, but it is an inflammable, volatile organic compound (VOC) and up to half remains in the EPS after