materials science
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Chemists Just Turned Plastic Into Liquid Fuel
In news that offers hope that human civilisation won’t end up drowning in soda bottles and plastic wrap, Chinese chemists have developed a remarkably efficient method for converting polyethylene into liquid fuel. If it proves scalable, it could make a real dent in global plastic pollution.
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Transparent Wood Could Replace Glass, Become Coolest Building Material Ever
Wood is a great material because it’s cheap, renewable and versatile. But this incredible transparent wood that scientists in Sweden brewed up is amazing. It could replace glass for some seriously eye-catching architecture, and even be used in cheap solar panels or windows.
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Graphene Patterned After Moth Eyes Could Give Us ‘Smart Wallpaper’
Tweaking the structure of graphene so that it matches patterns found in the eyes of moths could one day give us “smart wallpaper”, among a host of other useful technologies.
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‘Chopsticks Of Light’ Reveal What Makes Spider Silk So Stretchy
Spider silk is nature’s Kevlar. It’s stronger than steel, it’s waterproof, and you can stretch it as much as 30 to 40 per cent before it snaps. Now biophysicists at Johns Hopkins University think they know the secret to spider silk’s remarkable elasticity: protein threads that serve as stretchy “superstrings”. The researchers describe their work…