Could we make cars out of petroleum residue?
A new way to make carbon fiber could turn refinery byproducts into high-value, ultralight structural materials for cars, aircraft, and spacecraft.
Using nature’s structures in wooden buildings
A new approach enables architects to use discarded tree forks as load-bearing joints in their structures.
New book celebrates trailblazing MIT physicist Mildred Dresselhaus
“Carbon Queen” explores how the Institute Professor transformed our understanding of the physical world and made science and engineering more accessible to all.
MIT entrepreneurs think globally, act locally
A new solution to beach-fouling seaweed, developed by MBA candidate Andrés Bisonó León and Luke Gray ’18, SM ’20, is designed to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
Why are comet heads green — but not their tails?
An accidental discovery and a love of spectroscopic perturbations leads to the solution of a 90-year-old puzzle.
A dirt-cheap solution? Common clay materials may help curb methane emissions
With special treatment, minerals called zeolites — commonly found in cat litter — can efficiently remove the greenhouse gas from the air, researchers report.
Gene Dresselhaus, influential research scientist in solid-state physics, dies at 91
Over 50 years at MIT, Dresselhaus made lasting contributions to materials science within the research group of longtime collaborator and wife, Mildred Dresselhaus.
Global warming begets more warming, new paleoclimate study finds
Researchers observe a “warming bias” over the past 66 million years that may return if ice sheets disappear.
“Magic-angle” trilayer graphene may be a rare, magnet-proof superconductor
New findings might help inform the design of more powerful MRI machines or robust quantum computers.
Ultralight material withstands supersonic microparticle impacts
The new carbon-based material could be a basis for lighter, tougher alternatives to Kevlar and steel.
MIT turns “magic” material into versatile electronic devices
Work on three graphene-based devices may yield new insights into superconductivity.
Undergraduates explore practical applications of artificial intelligence
SuperUROP scholars apply deep learning to improve accuracy of climate models, profitably match computers in the cloud with customers, and more.
Electrifying cement with nanocarbon black
A collaboration between MIT and CNRS has yielded a cement that conducts electricity and generates heat.
Study reveals uncertainty in how much carbon the ocean absorbs over time
Climate projections could be off by five years, researchers find.
Found in space: Complex carbon-based molecules
Discovery may offer clues to carbon’s role in planet and star formation.