Today's Tech News: Notable or Not?

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1143589 "combines passive cooling/ biomechanical energy harvesting for adaptive thermoregulation... direct ink writing into flexible, breathable textiles... zirconium oxide-based, reflects 96% sunlight while releasing thermal radiation... 3 to 6°C cooler than surrounding ambient air... captures energy from wearer's movement generating electricity for motion sensing/ thermal regulation... seamlessly switch between cooling/ warming without bulky external power... autonomous soft robotics, wearables"

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1101723 "applying this material to building roofs improves efficiency, reducing annual heating/ cooling energy costs by up to 26.5%... controlling laser's output intensity changes material's optical/ thermal properties: high-power laser transforms surface into white porous structure (SiO2-centered) reflecting sunlight lowering temperature 5.89°C, low-power laser creates black porous structure (SiC-centered) absorbing sunlight heating surface to 58.1°C... also, temperature differences enable thermoelectric generators" Related: Mechanical power by linking Earth’s warmth to space https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1105781 Cement Breakthrough Turns Building Walls into Power Generators https://news.sustainability-directory.com/research/cement-breakthrough-turns-building-walls-into-power-generators/ From lab to market: A revolutionary cooling film transforms industries in China https://en.people.cn/n3/2025/0722/c98649-20343473....

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1088673 "embedded in building’s water loop system, scalable, low-energy... 5-nm platinum metastructure electrode's short voltage pulse enables reversible copper deposition, switching surface’s IR emissivity which remains in chosen state for >30 days... surface raised internal temperatures up to 45.4°C in summer/ cooled by 5°C at night, annual energy savings up to 21.4%, up to 95.8 GJ reductions in cold climates... industrial HVAC, data centers, off-grid greenhouses, smart buildings... durability, bistability, spectral selectivity" Related: Anisotropic Hygroscopic Hydrogels Enable High-Power, Self-Sustained Passive Daytime Cooling https://bioengineer.org/anisotropic-hygroscopic-hydrogels-enable-high-power-self-sustained-passive-daytime-cooling/ Recent advances in spectrally selective daytime radiative cooling materials https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1092603 Radiative cooling materials for extreme environmental applicati...

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1062621   "3D structure opens through mechanical peeling process... silicone elastomer/ silver lower layer exposed generating radiative cooling... when closes, surface coated with black paint absorbs solar heat... tested on skin, glass, steel, aluminum, copper, polyimide... adjusting structure's angle enabled  heating/ cooling control/ performance... buildings/ electronic devices/ industrial at both macro/ micro reducing energy consumption" Related: Porous plastic sheets can cool buildings by radiating light to space https://techxplore.com/news/2025-02-porous-plastic-sheets-cool-space.html#google_vignette Fresh route to more efficient cooling using light and heat https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1084216 A Janus smart window for temperature‑adaptive radiative cooling and adjustable solar transmittance https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1088639 Radiant cooling using low-cost, scalable, transparent and infrared-reflectiv...

https://phys.org/news/2024-07-photoluminescent-aerogel-visible.html "polymeric passive radiative cooling aerogel from biomass... reflects more light than receives due to photoluminescence where molecules absorb visible light, exciting their electrons to higher state resulting in light emission... added freeze-dried salmon sperm DNA to gelatin. allowed to sublimate, leaving behind highly compressed layered aerogel, held together via hydrogen bonds between DNA's phosphates/ gelatin's amino acids, water added so sticks to surface/ self-heals... cools to 16°C below ambient" Related: Researchers develop next-generation cooling material to increase summer cooling efficiency without electricity https://techxplore.com/news/2024-08-generation-cooling-material-summer-efficiency.html Chalk-based coating creates a cooling fabric https://phys.org/news/2024-08-chalk-based-coating-cooling-fabric.html Novel metasurface enables temperature-adaptive radiative cooling https://phys.org/n...

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1044240 "ultrathin, self-cleaning, efficient, 97% cellulose solar reflectance, 92.5% IR emissivity in atmospheric transparency window, sub-ambient temperature drop 6.9 °C under direct sunlight, hierarchical porous structure, chemical bonds enable high optical performance... freeze-casting, hot-pressing develops cellulose nanowhiskers reinforced with zinc oxide forming composite aerogel film... anti-dust, hydrophobic with contact angle 133°... sustainable thermal regulation" Related: NUS researchers develop new aerogels for radiative cooling and the absorption of electromagnetic waves https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nus-researchers-develop-new-aerogels-for-radiative-cooling-and-the-absorption-of-electromagnetic-waves-302163032.html New fabric cools people in sweltering cities https://www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2024/06/this-cooling-fabric-keeps-people-cool-in-sweltering-cities/ Breakthroughs in Thermal Photonics Enable Efficie...

https://techxplore.com/news/2024-03-sun-space-harnessing-cold-universe.html "simultaneously harvests solar energy in a solar cell and directs heat away from Earth through radiative cooling... radiative cooler works as 24/7 natural air conditioner... combined benefit surpasses electricity saving of bare solar cell up to 30%... the 2 harvesters are stacked, take up minimal space"

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3242712/hong-kong-team-says-new-cool-white-ceramic-can-reflect-nearly-all-sunlight-and-cut-air-conditioning "inspired by white Southeast Asian beetle, porous aluminium oxide scattering almost all wavelengths,  resistant to UV and fire... up to 2.5°C cooler indoors... high weather resistance and mechanical strength, recyclable, Leidenfrost depression (prevents water from evaporating from heated surfaces and faster cooling where fire), optional colors (slightly compromising reflectivity), and self-cleaning when water comes in contact with dust... market launch late 2024" Related: This adaptive roof tile can cut both heating and cooling costs https://news.ucsb.edu/2023/021285/adaptive-roof-tile-can-cut-both-heating-and-cooling-costs A cooler roof that stays reflective for years https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1143626

https://phys.org/news/2023-03-world-energy-saving-paintinspired-butterflies.html "environmentally-friendly, non-fading, non-toxic, ultralight (150 nm thin), plasmonic, structural plasmonic paint uses aluminum and aluminum oxide... structural color like that of birds and butterflies, combined with commercial binder... less heat  absorbed by paint resulting in underneath surface staying 25 to 30 F cooler" Related: Proper electronic structure of near-infrared absorbing functional dyes discovered https://phys.org/news/2023-03-proper-electronic-near-infrared-absorbing-functional.html Engineering designer materials with bird-inspired structural colors using nanoparticle-based supraballs https://phys.org/news/2023-05-materials-bird-inspired-nanoparticle-based-supraballs.html Chameleon-inspired coating could cool and warm buildings through the seasons https://phys.org/news/2023-09-chameleon-inspired-coating-cool-seasons.html

https://techxplore.com/news/2022-03-magnetic-hybrid-electricity-day-night.html "top layer is a paramagnetic insulator made of gadolinium gallium garnet. This layer is transparent to sunlight and emits thermal radiation to the universe, getting cooler. Sunlight passes through the following ferrimagnetic layer made of yttrium iron garnet. This layer is also transparent... bottom two light-absorbing layers, made of paramagnetic platinum and blackbody paint. The bottom section stays warm due to sunlight absorption... converted to electric voltage in the paramagnetic platinum layer" Related: Solar cell keeps working long after sun sets https://techxplore.com/news/2022-04-solar-cell-sun.html Solar panels that work at night produce enough power to charge a phone https://www.newscientist.com/article/2314957-solar-panels-that-work-at-night-produce-enough-power-to-charge-a-phone/ Solar Panels That Work at Night Developed at Stanford https://www.cnet.com/home/energy-and-utilities/solar-...

https://phys.org/news/2021-09-contactless-spatially-cooling-thermal.html "With the aid of a special optical set-up and an arrangement of elliptical mirrors, the team was able to collect the long-wave thermal radiation emitted by the sample (which is initially at room temperature), and focus it onto a plate placed in the center of the cryostat. In this way, they were able to create a kind of one-way street for the emitted radiation, which resulted in the effective cooling of the sample" Related: DIY radiative cooler developed to serve as a research standard https://phys.org/news/2021-11-diy-radiative-cooler-standard.html These Plant Based Colorful Cooling Films Will Keep You Cool From Bright Sunlight4 min read https://nerdyinfo.com/these-plant-based-colorful-cooling-films-will-keep-you-cool-from-bright-sunlight/ Researchers propose standardized criteria and characterization procedures for evaluating radiative cooling performance https://techxplore.com/news/2023-08-standardized...