Tag: Engineering

2017-18

Electric Fields Can Recover Fresh Water from Fog

By Caleb Sooknanan ‘20 Over 1 billion people lack access to safe drinking water worldwide, and for many coastal regions with little or no rain and expensive water transportation measures, water only appears in dense fog layers. Fog collection or fog harvesting techniques have become useful for extracting water from these regions, with some systems mimicking natural collection mechanisms within animals and plants. Most fog … Continue reading Electric Fields Can Recover Fresh Water from Fog

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2017-18

The Use of Sugar Glass Scaffolds for 3D Printing

By Caleb Sooknanan ‘20 Three-dimensional (3D) printing — a form of additive manufacturing — involves the joining and solidification of material to create objects from computer files. Glasses made of sugars or carbohydrates have become practical materials for printing more complex structures, such as organs, because of their stiffness and durability. These sugar glass materials can be positioned in layers or freeform paths that utilize … Continue reading The Use of Sugar Glass Scaffolds for 3D Printing

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2017-18

Novel Water-Repellent Materials Coming to You Soon

Neomi Lewis ‘21 While water-repellent surfaces already exist, these surfaces usually gain this property by modifications including coatings, paints or solvents. A team of physicists at the University of Rochester is attempting to change the surface of metals with high power lasers to create super water-repellent surfaces without the use of traditional coating methods. It is an ambitious project that is expected to last six … Continue reading Novel Water-Repellent Materials Coming to You Soon

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Figure 1. Researchers from the Brookhaven National Laboratory developed a scalable process to reduce glare on typically reflective glass surfaces.
2017-18

Using Nanotechnology to Reduce Glare on Screens

By Meghan Bialt-DeCelie ‘19 Displays of all commonly used electronics such as smartphones, televisions, and laptops all suffer from glare on their glass surfaces. Glass and clear plastics are transparent, but they are still visible due to a small amount of reflection of light caused by the difference between the refractive index of the surface and the rest of the material. Antireflective coating and screens … Continue reading Using Nanotechnology to Reduce Glare on Screens

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Figure 1. Despite being known for entertainment, Disney has also gained an edge in technological research via 3D printing and modeling. Shown here is one of the compliant mechanisms created in a study from Disney’s research division.
2016-17, Engineering

New Disney Study Suggests More Effective 3D Printing Designs

By Caleb Sooknanan ’20 Compliant mechanisms are mechanisms that can transfer forces or displacements to other points along their bodies. 3D printing can be used to quickly and effectively design compliant mechanisms for commercial use, but more work is needed to understand how such devices can be printed. Doctor Bernhard Thomaszewski and researchers from Disney Research Zurich in Switzerland devised a computational tool that would … Continue reading New Disney Study Suggests More Effective 3D Printing Designs

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Figure 1. Scientists strive to create wearable smart devices that can detect physiological phenomena in real time. According to a study from UC Berkeley, new ear devices can be 3D printed and used to indicate patients’ true body temperatures.
2016-17, Engineering, Health

3D-Printed Ear Devices Detect Core Body Temperature

By Caleb Sooknanan ’20 Healthcare sensors are frequently used to detect skin temperature, but more research is needed to design a device that can pinpoint core body temperature levels and help doctors predict the likelihood of fever, fatigue, and other physiological phenomena. Professor Ali Javey and researchers at the University of California, Berkeley designed a printable smart device that — when placed on a patient’s … Continue reading 3D-Printed Ear Devices Detect Core Body Temperature

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Figure 1: Stairs are frequently a major obstacle for individuals with neuromuscular conditions.
2016-17, Engineering

Researchers Develop Low-Power Assistive Stairs

By Anna Tarasova ’19 Many elderly and mobility-impaired individuals are unable or tend to be unwilling to use stairs. While assistive technologies exist, they are frequently costly and unsustainable. The principle of energy recycling has been previously applied to walking assistance mechanisms that take advantage of the continuous braking and propelling of the legs. However, during stair-walking, ascent is a period of constant propulsion and … Continue reading Researchers Develop Low-Power Assistive Stairs

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2016-17, Biology, Engineering

Capsule Robots Can Be Used for Biosensor Implantation

By Caleb Sooknanan ’20 Biosensors have become increasingly practical within the medical field, as they can detect different biometrics such as heart rate and body temperature levels. However, current biosensors can wear out quickly and elicit health problems such as trauma. Many efforts — especially in the area of capsule robotics — have been made to develop biosensors that are noninvasive and effective at monitoring … Continue reading Capsule Robots Can Be Used for Biosensor Implantation

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Figure 1: Researchers at the Yokohama City University Graduate School of Medicine in Japan used computational fluid dynamics (shown) to analyze the flow distribution of anticancer agent into the branches of the external carotid artery during intra-arterial chemotherapy.
2016-17, Biology, Engineering

Computational Fluid Dynamics Can Be Used to Treat Oral Cancer

by Caleb Sooknanan ’20 Surgical procedures have often been used to treat oral cancer. However, these procedures can cause oral dysfunction — often in the form of speech and breathing difficulties — and thereby harm respiratory organs. To preserve organ function, intra-arterial chemotherapy (IAC) has become a valuable form of treatment. IAC releases more anticancer agents into tumor-feeding arteries than intravenous systemic chemotherapy. However, anticancer … Continue reading Computational Fluid Dynamics Can Be Used to Treat Oral Cancer

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Figure 1. VO2, vanadium dioxide, is a metal that can conduct electricity without conducting heat.
2016-17, Chemistry

Vanadium Dioxide Conducts Electricity, But Not Heat

By Megan Tan ‘19 Thermal and electrical conductivity need to be proportional in electrical conductive solids. Although several metals can conduct electricity better than they can conduct heat, this phenomenon has only been known to occur at extreme temperatures. However, a recent study led by Professor Junqiao Wu from the University of California, Berkeley and his team of researchers has found that metallic vanadium dioxide … Continue reading Vanadium Dioxide Conducts Electricity, But Not Heat

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2016-17, Engineering

Paper-based Electrochemical Biosensor

by Michael D’Agati ’18   An electrochemical biosensor is a type of sensor that can provide quantifiable information based on the relationship between electricity and an identifiable chemical change inside a human, such as a glucose sensor that uses electrical means to detect change. Recently, paper-based devices have grown in the development of electrochemical applications because of their simplicity, low cost, and smaller usage of laboratory … Continue reading Paper-based Electrochemical Biosensor

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2016-17, Engineering

Powering Biosensors with Magnets

by Michael D’Agati ’18   Some devices that aid human function, such as cochlear or real-time biosensors, only function inside the body. However, it is not practical to power them with batteries because of their potential toxicity and relatively short lifetimes. Because of these reasons, inductive coupling has been studied for wireless power transfer to these embedded biosensors. In other words, an external power source can … Continue reading Powering Biosensors with Magnets

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