How to design PFAS-free self-cleaning materials and surfaces

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), often called "forever chemicals," have been widely used for decades in everything from waterproof clothing and food packaging to firefighting foams and non-stick cookware due to their exceptional ability to repel water and oils. However, these chemicals persist in the environment for centuries and accumulate in human bodies, with growing evidence linking them to serious health problems including cancer, developmental delays in children, and reproductive issues.

3D printing by photopolymerization made reproducible

3D Printing by photopolymerization is one of the simplest strategies to print and build polymeric materials. Nonetheless, printing process reproducibility requires that photosensitive resins are correctly characterized via the so-called working curve, that provides information on the energy necessary to induce photopolymerization. It sounds easy, but data in the literature and lab experience suggest a significant data scattering, limiting 3D printing reproducibility.

Anion Exchange Membrane Water Electrolyzers fed with different electrolytes

Hydrogen is a clean and sustainable energy carrier that supports the large-scale integration of intermittent renewable energy sources, provides renewable fuels for heavy-duty transportation, and enables deep decarbonization of hard-to-abate industrial sectors. Among various water electrolysis technologies, anion-exchange membrane water electrolyzers (AEM-WEs) offer several actual or anticipated advantages.

Magnetism under control: toward a new, more efficient and sustainable electronics

Traditional theories of magnetism distinguish between ferromagnetic materials (such as those used to make fridge-magnets) – in which the spins of electrons align to produce a net magnetization below a critical temperature – and antiferromagnetic materials, where the spins of neighboring sites are aligned in opposite directions, resulting in a zero net magnetization.

Understanding how natural materials interact with ice

It is always time to talk about ice, even in these hot summer days. If you fancy a smooth ice cream, then you may know that its texture can be controlled by a specific class of natural materials, i.e. carbohydrates. Specifically, polysaccharides, biopolymers consisting of long chain of saccharides, commonly known as sugars, can be used to control the size of ice crystals (spoiler: you want them to be as small as possible for a smooth ice cream).