News Releases

Engineers and scientists at The University of Texas at Austin and the AMOLF institute in the Netherlands have invented the first mechanical metamaterials that easily transfer motion effortlessly in one direction while blocking it in the other, as described in a paper published on Feb. 13 in Nature. The material can be thought of as a mechanical one-way shield that blocks energy from coming in but easily transmits it going out the other side.

The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) announced today that David T. Allen, professor in the McKetta Department of Chemical Engineering at The University of Texas of Austin, along with five Cockrell School of Engineering alumni, have been elected to the prestigious academy.

The Senate has confirmed Rex W. Tillerson, alumnus of the Cockrell School of Engineering and a member of the National Academy of Engineering, as the 69th U.S. Secretary of State. In this cabinet position, Tillerson will serve as the top foreign policy advisor to President Trump and the leader of the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Foreign Service.

Homes with solar panels do not require on-site storage to reap the biggest economic and environmental benefits of solar energy, according to research from the Cockrell School of Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin. In fact, storing solar energy for nighttime use actually increases both energy consumption and emissions compared with sending excess solar energy directly to the utility grid.

A team of engineers led by 94-year-old John Goodenough, professor in the Cockrell School of Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin and co-inventor of the lithium-ion battery, has developed the first all-solid-state battery cells that could lead to safer, faster-charging, longer-lasting rechargeable batteries for handheld mobile devices, electric cars and stationary energy storage.