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Pure metallic gel opens door to more powerful liquid metal batteries

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Pure metallic gel opens door to more powerful liquid metal batteries


A tubular furnace heats materials within a sealed quartz tube to study phase transformations and develop next-generation metallic materials. Credit: Emily Oswald/Texas A&M Engineering

Researchers at Texas A&M University have developed the first known metallic gel. Unlike everyday gels, like those used in hand sanitizers, hair products or soft contact lenses, this new material is made entirely of metals and can withstand extreme heat. The discovery could be a game changer for energy storage.

The work is published in Advanced Engineering Materials.

The gel is created by mixing two . When heated, one metal melts into a liquid, while the other stays solid and forms a microscopic scaffold. The liquid metal remains trapped inside this structure, creating a gel-like material that looks solid but contains liquid within.

Everyday gels are semi-solid materials containing an organic backbone holding liquids in place at room temperature. Unlike them, metallic gels require very high temperatures, which, depending on the metals used, can be around 1,000 degrees Celsius or 1,832 degrees Fahrenheit.

“Metallic gels have never been reported before, probably because no one thought liquid metals could be supported by an internal ultrafine skeleton,” said Dr. Michael J. Demkowicz, a professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, who led the research.

“What’s surprising in this case is that when the majority component—copper—was melted into liquid, it didn’t just collapse into a puddle. That’s what pure copper would have done,” he explained.

Metallic gels made from highly reactive metals with strong electrical attraction, known as electronegativity, can be used as electrodes in liquid metal batteries (LMBs). In simple terms, these metals are very reactive and easily bond with other materials, which helps the battery work efficiently.

LMBs are special types of batteries that store and release large amounts of electrical energy. Instead of using solid materials like most batteries, they use layers of liquid metal. Because the parts are liquid, they do not wear out as quickly as regular batteries.

So far, LMBs have mainly been used in large stationary systems, such as backup power for building applications that need to keep running during a . They have not been used in moving systems because the liquid inside shifts when the battery moves. This can cause a short circuit, which means the battery loses electrical power.

That is where metallic gel electrodes come in. By holding the in place, they could make it possible to use LMBs in things that move, such as powering large ships or heavy industrial vehicles that can safely handle the heat of these batteries.

To test the idea, researchers built a small lab version of the battery using two cube-shaped electrodes. One was made from a mix of liquid calcium and solid iron, which acted as the anode, and the other from liquid bismuth and iron, which acted as the cathode.

When placed in a molten salt, a hot liquid that allows electrical charge to flow between the two, the battery worked successfully. It produced electricity, and the mostly liquid electrodes stayed in shape and kept working as intended.

The research was performed by a team led by Demkowicz and doctoral student Charles Borenstein, who is the first author on the paper.

Demkowicz and Borenstein said that what began as an exploration of the behaviors of metal composites of copper and tantalum resulted in this serendipitous discovery.

“We were just exploring different methods of processing composites by heat,” Demkowicz said. “All we wanted to do, at first, was to see: Does this even survive until one of the components melts?”

Borenstein originally put a composite of 25% tantalum and 75% copper into the furnace heated to copper’s melting point.

“Nothing happened, which I found kind of confusing,” he said, noting that the copper didn’t run out and pool. “We were pretty surprised by these results.”

After testing other percentages of both metals, he found that any combination of the metals with a volume of tantalum above 18 percent still retained the gel form.

The next step was to bring the new structure to a lab with a very high-resolution micro-CT scanner to examine the metallic gel’s interior. Although copper and tantalum are not ideal candidates for electrodes, they are for CT scanning. As anticipated, the tantalum formed a solid scaffolding structure holding the liquid copper within its lacunae.

That’s when the team shifted their research to the battery materials of iron, bismuth and calcium, and demonstrated the feasibility of the metallic gel LMB.

Demkowicz said that an LMB made for transportable applications could also employ a gel-like composite electrolyte, such as a supported by a ceramic backbone, through which the electrode’s ions could pass.

He highlighted other potential applications for LMBs, including one that he said would be especially exciting to work on: powering a hypersonic vehicle, like those under feasibility study at the Texas A&M University Consortium for Applied Hypersonics. Hypersonic vehicles operate at extremely high temperatures and could theoretically be powered by a very hot LMB.

Co-authors on the paper are Dr. Brady G. Butler and Dr. James D. Paramore, visiting professors at Texas A&M, and Dr. Karl T. Hartwig, professor emeritus at the university.

The high-resolution CT scanning was performed at the University of Texas High-Resolution X-ray Computed Tomography Facility in Austin.

More information:
Charles Borenstein et al, Shape‐Preserving Metallic Gels with Applications as Electrodes for Liquid Metal Batteries, Advanced Engineering Materials (2025). DOI: 10.1002/adem.202500738

Citation:
Pure metallic gel opens door to more powerful liquid metal batteries (2025, October 23)
retrieved 23 October 2025
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This Premium Sennheiser Soundbar Is $1,000 Off

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This Premium Sennheiser Soundbar Is ,000 Off


Looking for an all-in-one soundbar that sounds as big as it looks? Sennheiser’s Ambeo Max uses its oversized body to produce beefy, enveloping sound, and right now you can grab it for just $2,000 at Best Buy, a sizable $1,000 markdown from the usual list price. It’s one of our favorite standalone premium soundbars, particularly if you don’t want to deal with an exterior subwoofer but still want bigger bass than you’re likely to find on smaller options.

While it might be a bit larger than your average soundbar, Sennheiser uses the space well, packing a ton of functionality and drivers into the less-than-compact body. There are both full-range and 1-inch tweeters combined in every conceivable direction, and the result is an impressive reproduction of true spatial audio, something few other standalone bars can claim. As a result, it also has an impressive low-end, with bass that doesn’t rival dedicated subwoofers, but comes really close for how much simpler the setup process will be.

The larger footprint also allows for a huge number of inputs, more than you’re likely to find on those tiny soundbars that slide under your screen. In addition to an HDMI 2.1 output with eARC, you’ll get three HDMI inputs with 4K pass-through at 60Hz, USB, Ethernet, and optical audio. There are even RCA ports in case you want to hook this up to your turntable. There’s also a dedicated subwoofer output, in case you decide you want to add one to your setup down the road, giving you a ton of options should you decide to put the Ambeo Max at the center of your home audio setup.

Ready to make the move to a bigger, better soundbar? Swing on over to Best Buy to grab this hefty discount on the Sennheiser Ambeo Max, or check out our guide to the best premium soundbars for some of our other favorite picks. If you’re just out looking for a great deal in general, the Amazon Big Spring Sale is underway, and we’ve got a dedicated post with all the best discounts on everything from smartwatches to water bottles.



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ICE Agents Frustrate Airport Workers as Shutdown Drags On

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ICE Agents Frustrate Airport Workers as Shutdown Drags On


On Thursday, hours-long security lines snaked through New York City’s LaGuardia Airport. The wait was far from the longest in the country—George Bush International Airport in Houston reported three and a half hour lines. Over a month into a partial government shutdown that has left some Department of Homeland Security (DHS) employees working without pay, Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents are calling in sick or leaving work en masse, leading to travel chaos around the US. The Trump administration’s solution? Send Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in.

ICE agents were deployed to at least 14 airports on Monday, ostensibly in an effort to speed up security lines—and five days into ICE’s incursion, airport employees are infuriated. The ICE agents, Transportation Security Officers (TSOs) who work for the TSA tell WIRED, don’t have the proper certification and training to perform many of tasks that might truly speed up security lines. The TSA employees say they’re frustrated by the situation—and worried about what it might mean for their future.

ICE agents have been spotted walking in packs, patrolling security lines and baggage areas. They have been seen giving directions to lost passengers, photographed distributing mini water bottles to those waiting in line, and, more often than not, standing around and appearing to do very little. “ICE are here and they’re doing literally nothing to help,” passengers in a security line overheard one airline worker complain on Wednesday at John F. Kennedy airport in New York.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that some passengers stuck in line spotted ICE agents being trained to check passenger IDs and boarding passes. In a hearing in front of the US House Committee on Homeland Security on Wednesday, TSA acting head Ha Nguyen McNeill said that “the travel document checker function is one of the nonspecialized screen functions of the TSA,” and said ICE agents are being trained to conduct checks.

TSOs say ICE’s presence is frustrating to those working without pay—especially because ICE agents are being paid. “If you want to bring a tactical force into an environment where it’s required to have customer service and a mindset where you know what you’re doing, how to identify something that might be suspicious—they don’t have that training,” says Hydrick Thomas, a security officer and the president of AFGE Local 2222, which covers New York and New Jersey airports.

Security officers say they’re concerned for their coworkers, who, thanks to last fall’s government shutdown, haven’t received a steady paycheck for half of the fiscal year. Agents are worried about paying for rent, mortgages, gas, and childcare. Food banks have stood up drives in several airports, including those in Houston, North Carolina, and San Diego. In Knoxville, Tennessee, airport authorities are accepting donations for employees at a Delta Airlines counter. Eleven percent of airport checkpoint employees called out on Tuesday, compared to four percent pre-shutdown, a federal official testified to Congress on Wednesday morning. Some airports, including those in Houston, Atlanta, New Orleans, and New York’s John F. Kennedy, have seen daily callout rates higher than 35 percent. More than 480 TSA screeners have quit since the shutdown began in February, the agency says.

Long term, security officers say they’re concerned that the federal government plans to replace them with other federal agents, including ICE agents, or private sector employees. One mentioned Project 2025, a blueprint for the second Trump administration published by the conservative Heritage Foundation, which advocates for privatizing TSA altogether.

“A part of the American dream that I was sold was that working for the government was honorable and stable,” Carlos Rodriguez, a security officer and a AFGE TSA Council 100 vice president representing airports Northeastern airports from New Jersey to Vermont. “But this is not honorable or stable at this moment.”



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Skip the TSA Line: Where to Find Travel by Bus, Train, and Boat

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Skip the TSA Line: Where to Find Travel by Bus, Train, and Boat


Every year, without fail, the US experiences at least one major disruption in air travel due to severe weather, government shutdowns, software outages, or power outages—you name it.

Right now, a partial government shutdown has meant that thousands of Transportation Security Administration (TSA) workers have not been paid for several weeks, causing many to call out of work or quit. That has meant long security lines—more than three-hour waits—ensuing chaos at airports around the country. It’s unclear how long this mess will last, so it’s worth thinking about other options.

Flights are also expensive and hard on the environment. If you can take a bus, train, or ferry to your destination, why shouldn’t you? These travel search apps help you find routes and prices so you can compare them and make the best decision.

Wanderu

Best for Buses and Trains in the US and Canada

In the US and Canada, Wanderu is my go-to search aggregator for travel by bus or train (it works in Europe and the UK, too). Wanderu is your classic travel aggregator, looking up the schedules and prices across several bus and train operators, including Amtrak, BestBus, Flixbus, Greyhound, OurBus, Peter Pan, RedCoach, Vamoose, and others.

You see price comparisons at a glance, as well as options for upgraded class fares, departure and arrival times, and the location of each bus and train station, since sometimes you can save a lot of time by choosing one point over another. Filters help you narrow down your results based on your preferences, and you can book right from the app.

Omio

Compares Trains, Buses, Flights With Excellent Summaries

If you aren’t sure whether you want to travel by land or air, head to Omio. Type in your departure point, destination, and the date you want to travel, and Omio finds routes by plane, bus, and train. A concise summary at the top of the search results tells you the lowest fare and how long it will take for each mode of transportation, so you can make an informed decision quickly. Omio also shows whether the fare will be higher or lower if you travel on a different day of the same week, in case your dates are flexible.

Rome2Rio

Includes Comparison for Driving

Rome2Rio compares prices and times for travel by bus, train, flight, and driving yourself, based on estimated fuel costs. It works reasonably well for trips in the US and Canada. Rome2Rio touts itself as being for worldwide travel, though Europe and the UK seem to be its sweet spot. Elsewhere, take the approach of “trust, but verify,” and this app will take you places.

Virail

Compares Buses, Trains, and Flights

Virail is similar to Omio, comparing travel options by train, bus, and flight, with a neat summary of prices at the top of the search results, although it lacks the total travel time. For that, you have to scroll through the results. To book a ticket, Virail sends you to other websites, and you might have to do additional legwork to reserve your seat. It works reasonably well in the US and Canada (in testing, it got a little tripped up in Mexico), and does well for travel in Europe and the UK.

Vivanoda

Includes Flight and Carpool

Vivanoda (website only, no app) is similar to Omio, comparing all your options for getting between two points—and it includes flights, ferries, and carpool/rideshare options when applicable. The site operates out of the European Union and seems to work slightly better for travel in Europe and the UK than in the US and Canada, where it has some holes. (It didn’t find a direct flight between San Francisco and Vancouver, for example, even though there is more than one daily.)

Seat 61

Best Old-School Site for Trains and Bus Info Worldwide

Seat61, also known as The Man in Seat 61 (website only), has an old-school look and some of the best, most reliable information about traveling by bus and rail all around the world. Mark Smith, who runs the site, tells you exactly where in the world he knows about the train and bus routes: The site lists all the countries it covers on the left side, everywhere from Albania to Zimbabwe. He shares timetables, prices, and even includes photos, though his site is not a search aggregator, and you do have to go elsewhere to book. That said, it’s an excellent resource.



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