Category: Research and Innovation

A photo of a stone that reads "Notre Dame" with the main building and autumn trees in the background

Notre Dame to develop next-generation refrigerant technology as part of a new National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center

The University of Notre Dame is part of a new National Science Foundation (NSF) Gen-4 Engineering Research Center (ERC) called EARTH, which stands for Environmental Applied Refrigerant Technology Hub. Led by the University of Kansas, EARTH will bring together 80 institutions and researchers from a …

Agboola Suleiman holding membrane

Machine learning discovers ‘hidden-gem’ materials for heat-free gas separation

Chemical separation, including gas separation, accounts for a whopping 15 percent of U.S. energy consumption and produces millions of tons of carbon emissions. Separating gases by passing them through membranes could be an efficient, environmentally-friendly alternative to current methods—if …

Yanliang Zhang

Best recipe yet for thermoelectric devices

Power plants, factories, car engines—everything that consumes energy produces heat, much of which is wasted. Thermoelectric devices could capture this wasted heat and convert it into electricity, but their production has been prohibitively costly and complex. Yanliang Zhang, Advanced …

The moon over Golden Dome and Basilica.

Notre Dame elected to Universities Space Research Association to advance space exploration research

The University of Notre Dame has been inducted into the Universities Space Research Association (USRA). Founded in 1969 under the auspices of the National Academy of Sciences at the request of the U.S. Government, the USRA is a nonprofit corporation chartered to advance space-related science, …

Window coating held up to sky with the Dome in the background

Sunrise to sunset, new window coating blocks heat not view

Windows welcome light into interior spaces, but they also bring in unwanted heat. A new window coating blocks heat-generating ultraviolet and infrared light and remains transparent to visible light, regardless of the sun’s angle. The coating can be incorporated into existing windows or …

SpaceX_CRS-27

Notre Dame sends cancer research aboard the International Space Station

University of Notre Dame researchers are taking their science to space aboard NASA’s 30th SpaceX commercial resupply services mission, which is slated to launch no earlier than Thursday (March 21). The SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft will lift off from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Space Force …

Photo illustration of plastic items in ocean. (iStock)

Engineers unmask nanoplastics in oceans for the first time, revealing their true shapes and chemistry

Millions of tons of plastic waste enter the oceans each year. The sun’s ultraviolet light and ocean turbulence break down these plastics into invisible nanoparticles that threaten marine ecosystems.   In a new study, engineers at the University of Notre Dame have presented clear images …

Perivascular fibroblasts observed in the study

Understudied cell in the brain could be key to treating glioblastoma

Glioblastoma is one of the most treatment-resistant cancers, with those diagnosed surviving for less than two years. In a new study in NPJ Genomic Medicine, researchers at the University of Notre Dame have found that a largely understudied cell could offer new insight into how the aggressive, …

Edgar Bolívar-Nieto at a desk collecting data from sensor-embedded treadmill

Balancing act: Mechanical engineer aims to make electrically powered prostheses both smart and lightweight

Powered prostheses hold promise for improving the lives of people with limb loss. Yet despite recent, rapid development of new designs and materials, current devices are often heavy and uncomfortable. Edgar Bolívar-Nieto, assistant professor of aerospace and mechanical engineering at the …

Pinar Zorlutuna featured left center among a collage of Notre Dame bioengineering images

Pinar Zorlutuna appointed Director of the Bioengineering Program at the University of Notre Dame

Pinar Zorlutuna, Roth-Gibson Professor of Bioengineering, has been appointed Director of the Bioengineering Program, effective November 1, 2023. “We are fortunate to have someone so talented take on the directorship of this program as it enters a new era,” said Patricia Culligan, …