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Related: About this forumMIT researchers create new material as strong as steel and light as plastic
Michelle Shen, USA TODAY - Yesterday 12:07 PM
It can be easily manufactured in large quantities, and the use cases range from lightweight coatings for cars and phones to building blocks for massive structures such as bridges, according to Michael Strano, the Carbon P. Dubbs Professor of Chemical Engineering at MIT and the senior author of a new study.
. . .
The material is several times stronger than bulletproof glass, and the amount of force needed to break it is twice that of steel, despite the fact that the material has only about one-sixth the density of steel, according to MIT.
The researchers were able to do this by developing a new process to form polymers. Plastics are an example of polymers, along with rubber and glass.
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https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/mit-researchers-create-new-material-as-strong-as-steel-and-light-as-plastic/ar-AATxpuj?ocid=hponeservicefeed
nvme
(860 posts)I wonder, if it is similar to plastics, they become weaker over time. This will be something to look at.
BootinUp
(46,928 posts)it wouldn't make good sense in some of the applications mentioned. But every molecular has a few weaknesses.
Slammer
(714 posts)MIT researchers create new material as strong as steel and light as plastic.
If it also defies the laws of physics, soon each one of us can own a copy of Captain America's shield.
ancianita
(35,816 posts)While it's a cool building material, building infrastructure with it seems to be a forever pollutant that the Earth's environment doesn't need any more of, imo.
I'd rather rebuild bridges with recycled materials, using even hemp brick for buildings, than keep any forever polymer that still hasn't gone through extreme weather trials that simulate what it and we might have to face with cascading climate disasters. Just sayin'.