Nanotechnology Now

Our NanoNews Digest Sponsors
Heifer International



Home > News > Massachusetts Institute of Technology sees energy savings in black and white

October 20th, 2009

Massachusetts Institute of Technology sees energy savings in black and white

Abstract:
Back in 1970, American sociologist and futurologist Alvin Toffler wrote a book called Future Shock. Its thesis was both simple and profound: Not only was the world changing, it was changing at an accelerating rate.

Every year since the book appeared, the truth of its argument has been evident. Change is piled upon change year by year, month by month, week by week.

Back then, construction materials were pretty much the same as they had been 10 or 20 or 30 years before. Now, there is a whole new thing called materials science, and it deals with not only construction materials, but with materials of all kinds.

Many of them involve the use of the even newer group of scientific disciplines that we call nanoscience — the science of the super-small.

Scarcely a week goes by now without three or four articles about nanotechnology in building materials appearing on my computer screen.

One of the most recent involves promising a new idea being developed by a group of students. It isn't ready for the market yet, but watch for it.

Students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have come up with roofing tiles that turn from black to white and back again as temperatures vary.

On hot days, when you want heat reflected away from your house, they would be white. Then, as temperatures drop and you want some of the sun's heat absorbed by your house, the tiles turn black.


Source:
dcnonl.com

Bookmark:
Delicious Digg Newsvine Google Yahoo Reddit Magnoliacom Furl Facebook

Related News Press

News and information

Researchers develop artificial building blocks of life March 8th, 2024

How surface roughness influences the adhesion of soft materials: Research team discovers universal mechanism that leads to adhesion hysteresis in soft materials March 8th, 2024

Two-dimensional bimetallic selenium-containing metal-organic frameworks and their calcinated derivatives as electrocatalysts for overall water splitting March 8th, 2024

Curcumin nanoemulsion is tested for treatment of intestinal inflammation: A formulation developed by Brazilian researchers proved effective in tests involving mice March 8th, 2024

Environment

$900,000 awarded to optimize graphene energy harvesting devices: The WoodNext Foundation's commitment to U of A physicist Paul Thibado will be used to develop sensor systems compatible with six different power sources January 12th, 2024

Catalytic combo converts CO2 to solid carbon nanofibers: Tandem electrocatalytic-thermocatalytic conversion could help offset emissions of potent greenhouse gas by locking carbon away in a useful material January 12th, 2024

New catalyst could dramatically cut methane pollution from millions of engines: Researchers demonstrate a way to remove the potent greenhouse gas from the exhaust of engines that burn natural gas. July 21st, 2023

Billions of nanoplastics released when microwaving baby food containers: Exposure to plastic particles kills up to 75% of cultured kidney cells July 21st, 2023

Energy

Development of zinc oxide nanopagoda array photoelectrode: photoelectrochemical water-splitting hydrogen production January 12th, 2024

Shedding light on unique conduction mechanisms in a new type of perovskite oxide November 17th, 2023

Inverted perovskite solar cell breaks 25% efficiency record: Researchers improve cell efficiency using a combination of molecules to address different November 17th, 2023

The efficient perovskite cells with a structured anti-reflective layer – another step towards commercialization on a wider scale October 6th, 2023

Construction

Temperature-sensing building material changes color to save energy January 27th, 2023

Strain-sensing smart skin ready to deploy: Nanotube-embedded coating detects threats from wear and tear in large structures July 15th, 2022

A sunlight-driven “self-healing” anti-corrosion coating May 27th, 2022

Polymer fibers with graphene nanotubes make it possible to heat hard-to-reach, complex-shaped items February 11th, 2022

NanoNews-Digest
The latest news from around the world, FREE




  Premium Products
NanoNews-Custom
Only the news you want to read!
 Learn More
NanoStrategies
Full-service, expert consulting
 Learn More











ASP
Nanotechnology Now Featured Books




NNN

The Hunger Project