In a move that would make the Alchemists of King Arthur’s time green with envy, scientists have unraveled the formula for turning liquid cement into liquid metal.
This makes cement a semi-conductor and opens up its use in the profitable consumer electronics marketplace for thin films, protective coatings, and computer chips.
“This new material has lots of applications, including as thin-film resistors used in liquid-crystal displays, basically the flat panel computer monitor that you are probably reading this from at the moment,” said Chris Benmore, a physicist from the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE)Argonne National Laboratory who worked with a team of scientists from Japan, Finland and Germany to take the “magic” out of the cement-to-metal transformation. Benmore and Shinji Kohara from Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute/SPring-8 led the research effort.
This change demonstrates a unique way to make metallic-glass material, which has positive attributes including better resistance to corrosion than traditional metal, less brittleness than traditional glass, conductivity, low energy loss in magnetic fields, and fluidity for ease of processing and molding. Previously, only metals have been able to transition to a metallic-glass form. Cement does this by a process called electron trapping, a phenomena only previously seen in ammonia solutions. Understanding how cement joined this exclusive club opens the possibility of turning other solid normally insulating materials into room-temperature semiconductors.
“This phenomenon of trapping electrons and turning liquid cement into liquid metal was found recently, but not explained in detail until now,” Benmore said. “Now that we know the conditions needed to create trapped electrons in materials we can develop and test other materials to find out if we can make them conduct electricity in this way.”
The Latest Bing News on:
Turning cement into metal
- 100 Uncommon Uses for Common Household Itemson April 27, 2024 at 9:14 am
Every editorial product is independently selected, though we may be compensated or receive an affiliate commission if you buy something through our links. Ratings and prices are accurate and items are ...
- Gerald Ensley: A place called Nautiluson April 27, 2024 at 3:05 am
Like 58 acres of woods, creeks and ponds, dotted with large, metal sculptures. Welcome to Nautilus ... But in 2001, the Collins Center split into The LeRoy Collins Institute and the LeRoy Collins ...
- 9 Tools in Your RV Remote Work Toolkiton April 26, 2024 at 5:41 pm
RV Remote Work Toolkit explores money-making strategies for RV life. Turn your RV into a mobile office and chase your dreams on the road!
- Pagewood uses AI algorithm to pick Spring Branch industrial park to acquire, upgradeon April 26, 2024 at 10:49 am
A fast-growing real estate company known for using artificial intelligence algorithms to identify attractive properties has acquired a nine-building infill industrial park in Spring Branch.
- How to Keep Snakes Out of Your Yard Safely and Effectivelyon April 26, 2024 at 2:11 am
Learn how to keep snakes out of your yard to keep everyone safe, residents and snakes alike. Find out ways for how to keep snakes out of your yard.
- Dangerous, old-school playgrounds that once existed in NJon April 25, 2024 at 3:16 pm
In today's world, I always thought those old-school playgrounds were frowned upon. I remember growing up in the late 1980s through the 1990s when some of the older playground equipment was being ...
- Retired International School Bus Was Turned Into Cozy Tiny Home Using Recycled Materialson April 25, 2024 at 2:40 am
Turning an old vehicle, be it a school bus, an ambulance, or even a cargo trailer, into a dream mobile home is no easy feat, but folks who are willing to invest time, labor, and money into such a ...
- MIT Technology Reviewon April 23, 2024 at 2:00 am
Emily Baker hopes her designs can make it cheaper and easier to build stuff in disaster zones or outer space.
- Here are the 30+ startups showcasing at HAX's May 1 Demo Dayon April 22, 2024 at 2:39 pm
A few weeks back, TechCrunch ventured out to New Jersey to pay an early visit to HAX’s Newark offices. HAX’s China operations have shrunk considerably since then, courtesy of a global pandemic and all ...
- 'They can just do whatever they want': North side residents call out contractor for dumping concrete, city orders cleanupon April 22, 2024 at 2:29 pm
The Department of Neighborhood Services said the large mounds of dirt and concrete were left by Brew City Wrecking LLC, which was hired to raze the neighboring property.
The Latest Google Headlines on:
Turning cement into metal
[google_news title=”” keyword=”turning cement into metal” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
The Latest Bing News on:
Room-temperature semiconductors
- Georgia Tech group create world’s first graphene-based semiconductoron April 26, 2024 at 10:13 am
A group of researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) have created the world’s first functional semiconductor made from graphene, a development that could lead to advanced ...
- Cambridge Scientists Discover Simple “Twist” That Supercharges Clean Fuel Generationon April 26, 2024 at 8:55 am
Scientists have discovered a method to super-charge the ‘engine’ of sustainable fuel generation – by giving the materials a little twist. The researchers, led by the University of Cambridge, are devel ...
- A simple 'twist' improves the engine of clean fuel generationon April 24, 2024 at 9:15 am
Researchers have found a way to super-charge the 'engine' of sustainable fuel generation -- by giving the materials a little twist. The researchers are developing low-cost light-harvesting ...
- Key Insights: Encapsulant Market Expected to Reach US$ 9.5 Billion by 2034, with a CAGR of 8.7%on April 23, 2024 at 12:49 am
The encapsulant market is anticipated to be valued at US$ 4.1 billion by 2024. The market valuation is estimated to be US$ 9.5 billion by 2034, projected at a CAGR of 8.7%. The encapsulant market is ...
- Cypress Semiconductoron April 16, 2024 at 5:01 pm
Cypress Semiconductor operates as a semiconductor company in the United States and internationally. It delivers various high-performance, mixed-signal, and programmable solutions. Its products ...
- What is a Graphene Semiconductor?on April 4, 2024 at 5:00 pm
Reports indicate that graphene semiconductors could offer a replacement for the ... transport pathways in the direction of the plane of the graphene layer at room temperature, recording the highest ...
- Surface emitting semiconductor laser achieves efficiency breakthroughon April 4, 2024 at 8:03 am
Following this, in 2007, EEL also reached a high efficiency of 76% at room temperature ... these achievements have remained the pinnacle for semiconductor lasers. In contrast, the efficiency ...
- Korean researchers unveil new superconductor PCPOSOSon March 4, 2024 at 6:49 pm
The creation of a room-temperature semiconductor would significantly reduce the energy costs of electronics, with a wide variety of everyday applications, from MRI machines to superfast maglev trains.
The Latest Google Headlines on:
Room-temperature semiconductors
[google_news title=”” keyword=”room-temperature semiconductors” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
