Plants Engineered to Replace Oil in Sugarcane and Sweet Sorghum (PETROSS), funded by the Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E), has developed sugarcane that produces oil, called lipidcane, that can be converted into biodiesel or jet fuel in place of sugar that is currently used for ethanol production. With 20% oil – the theoretical limit – all of the sugar in the plant would be replaced by oil.

Modern avionics are highly dependent on reliable connectivity — and reliable interconnection systems. As data rates inevitably improve to address greater military requirements, how will the increase impact signal integrity?

In aerospace applications of materials, increasing strength often leads to a decrease in ductility. Engineers have developed a Super Steel that addresses this strength-ductility tradeoff. In addition to the substantial improvement of tensile properties, the steel has low raw-material cost and simple industrial processing.

When planes get caught in traffic, pilots have to keep flying until the backup clears and their runways become available for landing. This means that air traffic controllers must send them on less-direct paths to their final destination, using more fuel in the process.

Sandia National Laboratories has successfully demonstrated a new, more environmentally friendly method to test a rocket part to ensure its avionics can withstand the shock from stage separation during flight. The Alternative Pyroshock Test uses a nitrogen-powered gas gun to shoot a 100-pound steel projectile into a steel resonant beam, which then transfers energy through a resonant cone attached to the part being tested. The resulting energy transfer mimics the conditions of stage separation in space.

The Construction Engineering Research Laboratory in Champaign, Illinois, has successfully three-dimensionally printed a 512 square-foot concrete structure. The structure, called a barracks hut or B-Hut, was printed as a result of a three-year Army Program called the "Automated Construction of Expeditionary Structures." It uses an additive manufacturing process to "print" semi-permanent structures in a theater of operation. The ability to use concrete sourced from readily available materials reduces logistical requirements for the U.S. Army.

Researchers at the Virginia Tech College of Science are carrying out a research project at Dominion Power’s North Anna Nuclear Generating Station in Virginia that could lead to a new turning point in how the United Nations tracks rogue nations that seek nuclear power. The years-long project centers on a high-tech box full of luminescent plastic cubes stacked atop one another that can be placed just outside a nuclear reactor operated by, say, Iran. The box would detect subatomic particles known as neutrinos produced by the reactor, which can be used to track the amount of plutonium produced in the reactor core.

Soldiering in arctic conditions is tough. Protective clothing can be heavy and cause overheating and sweating upon exertion. And hands and feet can grow numb despite wearing such gear. To keep military personnel more comfortable and battle-ready in bitterly cold climes, scientists are conducting research aimed at creating high-tech fabrics that heat up when powered and capture sweat.

Kapton, a material used in electronics and aerospace applications, has only been available in sheet form. Researchers from Virginia Tech have found a way to 3D-print a polymer with Kapton's structural characteristics.

Four companies were awarded contracts to come up with five configurations on paper that met very specific operational criteria for NASA’s next commercial X-plane aircraft.