Colm Dougan’s Post

I recently came across this insightful article in Frontiers in Nanotechnology that does an excellent job of outlining where nanofibers stand today — and why, despite years of research, they are still not where many of us would like them to be in terms of real-world adoption. 👉 Read it here: https://lnkd.in/dQ5hcwzG The article highlights familiar hurdles: production rates, costs, and scalability. These are precisely the challenges we set out to address at Gelatex with our patented halospinning technology, enabling high-throughput and economically viable nanofiber manufacturing. It also points out something just as critical: conservativeness and skepticism in the use of nanofibers. And this is a challenge no manufacturing technology alone can solve. Even when cost and production barriers are removed, commercialization still takes time. This is especially true in the medical field, where regulation, validation, and trust-building are essential. Despite many pilots and R&D projects over the years, moving nanofiber-based products from lab to market is a gradual process. That’s exactly why waiting for others to commercialize first is rarely the winning strategy. If it takes years to validate, approve, and launch new materials and products, the right time to start is not “once it’s proven” — it’s today. Much of our focus in recent years has been on working closely with partners to navigate this journey together and turn promising nanofiber technologies into real, scalable, and approved products. So if you find this article inspiring and are open to working together on innovative nanofiber solutions — whether in cosmetics, medical, or other applications — feel free to reach out. Let’s start early and commercialize something impactful together. 🚀

Working with nanomaterials often means synthesizing small batches of the material. As a budding researcher, the question often arises, "Why not increase the reactants to get more yield?" A nanomaterial working well at a smaller scale does not guarantee it will work at a larger scale. Scaling doesn’t usually fail because the chemistry is wrong. It fails because the conditions change, and the material responds differently. At larger scales, surfaces don’t stay clean. Ions, organics, and impurities begin to compete for active sites. And, surface poisoning reduces activity. Particles agglomerate more easily. Higher concentrations and mixing conditions reduce effective surface area and change reaction pathways. Light behaves differently, too. In photocatalysis, light penetration drops as turbidity increases. Scattering and shading mean fewer photons actually reach active sites. Then there’s mass transfer. At a small scale, diffusion is forgiving. Whereas at a larger scale, transport limitations start controlling the rate instead of intrinsic activity. The chemistry may be the same. The system is not. Scaling forces us to confront what actually controls performance. And often, it’s not the material we thought it was. That’s why understanding mechanisms matters more than reporting peak efficiency numbers. It helps us make better systems to enhance scaling and get better results. I’m curious how you identify the limiting step when materials move beyond lab scale. What tends to fail first in your experience? #chemistry #nanomaterials

I have always been fascinated by the idea of electrospinning cotton — a material that is ancient, abundant, sustainable, and yet scientifically underexplored at the nanoscale. I’m excited to share our newly published paper, where we dive deep into transforming cotton-derived cellulose into electrospun nanofibers, uncovering its structural, physicochemical, and processing challenges and opportunities. This work bridges: 🔬 sustainable biomaterials 🧵 cellulose chemistry ⚡ electrospinning science 🧠 structure–property relationships Beyond sustainability, cotton-based nanofibers hold promise for biomedical, filtration, and advanced engineering applications, especially as we rethink material choices in a world moving toward greener technologies. I’m grateful to my collaborators and students who made this work possible, and I’m excited about where cotton-derived nanomaterials can go next. 📄 Read the paper here: https://lnkd.in/gYHwwFiC #Electrospinning #Cellulose #Cotton #SustainableMaterials #Nanofibers #Biomaterials #Research #AcademicPublishing

Protein-Based Material Could Revolutionize Electronics New Delhi – Researchers in India have discovered a naturally occurring, photoactive protein with the potential to dramatically alter the landscape of electronic materials. The Department of Science and Technology (DST) highlighted the breakthrough, suggesting it could pave the way for more sustainable and efficient electronic devices. The protein, identified as a modified form of phytochrome, exhibits remarkable light-responsive properties. Phytochrome is naturally found in plants and bacteria, playing a crucial role in sensing light and regulating various biological processes....

📢 New Publication | Fibers and Polymers (Q2 Journal) Happy to share another publication in Fibers and Polymers, titled: “Sustainable Dyeing of Cotton Fabric Using Aqueous Extracts of Artocarpus heterophyllus Sawdust Waste with Cellulose Nanocrystals.” While this research is primarily positioned within the textile and polymer science domain, my contribution focused on scientific writing, data interpretation, and manuscript development, drawing on perspectives from Biomedical Science, sustainability, and nanomaterial-based applications. This work reflects how biomedical thinking—such as functional performance, safety, and sustainability—can meaningfully inform textile innovation, even beyond direct laboratory involvement. 🙏 Special thanks to Dr. Rumesh Samarawickrama for the valuable opportunity to collaborate and for fostering interdisciplinary research that bridges biomedical science with textile technology. #BiomedicalScience #TextileScience #Nanotechnology #ScientificWriting #InterdisciplinaryResearch #SustainableMaterials #FibersAndPolymers #SustainableDevelopmentGoals

Biomaterials are often called unpredictable. In reality, they’re only unpredictable when the process is so. We’ve known this from day one and been building the processes to make material predictable. So how do we keep density, strength, moisture and consistency stable in mycelium #packaging batch by batch? Control isn’t something we add at the end, It’s designed into every step. Here’s how it works in practice: 1️⃣ We work with a homogeneous substrate: same particle size, same geometry and same behaviour. This alone removes a huge amount of variability. 2️⃣ We use a certified commercial #mycelium strain selected for predictable performance. The culture is refreshed regularly to prevent degradation over time. 3️⃣ We add natural nutrients using a fixed recipe tuned for fast and even biomass growth. No adjustments between batches. 4️⃣ Growth happens under stable conditions. Temperature, humidity, light and CO2 levels are controlled and monitored continuously. 5️⃣ Cleanliness matters at every step. We maintain hygiene throughout the growth process to prevent background biology from building up. Contamination is monitored continuously, not just checked at the end. 6️⃣ Drying is also done under identical conditions every time with the same temperature and air humidity. This step defines the final material properties. 7️⃣ Every batch goes through visual and tactile inspection. Anything outside spec is rejected. 8️⃣ On top of that, we run random mechanical tests from each batch to check strength and elasticity on a test stand. If you work with biomaterials, you already know: biology isn’t chaotic, but the poor process control is. Basically, nature provides the system and we just build a process to make it reliable. Of course, biology is still biology and sometimes the material comes out with a slightly different shade or texture, yet the performance stays the same. And I believe these natural visual variations are part of what makes S.Lab material real, not synthetic. And a question to my fellow engineers: what part of process control has been the hardest for you in #biomaterials?

🔬High-Impact Research in Advanced Science Outstanding work from the Lin Research Group on their newly published paper in Advanced Science: “An Elastocaloric Polymer with Ultra-High Solid-State Cooling via Defect Engineering” This work introduces a defect-engineering strategy in end-linked star polymers (ELSPs) that achieves exceptional solid-state cooling performance—enhancing adiabatic temperature change far beyond traditional designs—by precisely tuning polymer network defects. It represents a strong collaborative effort led by the Lin Research Group, with key scientific guidance from Prof. Ruobing Bai (Northeastern University ) and Prof. Svetlana Boriskina (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). The study reflects the depth of mentorship, laboratory excellence, and interdisciplinary collaboration behind high-impact materials research. Special recognition goes to the lead authors Zhaohan Yu , Duo Xu, and Zumrat Usmanova, along with the entire author team, for their rigorous experimental work and insightful analysis that advance the field of elastocaloric polymer science and solid-state cooling. We appreciate the authors, supervisors, and their laboratories on this important contribution and wish the work continued visibility and impact within the global research community. 🔗 Article : (https://lnkd.in/gEfq8ZGN). hashtag#AdvancedScience hashtag#MaterialsResearch hashtag#ResearchExcellence hashtag#LabAchievement hashtag#TeamScience hashtag#AcademicLeadership Michigan State University

A greener method to produce high-performance graphene. Monash University researchers have developed a green, solvent-free method to produce nitrogen-doped graphene nanoplatelets using a bio-derived nitrogen source. Read more: 👇👇 https://buff.ly/WuWF67R Monash University Chamalki Madhusha #newtechnology #wireless #technology #electronics #technews #Electrical #tech #ElecOnlineAU

THE FIRST BATTERY RESEARCH ARTICLE OF 2026 IS OUT! 🔋⚡📰✨   It is always a fantastic feeling when the first peer-reviewed research article on batteries is published at the beginning of the year! 😌   At Nature Nanotechnology, we couldn't ask for a better start to 2026 than with this incredible, fully open-access research paper written by Hui-Ming Cheng from the Institute of Technology for Carbon Neutrality at the Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology (China) and co-authors from China and the Republic of Korea. They report on the development of composite organic/inorganic solid-state electrolytes with ionic conductivity ranging from 6.1 to 10.2 mS/cm at 25 °C 🤯   I know you are probably thinking, “How is this possible? 🤔”   The answer lies in clever nanoscale material engineering of the two components of the solid-state electrolytes. In one word: alignment! 💡   LixMyPS3 (M = Cd or Mn) and LiTFSI-containing polyethylene oxide layers are aligned in parallel with each other to form a thick membrane electrode. The membrane is then aligned perpendicular to the electrode to improve ionic transport. These composite solid electrolytes, tested in coin and pouch Li metal cell configurations, enable impressive low-stack-pressure battery performance. 🤩   If you want to learn more about this research article, click on the link in the first comment below to access this incredible, fully open-access study! 👇   #energy #batteries #solidstate #electrolytes #electrochemistry #materialscience

Researchers have discovered a way to significantly reduce energy use in nanomaterials manufacturing...using tiny tornadoes. Cellulose, the same natural material that gives trees their strength, has long been used to make everyday products. More recently, scientists have started exploring the unique properties of cellulose nanofibers, which can be used to create everything from stronger concrete to bone replacements. One long-standing challenge has been preventing these nanofibers from clumping together during processing, since they bond so easily. Scientists found that using carefully controlled air currents to spin and separate the fibers keeps them from sticking together. The result is a process that is more energy-efficient, effective, and scalable than conventional methods. Learn more: https://bit.ly/3Z5glYo