Sounds like duranium from Trek... cool, Mr Worf! On Thu, Sep 9, 2010 at 3:40 AM, Mr. Worf <hellomahog...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > > SEPTEMBER 08, 2010 > Nano-Architectured Aluminum is as Strong as Steel but has lower > weight<http://nextbigfuture.com/2010/09/nano-architectured-aluminum-is-as.html> > 7Share<http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fnextbigfuture.com%2F2010%2F09%2Fnano-architectured-aluminum-is-as.html&src=sp> > <http://www.google.com/buzz/post> > *Ad Support* : *Nano > Technology*<http://www.nextbigfuture.com/p/searchresults.html?PLUCKsearchTerm=nano%20technology&PLUCKwhichPage=relatedAdLinks> > *Netbook* > <http://www.nextbigfuture.com/p/searchresults.html?PLUCKsearchTerm=netbook&PLUCKwhichPage=relatedAdLinks> > *Technology > News*<http://www.nextbigfuture.com/p/searchresults.html?PLUCKsearchTerm=technology%20news&PLUCKwhichPage=relatedAdLinks> > *Computer > Software*<http://www.nextbigfuture.com/p/searchresults.html?PLUCKsearchTerm=computer%20software&PLUCKwhichPage=relatedAdLinks> > > A North Carolina State University researcher and colleagues have figured > out a way to make an aluminum alloy, or a mixture of aluminum and other > elements, just as strong as steel.<http://news.ncsu.edu/releases/162mkzhu/> > > That’s important, says Dr. Yuntian Zhu, professor of materials science and > the NC State researcher involved in the project, because the search for ever > lighter – yet stronger – materials is crucial to devising everything from > more fuel-efficient cars to safer airplanes. > > In a paper published in the journal Nature Communications, Zhu and his > colleagues describe the new nanoscale architecture within aluminum alloys > that have unprecedented strength but also reasonable plasticity to stretch > and not break under stress. Perhaps even more importantly, the technique of > creating these nanostructures can be used on many different types of metals. > > > > Zhu says the aluminum alloys have unique structural elements that, when > combined to form a hierarchical structure at several nanoscale levels, make > them super-strong and ductile. > > The aluminum alloys have small building blocks, called “grains,” that are > thousands of times smaller than the width of a human hair. Each grain is a > tiny crystal less than 100 nanometers in size. Bigger is not better in > materials, Zhu says, as smaller grains result in stronger materials. > > Zhu also says the aluminum alloys have a number of different types of > crystal “defects.” Nanocrystals with defects are stronger than perfect > crystals. > > Now, Zhu plans on working on strengthening magnesium, a metal that is even > lighter than aluminum. He’s collaborating with the Department of Defense on > a project to make magnesium alloys strong enough to be used as body armor > for soldiers. > > > > Nature Communications - Nanostructural hierarchy increases the strength of > aluminium alloys > > Increasing the strength of metallic alloys while maintaining formability is > an interesting challenge for enabling new generations of lightweight > structures and technologies. In this paper, we engineer aluminium alloys to > contain a hierarchy of nanostructures and possess mechanical properties that > expand known performance boundaries – an aerospace-grade 7075 alloy exhibits > a yield strength and uniform elongation approaching 1 GPa and 5%, > respectively. The nanostructural architecture was observed using novel > high-resolution microscopy techniques and comprises a solid solution, free > of precipitation, featuring (i) a high density of dislocations, (ii) > subnanometre intragranular solute clusters, (iii) two geometries of > nanometre-scale intergranular solute structures and (iv) grain sizes tens of > nanometres in diameter. Our results demonstrate that this novel architecture > offers a design pathway towards a new generation of super-strong materials > with new regimes of property-performance space. > > > > *If you liked this article, please give it a quick review on > Reddit<http://www.reddit.com/>, > or StumbleUpon <http://www.stumbleupon.com/>. Thanks* > > > -- "If all the world's a stage and we are merely players, who the bloody hell wrote the script?" -- Charles E Grant http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQUxw9aUVik
