Plants have a clever way of staying strong and flexible. They make something called polysaccharide-based primary cell walls. These walls are like a super-strong net that helps plants grow and protects them from harm. But how exactly do these walls work? Scientists are still figuring that out. The walls are made up of tiny sugar chains. These chains stick together in...
High-entropy carbide ceramics, or HECCs, are making waves. They are strong and tough, but what makes them so special? To understand this, one must look at how they handle tiny flaws, known as point defects. These defects are unavoidable in real-world materials and can weaken them. However, HECCs seem to shrug off these flaws better than expected. This is due to their...
The Pearl River Delta Intercity Pazhou Branch Line project has brought attention to a unique challenge in tunnel construction. The area's rock layers are strongly weathered and packed with coarse particles. This mix makes it tricky to predict how the surface will react when a tunnel is dug using a shield machine. In simple terms, shield tunneling involves pushing a ...
The world of dental implants is changing. Titanium has long been the go-to material, but it can cause issues like allergic reactions. So, researchers decided to test out a different material: polyetheretherketone, or PEEK for short. This stuff is a type of plastic that's tough and can be used to make implants that look like real tooth roots. First, they scanned two ...
The quest for lightweight yet robust materials has led scientists to explore nature's blueprints. Nacre and turtle shells, for instance, owe their strength and toughness to a clever arrangement of soft and hard layers. This natural design has sparked interest in creating similar structures in the lab. One innovative approach involves using fungi. Specifically, the f...
Materials science is buzzing with excitement over a new type of gel. These gels are made from tiny metal structures and a special acid. They can be created in different solvents, like DMF and DMSO. These gels have some amazing properties. They can fix themselves when damaged and handle heavy loads. This makes them perfect for creating flexible, durable materials. ...
Ever wondered what happens to your muscles when you do those weird stretching exercises? Let's dive in. Researchers wanted to figure out if stretching your muscles at different lengths changes how they work. They gathered a group of young adults and split them into two teams. One team did their exercises with muscles stretched out, and the other did them wit...
Switchgrass is a tough plant. It can handle harsh conditions, like soil with too much salt and sodium. This makes it a great choice for places where other plants can't survive. But even switchgrass needs a helping hand sometimes. That's where Rhizophagus irregularis and biochar come in. Rhizophagus irregularis is a type of fungus. It lives in the soil and helps ...
Imagine a world where waste materials are transformed into something strong and useful. That's exactly what happened when researchers decided to tackle two problems at once: the massive piles of lithium slag (LS) and the need to improve recycled concrete's strength after it's been exposed to high temperatures. They came up with an idea called lithium slag recycled ag...
When it comes to growing new bones, scientists are exploring how to design the best scaffolds for the job. These scaffolds need to be good at helping new bone grow and strong enough to hold up. Researchers have looked at different types of materials, like metals, non-metals, and polymers, to make these scaffolds. They've also considered different ways to make these s...