News by Subject Technology & Engineering

A new system devised by researchers at MIT can monitor the behavior of all electric devices within a building, ship, or factory, determining which ones are in use at any given time and whether any are showing signs of an imminent failure. When tested on a Coast Guard cutter, the system pinpointed a motor with burnt-out wiring that could have led to a serious onboard fire.

Formamidinium lead iodide is a very good material for photovoltaic cells, but getting the correct and stable crystal structure is a challenge. The techniques developed so far have produced rather poor results. However, University of Groningen scientists, led by Professor of Photophysics and Optoelectronics Maria Antonietta Loi, have now cracked it -- using a blade and a dipping solution. The results were published in the journal Nanoscale on March 15, 2019.

We all know that turning off lights and buying energy-efficient appliances affects our financial bottom line. Now, according to a new study by University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers, we know that saving energy also saves lives and even more money for consumers by alleviating the costs of adverse health effects attributed to air pollution.

The method developed by Juho Karhu in his PhD thesis work is a first step towards creating a precise measuring device.

A new study published in The Journal of Transportation and Land Use found that people who use ride-hailing are willing to pay more to avoid driving, including the stress and cost of parking. As a result, cities are seeing a reduction in parking demand, particularly at restaurants and bars, event venues, and airports. That reduction could push cities to reconsider and replace parking infrastructure, leading to more vibrant cities and less dependency on cars.

Little motors power everything from small comforts, such as desk fans, to larger safety systems, like oven exhaust systems - but they could be more precise, according to a research team from Mitsubishi Electric Research Laboratories. An international collaboration from Japan and Massachusetts unveiled an improved algorithm to track motor performance and speed estimation. Experiments demonstrate the potential effectiveness and advantages of the proposed algorithm: fast speed estimation transient and ease of tuning.