Northwestern secured a record $1.05 billion in research funding this fiscal year, a 5% increase from 2023. The Daily compiled a recap of NU’s latest research developments.
100% prevention of frost formation
NU engineers have developed a method that prevents frost formation, according to an Oct. 30 news release. The new design also makes surfaces resistant to scratches, cracks and contamination.
Frost can lead to serious issues such as drag on airplane wings, significantly reduced energy efficiency of refrigerators and freezers, impaired vehicle sensors and added weight on power lines, which can cause breakages and power outages.
By tweaking the texture of a surface and applying a thin layer of graphene oxide, researchers discovered that this method completely blocks frost formation for one week — 1,000 times longer than existing anti-frosting techniques.
Graphene oxide attracts and traps water vapor within its structure, preventing the water from freezing, McCormick Prof. Kyoo-Chul Kenneth Park said in the release. The graphene oxide is combined with a macrotexture surface, resulting in a long period of high supersaturation, he said.
Researchers believe this advancement could save government agencies and companies billions of dollars annually in maintenance and energy inefficiency costs.
New Huntington’s disease treatment successful in mice
Scientists at NU and Case Western Reserve University have designed a polymer-based therapeutic for Huntington’s disease, an incurable and inherited disorder that causes the degeneration of brain nerve cells, according to a Nov. 1 news release.
Huntington’s disease is caused by a genetic mutation that triggers proteins in the brain to clump together, interfering with cell function and resulting in cell death. Patients typically lose the ability to walk, talk, swallow and concentrate, with most dying within 10 to 20 years of symptoms appearing.
The new therapeutic utilizes peptide-brush polymers that act as shields to prevent proteins from binding together.
The treatment has successfully rescued nerve cells in mice, resulting in the reversal of symptoms. No significant side effects were experienced by the treated mice, demonstrating the nontoxic nature of the therapy.
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