Materials

News

Pineapple and leaves
07 Jun 2023
Scientists from Thailand, France and Singapore have conducted groundbreaking research using both tiny cellulose nanofibers (CNF) and long pineapple leaf fibers (PALF) to create stronger materials. They added varying amounts of CNF to epoxy and found that 1% CNF greatly increased impact strength. PALF-epoxy composites showed significant flexibility and strength improvements. Combining CNF and PALF resulted in a remarkable increase in impact strength. The findings could revolutionize stronger material development.
02 Jun 2023
Asia Research News monitors the latest research news in Asia. Some highlights that caught our attention this week are a species of eel that is slowly losing its eyes, a new space mission to give astronauts aboard the Tiangong space station a break, and how having more muscular legs can help avoid heart failure.
02 Jun 2023
Researchers at Tohoku University and Tsinghua University have introduced a next-generation model membrane electrode that promises to revolutionize fundamental electrochemical research.
26 May 2023
Graphene has revolutionized materials science since its discovery in 2004, with its high electron mobility, mechanical strength, and thermal conductivity. But processing graphene at the micro/nanoscale is a challenging process that often involves large-scale equipment and complex operations. Now, Tohoku University researchers have applied their simple femtosecond laser technique to ultra-thin atomic layers of graphene, resulting in multi-point hole drilling without damaging the graphene film.
Pineapple farm in Thailand
25 May 2023
A group of researchers from universities in Thailand and Malaysia have collaborated to develop a unique kind of film that is good for the environment and can decompose naturally. They made this film using leftover pineapple stems, which helps reduce the use of harmful plastic films. This new film has the potential to be used as packaging material, contributing to a more sustainable way of doing business and promoting a circular economy.
23 May 2023
Two key challenges in chemistry innovation are solved simultaneously by exploring chemical opportunities with artificial intelligence.
23 May 2023
With the use of electric vehicles and grid-scale energy storage systems on the rise, the need to explore alternatives to lithium-ion batteries has never been greater. Tohoku University researchers have recently developed a prototype calcium metal rechargeable battery capable of 500 cycles of repeated charge-discharge - the benchmark for practical use. The breakthrough was made thanks to the development of a copper sulfide nanoparticle/carbon composite cathode and a hydride-based electrolyte.
12 May 2023
Specially coated surfaces help scientists investigate what happens when cell clusters are turned upside down.
12 May 2023
An international research group has developed a new surface coating technology that is capable of significantly increasing electron emission in materials. Their breakthrough is expected to improve the production of high-efficiency electron sources, and lead to increased performances in electron microscopes, electron beam lithography systems, and synchrotron radiation facilities.
09 May 2023
Zinc-air batteries may power the future thanks to their high density, low cost, and nature-friendly makeup. Yet, their low voltage has stymied their widespread application. Now, a research group has realized a zinc-air battery with an open circuit voltage of over 2 V.
09 May 2023
Osaka Metropolitan University scientists elucidated the molecular structure of anionic Pt(0) complexes for the first time in collaboration with co-researchers at Paul Sabatier University - Toulouse III. The key to success is the stabilization of anionic Pt(0) complexes (which are usually unstable owing to their electron-donating nature) by the electron-accepting properties of boron compounds. The results of this research allow us to elucidate the properties and functions of highly active chemical species and provide new guidelines for their creation. The research is expected to lead to the development of innovative catalytic reactions mediated by these chemical species.
Revolutionary nanovalve enables active control of single-molecule flows
01 May 2023
A joint research group at Osaka Metropolitan University has succeeded in regulating the flow of single molecules in solution by opening and closing the nanovalve mounted on the nanofluidic device by applying external pressure. The research group fabricated a device with a ribbon-like, thin, soft glass sheet on the top, and at the bottom a hard glass substrate having nanochannels and nanovalve seats. By applying external pressure to the soft glass sheet to open and close the valve, they succeeded in directly manipulating and controlling the flow of individual molecules in solution. They also observed an effect of fluorescence signal amplification when single fluorescent molecules are confined in the tiny nanospace inside the valve. The effect can be ascribed to the nanoconfinement, which suppresses the random motion of the molecules.
26 Apr 2023
An Osaka Metropolitan University scientist published a review article on numerous asymmetric reactions using arynes, organized by style, and detailed their outline and characteristics. Unresolved issues and prospects in this field were also described.
18 Apr 2023
Researchers from SANKEN (The Institute of Scientific and Industrial Research), at Osaka University designed a cellulose nanofiber paper (nanopaper) that can be used as a substrate for on-skin electronics. The porous structure of the nanopaper means that it can conform and adhere to the skin well enough for effective signal transfer and allows moisture to pass through for breathability and comfort. It is hoped that the nanopaper can soon be used to acquire electrophysiological data, such as ECGs in the clinic.
17 Apr 2023
Transport relies heavily on steel. But steel is heavy, and scientists are turning to alternatives to lessen the transportation industry’s carbon emissions. Magnesium alloys are one such alternative. But developing bonding technology that bonds magnesium alloys with structural steels has been severely limited because magnesium and iron are immiscible. Yet, a research group from Tohoku University has established a dealloying bonding technology that obtains a strong mechanical bond between iron and magnesium.
14 Apr 2023
We typically think of robots as metal objects, filled with motors and circuits. But the field of molecular robotics is starting to change that. Like the formation of complex living organisms, molecular robots derive their form and functionality from assembled molecules stored in a single unit, i.e., a body. Yet manufacturing this body at the microscopic level is an engineering nightmare. Now, a Tohoku University team has created a simple workaround.
Overview of rare earth recovery using P-yeast
13 Apr 2023
A research group at Osaka Metropolitan University has succeeded in selectively recovering trace rare earth elements in synthetic seawater and environmental water, such as hot spring water, using baker’s yeast with a phosphate group added. The phosphorylated yeast is expected to be utilized as a material for recovering useful metals and removing toxic metals, thereby contributing to the realization of a metal resource-circulating society.
Asia Research News monthly Editors Choice
10 Apr 2023
AI finds the first stars ✨were not alone, Auto-switch for large electronic devices, A metabolite against autoimmune diseases, & Converting fruit waste 🍊🍉into solar stills. Plus in our blog: A career worth doing, a life worth living. Read all in the latest Editor's Choice.
Hiroshima University chemist Ji Ha Lee
05 Apr 2023
We sat down with Dr. Ji Ha Lee to get to know her and her work on developing recyclable and degradable gels that can replace plastics as well as nanogels that can help with targeted drug delivery.
Natural fibres from Bagasse
29 Mar 2023
An international team of scientists is helping to reduce carbon emissions into the atmosphere by exploring different natural fibres and blending the natural fibres in plastics to make light-weight and strong green composite materials for the construction and automotive industries.
Artificial metalloenzyme created with improved stereoselectivity
28 Mar 2023
A research group at Osaka Metropolitan University has succeeded in simply creating an artificial metalloenzyme with the common metal-binding motif 2-his-1-carboxylate, which is found in natural non-heme metalloenzymes. They created a library of 12 different proteins and screened the library and found that the H52A/H58E variant had the best stereoselectivity. It is expected that this research can be expanded to produce a variety of biocatalysts that work under mild conditions.
Rethinking near-infrared absorbing dye
24 Mar 2023
An Osaka Metropolitan University joint research group has discovered that near-infrared absorbing dyes, which had previously been considered to have closed-shell electronic structures, have an intermediate electronic structure, between closed- and open-shell structures. They also found that as the wavelength of near-infrared light that can be absorbed becomes longer the contribution of open-shell forms increases within the dye. These newly discovered characteristics are expected to be utilized to develop new near-infrared absorbing dyes that can absorb longer wavelength near-infrared light.
Professor Edison Ang Huixiang (left) and his PhD student, Marliyana Aizudin (right)
24 Mar 2023
Scientists in Singapore converted fruit waste into a solar absorber called Mxene to develop an efficient and sustainable water desalination process.
22 Mar 2023
A research team has highlighted recent achievements in antiferromagnetic spintronics in a review article, unearthing a new frontier in the field.
facemarks, carbon dioxide
20 Mar 2023
Scientists from Alliance University, Bangalore, Birla Institute of Technology Mesra, Inha University, Hanyang University, South Korea, and Newcastle University in Singapore have developed a new and straightforward approach to turn used COVID-19 facemasks into potential absorbent materials that can be employed for carbon capture from atmosphere.
The household fly
19 Mar 2023
An international interdisciplinary team of researchers hailed from India, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand has successfully developed a method of using chitosan from terrestrial insects to manufacture eco‐friendly polymer composite parts using the 3D printing method.
Asia Research News - Editors Choice
18 Mar 2023
Scientists restore impaired kidney for the first time, How fibre composite fails when wet, Cleaner fish recognize themselves in pictures 🖼️🐟& The source of black carbon in the sea. Read all in the latest Editor's Choice. Plus our magazine Asia Research News 2023 is out now 🎉!
13 Mar 2023
Osaka Metropolitan University scientists succeeded in directly observing how LECs—which are attracting attention as one of the post-organic LEDs—change their electronic state over time during field emission by measuring their optical absorption via lamp light irradiation for the first time. This research method can be applied to all light-emitting devices, including not only LECs but also organic LEDs. This method is expected to reveal detailed electroluminescence processes and lead to the early detection of factors that reduce the efficiency of electroluminescence.
12 Mar 2023
Derived from the Gujarati word saras, meaning "beautiful", Sarasa cloth is believed to have been introduced to Japan as a trade textile by the Dutch during the Muromachi period (1336–1573).
sun behind clouds
08 Mar 2023
Modifying the active layer architecture at the heart of organic solar cells brings a big leap forward in efficiency.

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Researchers

Hokkaido University
Prof. Takanori Suzuki is a chemist at Hokkaido University, Japan. His research looks at the construction of record-breaking strained compounds and the development of unimolecular memory.
National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS)
Senior Researcher, Nano-Theory Field, First-Principles Simulation Group, International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics, National Institute for Materials Science, Japan.
Hokkaido University
Tsuyoshi Mita is a specially appointed associate professor at the Institute for Chemical Reaction Design and Discovery (WPI-ICReDD), Hokkaido University, Japan.
De La Salle University
Michael Angelo Promentilla
Michael Angelo B. Promentilla is a Professor of Chemical Engineering and the head of the Waste and Resource Management Unit of the Center for Engineering and Sustainable Development Research (CESDR) at De La Salle University (DLSU).
Tohoku University
Tetsuo Endoh is a professor and the director of Center for Innovative Integrated Electronic Systems (CIES), Tohoku University, Japan.
Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST)
Jong-Sung Yu is a professor at the Department of Energy Science and Engineering, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science & Technology (DGIST), South Korea.
Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST)
Her current research focuses on design and synthesis of metal-organic frameworks and metal-organic polyhedra for sustainable energy and environment.
Hokkaido University
A pioneering researcher in Systems Chemistry for autonomous behavior in multi-molecular systems. The interdisciplinary field of chemistry and physics can be contributes the development in micro-robotics and comprehension of origin-of-life.
Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences (iCeMS) at Kyoto University
Associate Professor of Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences (iCeMS), Institute for Advanced Study, Kyoto University.
Hokkaido University
Professor, Faculty of Environmental Science, Hokkaido University
The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK)
Li Zhang is an Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Automation Engineering (MAE) and an associate faculty member in Chow Yuk Ho Technology Centre for Innovative Medicine (TIM) and T Stone Robotics Institute (CURI) at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK). He is also the co-director of CAS SIAT-CUHK Joint Laboratory of Robotics and Intelligent Systems.
Hokkaido University
Prof. Yuichi Kitagawa is a specially appointed lecturer at the Institute for Chemical Reaction Design and Discovery (ICReDD), Hokkaido University, Japan.
Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU)
Dr. Zhifeng Huang is a professor at Hong Kong Baptist University, and associate director of nanomaterials at HKBU's Golden Meditech Centre for NeuroRegeneration Sciences. He co-founded Mat-A-Cell Ltd.
Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU)
Dr. Leung is an Associate Professor and Programme Director at the Department of Chemistry, The Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU), Hong Kong SAR, P. R. China. He concurrently holds the Honorary Associate Professorship at the Faculty of Dentistry, The University of Hong Kong (HKU). He is a Chartered Scientist, Chartered Chemist of the Royal Society of Chemistry in UK and a member in the State Key Laboratory of Environmental and Biological Analysis at HKBU. He was elected as a Founding Member of The Hong Kong Young Academy of Sciences. His research interests are in the field of supramolecular chemistry, organic materials catalysis, nanoscience, and nanomedicine.
National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS)
Materials scientist studying structure and microstructure of metal and alloys by transmission electron microscopy. Specialize in light metals and quasicrystals.
Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)
Professor in Electrical Engineering at Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST).
National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS)
Current: Deputy and Administrative Director & Principal Investigator of International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics (WPI-MANA) . Professor at the Graduate School of Pure and Applied Sciences, University of Tsukuba
Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST)
Prof. SU-IL IN has been working at DGIST (Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science & Technology) since 2012. He served as Dean of International and External Affairs 2016 ~ 2017. He received his Ph.D. in Chemistry from University of Cambridge in 2008. Subsequently he was a postdoctoral researcher at Technical University of Denmark by 2010. Then he joined the Pennsylvania State University as a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Chemistry before joining DGIST. Professor In’s current researches include synthesis and analysis of functional nano (bio)-materials for environmentally friendly renewable energy such as photovoltaic, heterogeneous catalysis and biocatalysts. (https://insuil.dgist.ac.kr/)
Nagoya University
Dr. Omachi is Associate Professor, Research Center for Materials Science, Nagoya University
Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST)
Kyoung- Jin Choi
Prof. Kyoung- Jin Choi leads the Energy Conversion Materials Lab at Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST). He is also the editor of Electronic Materials Letters.
Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)
Ilkwon Oh
Prof. Oh is the director of the Creative Research Initiative Center for Functionally Antagonistic Nano-Engineering, and the director of the Active Materials and Dynamic Systems Lab at KAIST.
Professor in Agriculture and Education in the Iloilo Science and Technology University Leon Campus (ISAT U). Leon, ILOILO, PHILIPPINES

Giants in history

Abdus Suttar Khan (c. 1941 – 31 January 2008) was a Bangladeshi engineer who spent a significant part of his career conducting aerospace research with NASA, United Technology and Alstom.
Lin Lanying (7 February 1918 – 4 March 2003) was a Chinese material engineer remembered for her contributions to the field of semiconductor and aerospace materials. Lanying was born into a family who did not believe in educating girls and she was not allowed to go to school.