American Chemical Society

Battery technology with off-the-charts charging capacity

Researchers have invented nanowire-based battery material that can be recharged hundreds of thousands of times, moving us closer to a battery that would never require replacement.

Flipping a chemical switch helps perovskite solar cells beat the heat

Thin films of crystalline materials called perovskites provide a promising new way of making inexpensive and efficient solar cells. Now, an international team of researchers has shown a way of flipping a chemical switch that converts one type of perovskite into another — a type that has better thermal stability and is a better light absorber.

So long lithium, hello bacteria batteries?

A rechargeable battery driven by bacteria

Robots could get touchy with self-powered smart skin

Smart synthetic skins have the potential to allow robots to touch and sense what's around them, but keeping them powered up and highly sensitive at low cost has been a challenge.

Quantum dots enhance light-to-current conversion

Harnessing the power of the sun and creating light-harvesting or light-sensing devices requires a material that both absorbs light efficiently and converts the energy to highly mobile electrical current.

Wooden windows? New material could replace glass in solar cells

Windows and solar panels in the future could be made from one of the best — and cheapest — construction materials known: wood.

Generating electricity with tomato waste

A team of scientists is exploring an unusual source of electricity — damaged tomatoes that are unsuitable for sale at the grocery store.

New method could unleash solar power potential

Measurement and data analysis techniques developed at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory could provide new insight into performance-robbing flaws in crystalline structures, ultimately improving the performance of solar cells.

Nanomotors could help create self-healing electronics

As electronics grow ever more intricate, so must the tools required to fix them. Anticipating this challenge, scientists turned to the body's immune system for inspiration and have now built self-propelled nanomotors that can seek out and repair tiny scratches to electronic systems.

How to make electric vehicles that actually reduce carbon

An interdisciplinary team of scientists has worked out a way to make electric vehicles that only are not only carbon neutral but carbon negative, capable of actually reducing the amount of atmospheric carbon dioxide as they operate.

An alternative to platinum in fuel cells

Research teams have produced a cost-effective catalyst material for fuel cells using a new preparation process which they analysed in detail.

You'll never be-leaf what makes up this battery

Scientists have a new recipe for batteries: Bake a leaf, and add sodium.

Cellulose nanogenerators to power implanted biomedical devices

Implantable electronics that can deliver drugs, monitor vital signs and perform other health-related roles are on the horizon. But finding a way to power them remains a challenge.

Unveiling the nanotube's quantum behavior

The discovery of an important method for measuring the properties of nanotube materials using a microwave probe.

2D Islands in graphene hold promise for future device fabrication

In what could prove to be a significant advance in the fabrication of graphene-based nanodevices, a team of Berkeley Lab researchers has discovered a new mechanism for assembling two-dimensional (2D) molecular "islands" that could be used to modify graphene at the nanometer scale.

Faster, more efficient way to sniff out explosives

Scientists report a new step toward a more efficient monitoring method that uses quantum dots to quickly sniff out and identify five dangerous compounds.

New stretchable, wearable sensor made with chewing gum

Scientists report a unique sensing device made of gum and carbon nanotubes that can move with your most bendable parts and track your breathing.

Nanotechnology device to simplify blood sugar testing

This innovation depends on an injectable, near-infrared optical biosensor nanotube that would read a person's blood glucose constantly and an optical glucose scanner that can access the data collected by nanotube.

Invisible wires could improve solar cell efficiency

Scientists have discovered how to hide the reflective upper contact of a solar cell and funnel light directly to the semiconductor below

Self-healing gel makes electronics more flexible, advances batteries

Researchers have developed a first-of-its-kind self-healing gel that repairs and connects electronic circuits, creating opportunities to advance the development of flexible electronics, biosensors and batteries as energy storage devices.