Most metals expand when their temperature rises. The Eiffel Tower, for example, is about 10 to 15 centimeters taller in summer than in winter due to its thermal expansion. However, this effect is ...

Polymer nanocomposites (PNC) are materials that are made up of a polymer matrix with embedded particles with a size of 100 nanometers or smaller. Carbon nanotubes or nanofibers, graphenes, and ...

Cordierite, the material behind heat-resistant pizza stones, has been shown to resist changes in size despite significant temperature fluctuations. The reasons for this have been largely unexplained ...

A study published in The Journal of Physical Chemistry C reports a collaboration between theoretical researchers at TU Wien (Vienna) and experimentalists at the University of Science and Technology ...

In both residential and commercial buildings, heating and cooling cycles can take a toll on piping systems. When pipes expand due to heat and contract when they cool, they stress joints, supports, and ...

Most metals expand when heated and contract when cooled. A few metals, however, do the opposite, exhibiting what’s known as negative thermal expansion (NTE). A team of researchers led by Ignace ...