Civil Engineering News

December 23, 2024

Top Headlines

The Physics of Random Stacking: Perspectives on Stability and Chaos

Dec. 17, 2024 — Pile up blocks until the tower collapses. But why does the tower always end up collapsing? Is it possible that it can be built ad infinitum? A new study explores the fascinating and complex dynamics of the stacking of blocks subjected to ...

Scientists Develop 3D Concrete Printing Method That Captures Carbon Dioxide

Dec. 16, 2024 — Scientists have developed a 3D concrete printing method that captures carbon, demonstrating a new pathway to reduce the environmental impact of the construction ...

Nature Inspires Self-Assembling Helical Polymer

Dec. 9, 2024 — Helical structures are ubiquitous across biology, from the double-stranded helix of DNA to how heart muscle cells spiral in a band. Inspired by this twisty ladder, researchers have developed an artificial polymer that organizes itself into a ...

New 3D Printing Approach Means Better Biomedical, Energy, Robotics Devices

Dec. 2, 2024 — A researcher has helped create a new 3D printing approach for shape-changing materials that are likened to muscles, opening the door for improved applications in robotics as well as biomedical and energy ...

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Highly Sensitive Transparent Ultrasound Transducer for Photoacoustic and Ultrasound Endoscopy in Live Pigs

Dec. 16, 2024 — Scientists develop a high-performance photoacoustic endoscopy featuring a transparent ultrasound ...

Cooperative Motion by Atoms Protects Glass from Fracturing

Dec. 2, 2024 — You reach for a glass of water only to knock it to the floor, shattering the glass and shooting shards all over the place. If only the glass was unbreakable. Now, researchers have brought this ...

Exploring the Impact of Offshore Wind on Whale Deaths

Nov. 21, 2024 — Scientists have presented work examining the circumstances surrounding the whale deaths off the coast of New Jersey in the winter of 2022-23, which prompted concern that survey work in the area ...

Building Roots in Glass, a Bio-Inspired Approach to Creating 3D Microvascular Networks Using Plants and Fungi

Nov. 19, 2024 — Researchers have developed a new bio-inspired approach to building complex 3D microfluidic networks by utilizing plant roots and fungal hyphae as ...

Scientists Transform Blood Into Regenerative Materials, Paving the Way for Personalized, Blood-Based, 3D-Printed Implants

Nov. 15, 2024 — Scientists have created a new 'biocooperative' material based on blood, which has shown to successfully repair bones, paving the way for personalised ...

Anti-Fatberg Invention Could Help Unclog City Sewers

Nov. 13, 2024 — Engineers have invented a protective coating for concrete pipes that could help drastically reduce the formation of fatbergs in ...

Giving Robots Superhuman Vision Using Radio Signals

Nov. 12, 2024 — Researchers have developed PanoRadar, a new tool to give robots superhuman vision by transforming simple radio waves into detailed, 3D views of the ...

Carpet Fibers Stop Concrete Cracking

Nov. 11, 2024 — Engineers have found a way to make stronger and crack-resistant concrete with scrap carpet fibers, rolling out the red carpet for sustainability in the construction ...

Earthquake Prediction Techniques Lend Quick Insight Into Strength, Reliability of Materials

Nov. 6, 2024 — Materials scientists can now use insight from a very common mineral and well-established earthquake and avalanche statistics to quantify how hostile ...

A Smart 'Insect Screen' for Sun Protection and Cool Comfort

Nov. 6, 2024 — A research team unveils a next-generation transparent cooling film using the principles of radiative ...

Immune System Review Provides Insight Into More Effective Biotechnology

Oct. 31, 2024 — As critical responders, macrophages can perceive helpful biotechnology as threats. If not created with the right materials or mechanical forces, these devices can trigger an immune response that can ...

Building Safer Cities With AI: Machine Learning Model Enhances Urban Resilience Against Liquefaction

Oct. 28, 2024 — In earthquake-prone areas like Japan, there is a need for better prediction of soil stability to mitigate liquefaction risks. Towards this end, researchers have used machine learning models, ...

Advancement in 3D-Printed Concrete Promises Strength, Durability and Lower Carbon Emissions

Oct. 25, 2024 — Researchers have created a graphene-enhanced, 3D-printable concrete that improves strength and reduces carbon emissions by 31%, advancing sustainable ...

The Evolution of Green Energy Technology: Developing Three-Dimensional Smart Energy Devices With Radiant Cooling and Solar Absorption

Oct. 25, 2024 — - DGIST, KAIST, and Korea University collaborated to develop a three-dimensional device with reversible heating/cooling based on the thermal radiation phenomenon -- Research published as a cover ...

Assessing the Real Climate Costs of Manufacturing

Oct. 24, 2024 — Producing materials such as steel, plastics and cement in the United States alone inflicts $79 billion a year in climate-related damage around the world, according to a new study by engineers and ...

Harnessing Vibrations: Engineered Material Generates Electricity from Unexpected Source

Oct. 17, 2024 — Imagine tires that charge a vehicle as it drives, streetlights powered by the rumble of traffic, or skyscrapers that generate electricity as the buildings naturally sway and shudder. These energy ...

Innovating in the Corners Where Atoms Meet

Oct. 17, 2024 — Research explores how tiny features in nanomaterials, known as triple junctions, play a crucial role in maintaining the stability of these materials under high ...

No Bolts About It: New Technology Improves Structural Strength

Oct. 9, 2024 — Researchers have significantly improved a new joining technology, interlocking metasurfaces (ILMs), designed to increase the strength and stability of a structure in comparison to traditional ...

Scientists Uncover Light Absorbing Properties of Achiral Materials

Sep. 30, 2024 — Researchers have made a discovery that changes what we know about light and materials. They found that engineered achiral (symmetric) materials, called achiral plasmonic metasurfaces, can absorb ...

New Origami-Inspired System Turns Flat-Pack Tubes Into Strong Building Materials

Sep. 23, 2024 — Engineers have designed an innovative tubular structural system that can be packed flat for easier transport and pop up into strong building materials. This breakthrough is made possible by a ...

Engineers 3D Print Sturdy Glass Bricks for Building Structures

Sep. 19, 2024 — Engineers developed a new kind of reconfigurable masonry made from 3D-printed, recycled glass. The bricks could be reused many times over in building facades and internal ...

Moving Particle Simulation-Aided Soil Plasticity Analysis for Earth Pressure Balance Shield Tunnelling

Sep. 17, 2024 — Understanding the relationship between plasticity of muddy soil and earth pressure can be crucial to maintaining tunnel stability and predicting ground behavior during earth pressure balance (EPB) ...

Tougher Concrete, Inspired by Bone

Sep. 16, 2024 — Researchers used robotics and additive manufacturing to toughen cement-based material with precisely placed hollow tubes. The result is more than 5 times tougher than ...

New Research Solves Crystal Palace Mystery

Sep. 16, 2024 — New research has solved the mystery of how the Crystal Palace in London, which at the time was the world's largest building, was constructed in only 190 days and completed just in time for the ...

Advancing Power Grounding Systems: A Novel Predictive Model for Soil Resistivity

Sep. 11, 2024 — For the design of reliable power grounding systems for critical electrical infrastructure, soil resistivity investigation is crucial. However, soil resistivity depends on various geotechnical ...

Researchers Develop Innovative Method to Simplify Manufacturing Process of Cellular Ceramics

Sep. 10, 2024 — A study has developed an innovative method that overcomes the limitations of traditional additive manufacturing (3D printing), significantly simplifying and accelerating the production of ...

Strongest Battery Paves Way for Light, Energy-Efficient Vehicles

Sep. 10, 2024 — When cars, planes, ships or computers are built from a material that functions as both a battery and a load-bearing structure, the weight and energy consumption are radically reduced. A research ...

New Tool to Analyze Embodied Carbon in More Than 1 Million Buildings in Chicago

Sep. 4, 2024 — The impact of embodied carbon in the built environment has been difficult to assess, due to a lack of data. To address that knowledge gap civil and environmental engineers have created a new tool to ...

Traditional Infrastructure Design Often Makes Extreme Flooding Events Worse

Sep. 4, 2024 — Much of the nation's stormwater infrastructure, designed decades to a century ago to prevent floods, can exacerbate flooding during the severe weather events that are increasing around the ...

A Double Twist Makes Cracking Easier to Resist

Sep. 3, 2024 — Additive manufacturing, precision robotics and architected design markedly increase crack resistance in ...