Carbon fiber to be replaced by Buckypaper?
The name is strange, and the material seems to possess otherworldly strength, but it's all very serious. Buckypaper is a new material composed of carbon nanotubes that promises to revolutionize composite materials. Stacking sheets of buckypaper together nets a material that's 500 times stronger than steel, yet 10 times lighter. Florida State University is working on making the material inexpensive to produce in large batches of ultra-strong sheets, and the possible applications are wide and varied. Airplanes, automobiles, household items, the possibilities are endless, though we'd be most interested to see buckypaper mature to the point where it can comprise a monocoque shell for an automobile. There are challenges to getting the nanotubes to arrange properly for high strength, and bonding something with such surface smoothness is also difficult, but the promise of a new wonder-material has built a lot of excitement and could one day replace carbon fiber as the exotic material of choice to both lighten and strengthen our cars at the same time. Thanks for the tip, everyone!
[Source: Baltimore Sun]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Mark 3:44PM (10/21/2008)
I see the numbers for steel, but how does it compare to CF (it's competitor)?
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eb110americana 4:13PM (10/21/2008)
"So far, the Florida State institute has been able to produce buckypaper with half the strength of the best existing composite material, known as IM7. Wang expects to close the gap quickly.
'By the end of next year we should have a buckypaper composite as strong as IM7, and it's 35 percent lighter,' Wang said."
I'm guessing IM7 is high grade carbon fiber. They do seem to tout its conductivity though, so possibly they are comparing it to something more conductive. Right now it seems they are looking to replace things that would otherwise need to be made of metal. Since it can also dissipate heat in the same way as transmitting electricity, I wonder if there may be Buckypaper engine blocks in the future. Even if the wear characteristics aren't sufficient, metal cylinder liners and bearings could be cast in place (much like most aluminum engines). If this pans out, it could mean lighter cars for us all, and not a moment too soon.
evaristo.jo 3:48PM (10/21/2008)
Because CF is just not expensive enough, researchers decided to one-up CF in order to have something cool to use on spacecraft and other uber expensive projects that is not seen on Hondas.
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Michael 3:51PM (10/21/2008)
A new material that possesses otherworldly strength and all they can come up with is buckypaper?
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Hot_Carl 4:00PM (10/21/2008)
I'm assuming that is in reference to famous physicist R. Buckminster Fuller, chief proponent of the "Bucky Ball" or geodesic dome.
nataku83 4:00PM (10/21/2008)
I think it's probably made up of bucky-balls, which are like little carbon soccer balls (ubiquitous wikipedia entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buckyballs). They're something that's been named / known about for a bit, but the idea of manufacturing them en masse is pretty cool.
Kitko 3:54PM (10/21/2008)
Great, after a composite "steel" toe in my boots and Kevlar shoe laces, I can have a car made of what's essentially a carbon derivate in the same sense as CO2 emissions :-) What about recycling those?
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Obviously DaMinority 10:01PM (10/24/2008)
Yeah, if we could just get those pesky CO2 molecules to spontaneously split into Buckypaper and O2 (not O3 god forbid) we'd have the answer to all our carbon problems.
Andre 4:04PM (10/21/2008)
Yo, Yo! check out my Buckypaper Hood.. hehehe
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fixitfixitstop 5:23PM (10/21/2008)
(imitates CarDomain commentary)
Sick ride yo check out my whip vote me up
Michael 4:20PM (10/21/2008)
Damn it.
My carbon fiber keychain is out of date now! I need to replace my carbon fiber jewelry, too.
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nanotube 4:54PM (10/21/2008)
Don't worry, it'll have a cooler name by the time it gets to automotive applications.
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Ed 4:59PM (10/21/2008)
Not relevant until I can get fake bucky-paper-style dashboard trim.
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JRA 5:10PM (10/21/2008)
Does this mean the Pontiac G5's replacement will have faux Buckypaper trim instead of faux Carbon Fiber trim???
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Paul 5:15PM (10/21/2008)
Ickydiaper.
Crumblycookie.
Buckypaper.
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pixelnate 5:17PM (10/21/2008)
For all the greenies out there, this is the ultimate anti-eco material. It will never degrade, ever. It is impervious to UV, and nothing can break it down. It will never go away. So once the parts are built we will have them forever.
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Rick 10:32AM (10/22/2008)
It's carbon, of course it can be constituted into renewed parts. And if it couldn't, great. If something never wears or breaks, you won't have to replace it. A car you can hand down to your great, great, great, great, great (fingers getting tired) great, grand child. You get the point.
fixitfixitstop 5:24PM (10/21/2008)
Source?
Is is not recyclable?
pixelnate 9:14PM (10/21/2008)
No, they are not recyclable. The wikipedia article mentions that the bonds between nanotubes are stronger that the carbon bonds in diamonds.
I read about them in a Popular Science mag about 2 years ago. Or was it wired. Anywho, it's what they are talking about making the cables from for the space elevator. It's the strongest stuff on Earth.
tankd0g 10:21PM (10/21/2008)
Sweet. Take that, salty roads!