Pulp as biodegradable plastic in disposable food containers

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists and university cooperators have developed a biodegradable plastic that could be used in disposable food containers. The plastic, called a thermoplastic, becomes soft when heated.

Predicting fatigue: Nanocrystals reveal damaged material

A small crack in a metal wheel caused Germany's worst-ever rail accident—the 1998 Eschede train disaster. The problem: it was practically impossible to detect damage of that nature to a metal by inspecting it externally. ...

A more affordable, accessible material for seawater desalination

There are vast quantities of seawater available; drinking water, on the other hand, is in scarce supply. Desalination plants can convert seawater to drinking water. Yet these plants require pipelines made of a special kind ...

Robust approach for preparing polymer-coated quantum dots

Quantum dots (QDs) are tiny crystals of semiconducting material that produce fluorescence. The color or the wavelength of the fluorescence is dependent on the size, shape and composition of QDs. Larger QDs tend to emit light ...

Radiation boost for artificial joints

A blast of gamma radiation could toughen up plastic prosthetic joints to make them strong enough to last for years, according to researchers in China writing in the current issue of the International Journal of Biomedical ...

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