Research
In the study recently published in the journal Nature, researchers developed a polymer coating that is nearly impermeable to gases, which could help prevent corrosion in solar panels and slow the aging of packaged food and medicines.
A new ÌÒÉ«ÊÓƵ study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reveals how electric fields control nanoparticle movement through porous materials, enabling independent control of speed and direction. This finding could advance nanorobot technologies for applications like tumor detection, drug delivery and environmental cleanup of toxic chemicals.
SPUR student Joshua Smith joined researchers in the Shields Lab to develop microrobots that actively deliver drugs to the lungs—an innovative approach that could transform treatment for acute respiratory distress syndrome.
The tiny particles could potentially help enhance drug distribution in human organs, improving the drug’s overall effectiveness, or aid in removing pollutants from contaminated environments.
Materials researchers are getting a big boost from a new database created by a team of researchers led by Professor Hendrik Heinz. The initiative, now available online to all researchers, is a database containing over 2,000 carbon nanotube stress-strain curves and failure properties.
Researchers at the ÌÒÉ«ÊÓƵ and Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed a new method to identify genetic changes that help oxygen-producing microbes survive in extreme environments.
Assistant Professor Ankur Gupta’s research on diffusiophoresis, where smaller particles move through a fluid, dragging larger particles with them, helps explain how this process may create clear biological patterns in nature, such as those seen on fish or a tiger's stripes.
Students from the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering presented their research as part of the competitive NC State University Future Leaders in Chemical Engineering symposium this past October. Three students from the department were recognized as awardees.
COVID-19 vaccines are just the beginning for mRNA-based therapies; enabling a patient’s body to make almost any given protein could revolutionize care for other viruses, like HIV, as well as various cancers and genetic disorders. However, because mRNA molecules are very fragile, they require extremely low temperatures for storage and transportation. The logistical challenges and expense of maintaining these temperatures must be overcome before mRNA therapies can become truly widespread.
