News tagged with biodegradable materials

New harvesting approach boosts energy output from bacteria

A team of scientists from University of Colorado Denver has developed a novel energy system that increases the amount of energy harvested from microbial fuel cells (MFCs) by more than 70 times. The new approach also greatly ...

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created Apr 25, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Researchers develop versatile synthetic platform to produce biodegradable biomaterials for specific biomedical applicati

(Phys.org) -- Despite significant advances, the development of synthetic biomaterials still presents significant challenges in the field of biomedical engineering. Although synthetic biodegradable materials such as polyester ...

Chemistry / Materials Science

created Apr 12, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

As strong as an insect's shell

Harvard researchers at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering have come up with a tough, low-cost, biodegradable material inspired by insects’ hard outer shells. The material’s ...

Chemistry / Materials Science

created Feb 03, 2012 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (8) | comments 0

Orange peels could be made into biodegradable plastic

Plastic waste is one of the worst forms of trash because it takes so long to degrade, thus overflowing our landfills and polluting our oceans and waterways. But what if we could make plastic from a recycled, natural, biodegradable ...

Chemistry / Materials Science

created Sep 26, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

How biomaterial performance can be programmed and predicted

(PhysOrg.com) -- Biomaterials, in particular biodegradable materials, are increasingly used in medicine. These materials serve on their own as structural support and replacement, and as platforms for drug release, embedding ...

Chemistry / Materials Science

created Sep 13, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Study: Biodegradable products may be bad for the environment

Research from North Carolina State University shows that so-called biodegradable products are likely doing more harm than good in landfills, because they are releasing a powerful greenhouse gas as they break down.

Space & Earth / Environment

created May 31, 2011 | popularity 4.3 / 5 (12) | comments 9 | with audio podcast

Researchers inject nanofiber spheres carrying cells into wounds to grow tissue

For the first time, scientists have made star-shaped, biodegradable polymers that can self-assemble into hollow, nanofiber spheres, and when the spheres are injected with cells into wounds, these spheres biodegrade, ...

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

created Apr 17, 2011 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (11) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

New trash-to-treasure process turns landfill nuisance into plastic

With billions of pounds of meat and bone meal going to waste in landfills after a government ban on its use in cattle feed, scientists today described development of a process for using that so-called meat and bone meal to ...

Chemistry / Materials Science

created Mar 28, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Assessing antibiotic breakdown in manure

Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientist Scott Yates is studying how oxytetracycline (OTC), an antibiotic that is administered to animals, breaks down in cattle manure.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Mar 04, 2010 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Silk-based optical waveguides meet biomedical needs

There is a growing need for biocompatible photonic components for biomedical applications - from in vivo glucose monitoring to detecting harmful viruses or the telltale markers of Alzheimer's. Optical waveguides are of ...

Chemistry / Materials Science

created Aug 31, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (4) | comments 0

Scientists unveil chocolate-fueled race car

(AP) -- Scientists unveiled on Tuesday what they hope will be one of the world's fastest biofuel vehicles, powered by waste from chocolate factories and made partly from plant fibers.

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created May 05, 2009 | popularity 4 / 5 (10) | comments 3

Stainless Steel Catalyst Lowers Cost of Microbial Fuel Cells

(PhysOrg.com) -- Tiny bacteria munching on and metabolizing biodegradable materials can produce electrons that could be harnessed by microbial fuel cells for energy. By taking advantage of the catalytic reactions ...

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created Feb 23, 2009 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (4) | comments 0 weblog

Implants mimic infection to rally immune system against tumors

Bioengineers at Harvard University have shown that small plastic disks impregnated with tumor-specific antigens and implanted under the skin can reprogram the mammalian immune system to attack tumors.

Medicine & Health / Medical research

created Jan 22, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (6) | comments 0