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Professor John Mauro of Penn State University shared the latest developments of the LionGlass project through a video presentation, highlighting its potential applications and environmental benefits. 

LionGlass is a family of glass engineered by researchers at Penn State University in the USA.

In the United States, syphilis cases rose by nearly 80% between 2018 and 2023, with 209,253 cases reported in the latest year of data. The infection, which can be transmitted sexually or passed from mother to infant during birth, is curable but only if diagnosed quickly. Left untreated, syphilis can progress from painless lesions to brain and cardiovascular damage. Despite the first recorded outbreak of syphilis occurring more than 500 years ago — with some researchers theorizing that it has plagued humans for thousands of years — there still isn’t a way to quickly and reliably test for active syphilis infection, according to Penn State Professor Dipanjan Pan.

The winners of the 17th annual Materials Visualization Competition (MVC), a scientific visual and artistic competition sponsored by the Department of Materials Science and Engineering and the Materials Research Institute at Penn State, have been announced. MVC celebrates the quality of research in materials at Penn State and promotes awareness of materials science through visualization.

As one of the founding members of Penn State’s Silicon Carbide Innovation Alliance (SCIA), Mesta Electronics works with SCIA to grow silicon carbide crystals for semiconductors, which requires a stable, precise power source to heat a specialized furnace to extreme temperatures. To meet this need, Mesta Electronics LLC has donated two Mesta 50kW Induction Heating Power Supplies to SCIA.

For some pressing research problems, an ocean’s worth of distance isn’t enough to prevent the connection to some common ground. That’s the point behind the annual National Academies U.S.-Africa Frontiers of Science, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) Symposium. And it’s why the College of Earth and Minerals Sciences (EMS) joined Google, the Gates and Rutter Foundations, the Department of Defense and others as sponsors of the event.

The Materials Research Institute (MRI) at Penn State has announced the recipients of the 2025 Interdisciplinary Seed Grants and Transdisciplinary Teaming Initiative awards, designed to support collaborative, high-risk research with the potential for significant societal and technological impact.

Additive manufacturing, or 3D printing, has drastically improved the uniformity and speed of metal parts manufacturing, but the printed parts are often plagued with defects, such as pores, that limit their performance. The process also requires an inspection of each part after printing, which can slow down production and limit where parts can be made.

Special biomedical materials that can be injected as a liquid and turn into a solid inside our bodies — called thermogels — could provide a less-invasive way to deliver drugs or treat wounds. Scientists at Penn State have developed a new design for these materials that further improves their properties and may hold particular promise for use in tissue regeneration, the researchers said.

Penn State's College of Earth and Mineral Sciences (EMS) recognized exceptional students and faculty for their academic excellence, service and leadership during its annual Wilson Awards Celebration, held on March 30. The Wilson Awards are named in honor of Matthew and Anne Wilson, major benefactors of the college. 

“We are extremely proud of the accomplishments of our faculty and students,” said Lee Kump, the John Leone Dean in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences. “We have a tremendously talented faculty and students who do remarkable things, and this is a chance to honor them.”

Thirty-one graduate students received awards at the 2025 Graduate Exhibition, hosted by the J. Jeffrey and Ann Marie Fox Graduate School on Friday, March 28, on the University Park campus.

• Research Poster Category — Physical Sciences and Mathematics 
  First Place: Cyril Chu Fubin Kumachang, Materials Science and Engineering, “Ambient-Processed Semitransparent Perovskite Solar Cells from Environmentally Benign Solvents”