Iowa State University

New steel for better electric motors

Within a few years, the U.S. Department of Energy wants plug-in electric vehicles to be just as affordable and convenient as the internal-combustion machines most of us drive today.

Printed graphene treated with lasers to enable paper electronics

Treating inkjet-printed, multi-layer graphene electric circuits and electrodes with a pulsed-laser process improves electrical conductivity without damaging paper, polymers or other fragile printing surfaces.

Scientists develop quick-destructing battery for transient devices

Self-destructing electronic devices could keep military secrets out of enemy hands. Or they could save patients the pain of removing a medical device. Or, they could allow environmental sensors to wash away in the rain.

Flexible skin that traps radar waves, cloaks objects

Engineers have developed a new flexible, stretchable and tunable "meta-skin" that uses rows of small, liquid-metal devices to cloak an object from the sharp eyes of radar.

Autonomous agricultural vehicles

True to its name, the IDTechEx report, Autonomous Vehicles Land, Water, Air 2015-2035 gives the full picture. Here we share some of the latest entries as it is continuously updated to reflect the rapid progress in this sector.

INDA - RISE & n3m 2015

INDA, the industry association for non-woven fabrics focused the keynotes of its RISE & n3m 2015 conference on emerging technologies and the way they could influence the future of non-wovens. To that end, presentations focused on the potential for innovation in fabrics and textiles and the way emerging technologies are expected to be integrated in traditional fabric technologies. Here IDTechEx provides a summary of its key learnings.

Developing materials and electronics that dissolve when triggered

A medical device, once its job is done, could harmlessly melt away inside a person's body.

Scientists develop indium-free organic light-emitting diodes

Scientists have discovered new ways of using a well-known polymer in organic light emitting diodes, which could eliminate the need for an increasingly problematic and breakable metal-oxide used in screen displays in computers, televisions, and cell phones.

Energy generating dance floor at sustainable nightclub

Goodsmith's project, Estrella Sustainable Nightclub, renovates an existing structure in New York City's West Village into an eco-conscious nightclub with an energy-generating dance floor and other green features.

Iowa chemist designs new polymer structures for 'plastic electronics'

Iowa State University's Malika Jeffries-EL says she's studying doing structure-property studies so she can teach old polymers new tricks.

Program provides $16.5m under American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

The U. S. Department of Energy's (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is seeking project proposals as part of recently announced DOE funding to accelerate commercialization of solar energy technologies.

Part IV: Report on IDTechEx Food Traceability 2006

Report on the IDTechEx Food Traceability conference Dallas February 1-2

Scoping Major New Markets for Food Traceability

We live in an ever-changing world of mass food production and, in the West at least, billion dollar retailers. Public concerns about food safety and worries about the apparent lack of transparency in the production and processing of food, mean that consumer demands have never been more stringent. Learn how this is creating new markets for RFID and DNA solutions.

Globally acknowledged authority agreed to speak

Globally acknowledged authority on food traceability to speak at Food Traceability conference

The Weakest link in traceability

The weak link in traceability – the farmer-cooperative interface