Read the latest news about research conducted by investigators in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences. Our faculty and students are continually advancing technology, creating solutions and expanding knowledge with new and innovative research.
Seed grants to fund projects that tackle huge scientific, societal challenges
07/21/2022
07/21/2022
Penn State’s Institute for Computational and Data Sciences awarded this year’s seed grant program, offering funds to Penn State scientists to help them start research projects.
Smart chip senses, stores, computes and secures data in one low-power platform
07/19/2022
07/19/2022
Securing digital data on handheld devices requires massive amounts of energy, according to an interdisciplinary group of Penn State researchers, who warn that securing these devices from bad actors is becoming a greater concern than ever before.
Thermally regenerative battery produces ample energy using low-grade waste heat
07/11/2022
07/11/2022
A new process for creating thermally regenerative ammonia batteries improves their stability and affordability and may help address the country’s growing grid-scale energy storage problem, according to a team led by Penn State researchers.
Laser writing may enable ‘electronic nose’ for multi-gas sensor
06/29/2022
06/29/2022
Environmental sensors are a step closer to simultaneously sniffing out multiple gases that could indicate disease or pollution, thanks to a Penn State collaboration.
California’s Dixie Fire shows impact of legacy effects, prescribed burns
06/27/2022
06/27/2022
Fire history largely determined how severely the 2021 Dixie Fire burned, and low-severity fire treatments had the largest impact on reducing the worst effects of the fire, according to a Penn State-led research team.
Rubbery camouflage skin exhibits smart and stretchy behaviors
06/13/2022
06/13/2022
A Penn State-led collaboration has harnessed special properties to create an artificial skin that mimics both the elasticity and the neurologic functions of cephalopod skin, with potential applications for neurorobotics, skin prosthetics, artificial organs and more.
Promising new materials mimic muscle structure and function
06/02/2022
06/02/2022
Inspired by the structure of muscles, an innovative new strategy for creating fiber actuators could lead to advances in robotics, prosthetics, and smart clothing, according to a Penn State led team of scientists who discovered the process.
Real-time, accurate virus detection method could help fight next pandemic
06/02/2022
06/02/2022
A method of highly accurate and sensitive virus identification using Raman spectroscopy, a portable virus capture device and machine learning could enable real-time virus detection and identification to help battle future pandemics, according to a team of researchers led by Penn State.
Biodiverse 'keystone food spaces' can help meet UN’s ‘Zero Hunger’ goal
05/31/2022
05/31/2022
Small farms and home gardens where landholders raise multiple species of culturally important crops can have a significant impact when it comes to meeting the United Nations’ goal to end global hunger and malnutrition, according to an international team of researchers.
Ultrahigh piezoelectric performance demonstrated in ceramic materials
05/17/2022
05/17/2022
The ability of piezoelectric materials to convert mechanical energy into electrical energy and vice versa makes them useful for various applications from robotics to communication to sensors.