News and Updates

Displaying 1 - 25 of 95

Close-up photo of multicolored gummy bears lying on a surface with cannabis buds interspersed.

NIST Makes First Detection of Cannabis in Breath From Edibles

July 24, 2025

Currently there are no reliable roadside tests to determine when a person consumed cannabis or how intoxicated they are as a result.

Spotlight: Edward Garboczi and Ann Chiaramonti Debay Analyzed 14,000 Moon Dust Particles

February 27, 2025

Having such precise models of lunar dust will enable NASA and private space exploration companies to create more accurate simulations of the Moon’s surface.

An RM for Temperature and Enthalpy Calibration of Differential Scanning Calorimeters

January 31, 2025

A new Reference Material (RM) has been developed for the temperature and enthalpy calibration of differential scanning calorimeters (DSCs). The addition of this...

NIST Researchers to Test New Approach for Detecting Cannabis in Breath

August 15, 2024

The new approach involves two breath tests separated by a specified time interval.

Illustration shows a breathalyzer device with a paper report and microscope slides.

NIST Partners With the Gates Foundation to Develop Breathalyzers for Malaria and Tuberculosis

June 26, 2024

NIST will create the standards and tools needed to ensure that the breathalyzers work.

Grid of six B&W images of asbestos fibers taken by scanning electron microscopy

NIST Researchers Identify a Cheaper, More Convenient Method to Detect Asbestos

June 25, 2024

Researchers have verified that scanning electron microscopy (SEM) is a highly accurate way to test air samples for the presence of asbestos.

Historical newspaper photo shows a large ship in port with a crack down the center, splitting it almost in half.

Spotlight: The Unfortunate Origin of a NIST Metal Toughness Program Still Going Strong

October 19, 2023

A series of catastrophic failures in U.S. ships during World War II prompted the start of a program still in existence and going strong at NIST.

Martin Organizes International Hydrogen Conference

August 22, 2023

May Martin of the NIST Material Measurement Laboratory Applied Chemicals and Materials Division, along with Professor Jimmy Burns of the University of Virginia...

Jake Benzing wears safety glasses as he bends over to adjust piece of scientific equipment in the lab.

Spotlight: Searching for 3D-Printed Titanium’s Breaking Point With Jake Benzing

May 24, 2023

We have researchers who break stuff so that others can live their lives without stuff breaking down prematurely.

A large hydraulic press machine with vertical columns stands on a platform behind tanks labeled "Nitrogen."

Spotlight: Putting Steel to the Test Under Cryogenic Temperatures

May 24, 2023

How NIST researchers measure the fatigue of high-performance steels used for transporting and storing cryogenic liquids.

Researchers Analyze THC in Breath of Cannabis Smokers

May 22, 2023

Distinguishing between recent use and past use remains an elusive goal.

Spotlight: Toot, Toot! NIST Innovation in 3D Printing Takes a Familiar Form for the Industry

February 13, 2023

Do you know Benchy the Boat? The 3D-printing design is helping NIST researchers make waves with a technique called vat photopolymerization.

Side-by-side photos show twin brothers posing with arms crossed in lab or office settings.

Spotlight: Two Brothers, One Passion for Mechanical Engineering

September 20, 2022

This is a tale of two brothers who both found a passion for mechanical engineering research, separated to pursue their own interests in graduate school, and...

A man in safety goggles crouches at the back of an open air-conditioning unit, looking at a handheld tester.

Spotlight: Overhauling the Refrigeration Industry to Fight Global Warming

June 26, 2022

NIST researchers are tackling the question of alternative refrigerant fluids.

A woman (Callie Higgins) stands in front of a piece of photopolymerization equipment.

NIST’s Callie Higgins Wins Service to America Medal

October 28, 2021

Callie I. Higgins, a materials research engineer at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), has won the Samuel J. Heyman Service to America...

Five fragments of moon dust glow in bright colors on a black background.

Measuring the Moon’s Nano Dust Is No Small Matter

April 28, 2021

Like a chameleon of the night sky, the Moon often changes its appearance. It might look larger, brighter or redder, for example, due to its phases, its position...

microscopic, cross-section view of a defect within a 3D-printed titanium part

Spotlight: Getting Familiar With the Lifespan of 3D-Printed Parts

April 26, 2021

All manufactured materials have defects that can ultimately lead to their failure. But even with that known truth, people are turning away from a new...

Red fire extinguisher is attached to pipes and hoses inside a vehicle.

NIST Tool Will Help Military Vehicles Fight Fires Using Less Harmful Chemicals

March 2, 2021

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a new, interactive spreadsheet that will help the U.S. military...

Cheryle Beuning poses in front of scientific equipment, wearing safety goggles.

Spotlight: Understanding the Chemical Compounds in Cannabis

February 16, 2021

Keeping you safe with cutting-edge forensic science — NIST postdoctoral researcher Cheryle Beuning is part of a joint effort with the University of Colorado...

Microscope image shows blue and green jagged shapes

Spotlight: Exploring Potential Corrosion in 3D-Printed Titanium

February 12, 2021

Putting the metalloid to the metal, researchers at Boise State University developed a new way to explore how a 3D-printed titanium alloy corrodes, and then...

Alloy mapping shows areas in red, blue, and and other colors.

Spotlight: Unique Alloy for the Automotive Industry

January 25, 2021

Hypothetical scenario: A car hurtles toward a tree and swerves to avoid it when the passenger door meets timber and deforms around it. As the driver, you don't...

Plot graph shows dark purple block at left with areas growing lighter green to the right.

Nanocylinder Vibrations Help Quantify Polymer Curing for 3D Printing

December 10, 2020

In a step toward making more accurate and uniform 3D-printed parts such as personalized prosthetics and dental materials, researchers at the National Institute...

Spotlight: Callie Higgins Solidifies Her Place in the World of Photopolymerization

October 18, 2020

NIST’s Callie Higgins has found a place for herself in an emerging and largely mysterious field within manufacturing. As a special branch of additive...

Vapor-Liquid Equilibria Article- the #1 Most Downloaded paper from the Journal of Chemical & Engineering Data

June 25, 2020

A paper from members of the Applied Chemicals and Materials Division has 762 downloads from the Journal of Chemical & Engineering Data in the last 30 days...

$Electron backscatter diffraction for additive manufacturing, 1 of 2$

Spotlight: Jake Benzing and Electron Backscatter Diffraction

February 8, 2020

These images scream “manufacturing,” right? For NIST’s Jake Benzing, they certainly do. With an electron microscope by his side, the NRC postdoctoral fellow...

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