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Ultra-Strong Nanotube Composites

Posted by timothy on from the like-mighty-mouse dept.

TheMatt writes "In a story that makes you say "Cool!", Nicholas Kotov and co-workers have created a nanotube composite material six times stronger than carbon-fiber composites. Their final product is a crosslinked material which appears to be just as strong as silicon carbide and tantalum carbide!"

4 of 29 comments (clear)

  1. Flexibility? Tech usefulness? by Zelet · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Anybody have any more information or links that explain how flexible this new material is? Specifically, can it be used to make the space elevator?

    --
    ...And when they came for me, there was no one left to speak out for me." - Martin Niemoeller (1892-1984)
  2. How do you work with it? by Gerry+Gleason · · Score: 4, Interesting
    Obviously this is still at a research stage, but I have to wonder what will be involved in making structures out of it. The alternate dipping process sounds like a bit of a hack, but it probably can be adapted for creating macro structures. There was a time when carbon fibers were so exotic that you weren't allowed to use them in American Cup yachts, and now it's everywhere. I wonder if you could combine the two components by spraying them from seperate nozzles, or something. Then maybe you could coat a mold with the componite much like they spray chopped strand and poly resin into boat molds.

    They don't give much detail on anything. They seem to be saying the material is both strong and stiff, but you might be able to play with the properties

  3. umm.... strong? by Transcendent · · Score: 3, Interesting

    ...they are far stronger and stiffer than those used to make carbon-fibre tennis-rackets...

    Yeeaaaa... Usually tennis rackets are designed to bend. They do make rackets that are intended to be stiff, but even those are supposed to bend a little...

    Also, pro players brake their rackets a lot... so do amatures... I broke about 3 "carbon-fibre" rackets just by dropping them.

    ...maybe that simile could use a little work?

  4. Re:No big uses soon... by florescent_beige · · Score: 2, Interesting
    Right on. In comparison to other structural materials, glass is acually quite flexible (low modulus). Fiberglass airplanes tend to be limited by flexibility, that is, the designer has to put in enough material to prevent the wings (for example) from bending too much to prevent them from doing their aerodynamic job.

    Graphite composite structures tend to be limited by static strength (ie they will break before they deform too much) and metallics are limited by fatigue strength.

    Glass fibers actually have a very high strength but most of the time you cant use it all because of the felxibility. Graphite was going to replace aluminum in airplanes until we found out its vulnerable to impact damage (though that's changing with newer resins). Kevalar was going to change the world until we found out it has no compression strength (I once had to certify a Kevlar wing on a surveillance drone: Kevlar is like designing with chain...you can pull on it but don't push).

    I'm sure eventually the pro's and cons of this new stuff will come out. Personally I'd like to know about it's damage tolerance.

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    Equine Mammals Are Considerably Smaller