If you thought graphene was going to be the next do-everything material, we’ve got news for you: Multi-Use Titanium Dioxide (TiO2) has just taken its place. Developed by scientists at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, this wonder material can do everything you might expect a wonder material to do – and more.

So far, TiO2’s uses include producing clean water, producing clean energy, generate hydrogen, kill bacteria, be formed into flexible solar cells, and even extend the useful lifespan of batteries. What’s more is that the materials used to make TiO2 are cheap and readily available, making its possibilities nearly endless.

TiO2 is made by forming titanium dioxide crystals into nanofibers, then forming those nanofibers into flexible membranes. The scientists who developed the material are hoping that it can help with two of the world’s biggest problems: a lack of clean drinking water and the need for clean, renewable energy. The seriously amazing substance needs some more research and work, but so far it looks to be extremely promising in the race for solving these problems.

The post Incredible New Nanomaterial is Great at Multi-Tasking first appeared on Gajitz.

In developing countries, water quality is something that often hampers progress. Proximity to water altogether is a threat to quality and something that led American social venture company Wello to create a portable water transporting device.

In regions of India, the trek to water can be up to five miles long. Retrieving it is a task done mainly by women, and the distance can cause it to take up to 25% of their day. The inventors at Wello created the WaterWheel, a spherical container that rolls on attached handles. It can hold 50 liters, a five-fold improvement on the traditional head-carrying method.

Wello created the WaterWheel after first visiting people in villages in the region of Rajasthan in 2011. They won a $100,000 Grand Challenges Canada prize that allowed them to fully develop the idea, which is now being manufactured in Ahmedabad city in Gujarat.

The post New Wheel Helps Carry the Weight of Water Transporting first appeared on Gajitz.