Newly researched material is light as plastic and strong as steel

With many objects, a decision has to be weighed up: Should it be made of light materials (e.g. plastic) and therefore less stable or should it be made of something solid (e.g. steel) and stability be the priority? Researchers at MIT have now developed a material that is as light as plastic but at the same time as strong as steel.

The reason is a new discovery in polymers (the substances behind plastic). Until now, it was assumed that polymers can only take on one-dimensional shapes, meaning that the chains hang together like long spaghetti. However, the researchers have succeeded in arranging polymers in two dimensions.

This creates structures in the form of a leaf that expands in width and length. This was made possible by a new process of polymerisation, using a compound called melamine (which is made up of carbon and nitrogen atoms) to form rows of disks held together by hydrogen.

This fact ensures that the resulting material is extremely strong, withstanding four to six times the force of bulletproof glass. It takes twice as much force to break the fabric as to break steel. It is made possible by a structure that is similar to Lego bricks put together.

In this way, no molecules can penetrate between the chains and consequently cannot destroy them. The new material can be manufactured in huge quantities without great effort. Due to the thin structure, areas of application are also conceivable in which liquids or gases have to be stored.

Use in technical devices such as laptops, tablets or smartphones is also conceivable. As a result, the stability would increase and the service life would also be extended. Just imagine if you could just drop your smartphone on the floor and nothing would happen. A dream for any user, but certainly also a nightmare for the manufacturer (who can’t sell anything new).

Via SciTechDaily