11-06/07 :: June/July 2011

nanotimes News in Brief F

rom the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley

Lab), a nanostructured anti-fogging technology for glass (1) that out performs anything on the market today, and a new version of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) – called Magnetic Resonance Mi- croarray Imaging (2) – that delivers results a million times faster than conventional MRI, have both won 2011 R&D 100 Awards.

Presented by R&D Magazine, the R&D 100 Awards recognize the year’s 100 most significant proven technological advances. The two awards in 2011 bring the total of Berkeley Lab’s R&D 100 wins to 58, plus two Editors’ Choice Awards.

In all, DOE’s national laboratories and facilities won 36 R&D 100 Awards this year. In response, Energy Secretary Steven Chu released this statement.

“I want to congratulate this year’s R&D 100 award winners. The Department of Energy’s national labo- ratories and facilities are at the forefront of innova- tion, and it is gratifying to see their work recognized once again. The cutting-edge research and deve- lopment done in our national labs and facilities is helping to meet our energy challenges, strengthen our national security and enhance our economic competitiveness.”

1

Invention of the “Nanostructured An- tifogging Coating” technology was led by Samuel Mao and Vasileia Zormpa,

of Berkeley Lab’s Energy and Environmental Techno- logies Division (EETD). This technology is designed to provide a durable, nontoxic, antifogging and self-

Glass slide placed in a freezer then exposed to humid air at room temperature. Fog formed on the uncoated portion of the slide (a) while portion (b), coated with superhydro- philic nanoparticles, remained fog free. © LBL

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cleaning coating for architectural glass, windshields, eyewear and solar panels.

The coating consists of nanoparticles made from superhydrophilic titanium dioxide. When applied to glass surfaces, these nanoparticles cause water droplets to collapse and flatten within fractions of a second. Water vapor, however, can infiltrate spaces formed by nanoparticle overhangs to dislodge dust and grime from the coated surface. This keeps the glass clean, a big water- saving factor for windows in commercial buildings. It could also be used to improve the efficiency of solar panels in dusty, desert environments.

“No chemical catalysts or UV radiation are required to activate the coating so therefore it works at night,” says Mao, who directs the Clean Energy Laboratory for EETD. “Also, because the coating is non-toxic,