I wonder what kind of efficiencies can be gained by swapping out metal for this in EV vehicles
Why only in EVs? Gas and hybrid vehicles could benefit also
MIT Engineers Create New Material Stronger Than Steel and Light as Plastic
51–60 of 70 posts
Re: MIT Engineers Create New Material Stronger Than Steel and Light as Plastic
#52Comparing with abstract steel is kind of useless as the strength of common steel varies by factor of 3. If one compare the cheapest steel and exotic alloys (that are often only produced in Sweden and may cost more than silver), then the difference is at least a factor of 20.
> They also found that its yield strength, or how much force it takes to break the material, is twice that of steel, even though the material has only about one-sixth the density of steel.
> Under the right conditions, these monomers can grow in two dimensions, forming disks. These disks stack on top of each other, held together by hydrogen bonds between the layers, which make the structure very stable and strong
Sounds like they could just layer it to create very strong lightweight structures.
Re: MIT Engineers Create New Material Stronger Than Steel and Light as Plastic
#53Earlier quoted context omitted.
The world should absolutely solve the micro plastics issue, but the world should absolutely not stop developing new plastics or finding new uses for plastics until that problem is solved. There should be more research into the impact of micro plastic particles. That doesn't mean we should stop research into new applications. These things can, and should, happen in parallel.
Exactly, plastic is not a material but a very broad category of materials with a wide range of properties. Micro-plastics are a specific problem with some plastics and rubbers in e.g. tires and other materials on cars because they erode away with normal use and the resulting dust is then flushed into sewers, waterways, and eventually the ocean. Material science is providing a wide range of new and exciting options th…
On a long time range doesn’t all plastic become micro plastics unless it’s incinerated? Clothes, food packaging, electronics, etc
Re: MIT Engineers Create New Material Stronger Than Steel and Light as Plastic
#54Re: MIT Engineers Create New Material Stronger Than Steel and Light as Plastic
#55Re: MIT Engineers Create New Material Stronger Than Steel and Light as Plastic
#56Earlier quoted context omitted.
Personally I like the idea of modular phones such that you can swap out only components that are obsolete or damaged. Although, ultimately, this feels like a market/advertising issue over a technical issue. While I'm not convinced a 100% recycle phone will ever be a likelihood; surely we can get to 90%. Or slow down the trash generation with the aforementioned modular phone. However it's going to require people to wa…
How much does a modular design really extend the life of a computer? Very few people (my father aside) are actively trying to keep computers from the 90’s orearly 2000’s alive. That my 10-year-old MacBook is still kicking is kind of a miracle (and only because I have harvested the guts from two others).
The only reason a 10 year old macbook seems like a miracle is because expectations are low for the Apple brand particularly. For other brands of laptop, 10 years old isn't terribly unusual. And for diy PC builds, I dare say 10 years old is actually typical (albeit usually in a 'Ship of Theseus' sense, but that's the point isn't it?)
Re: MIT Engineers Create New Material Stronger Than Steel and Light as Plastic
#57Earlier quoted context omitted.
How much does a modular design really extend the life of a computer? Very few people (my father aside) are actively trying to keep computers from the 90’s orearly 2000’s alive. That my 10-year-old MacBook is still kicking is kind of a miracle (and only because I have harvested the guts from two others).
The only reason a 10 year old macbook seems like a miracle is because expectations are low for the Apple brand particularly. For other brands of laptop, 10 years old isn't terribly unusual. And for diy PC builds, I dare say 10 years old is actually typical (albeit usually in a 'Ship of Theseus' sense, but that's the point isn't it?)
Is that really the case for anyone but dedicated hobbyists? I would be honestly shocked to learn that the average life of any laptop brand runs higher than 5-6 years on average before being discarded.
Re: MIT Engineers Create New Material Stronger Than Steel and Light as Plastic
#58Earlier quoted context omitted.
The only reason a 10 year old macbook seems like a miracle is because expectations are low for the Apple brand particularly. For other brands of laptop, 10 years old isn't terribly unusual. And for diy PC builds, I dare say 10 years old is actually typical (albeit usually in a 'Ship of Theseus' sense, but that's the point isn't it?)
Is that really the case for anyone but dedicated hobbyists? I would be honestly shocked to learn that the average life of any laptop brand runs higher than 5-6 years on average before being discarded.
In my experience, the average PC gamer upgrades their PC with a few new parts every few years, and even that isn't certain. Replacing the whole thing every 5 years seems atypical, that's a lot of money to be throwing around (particularly when many PC gamers are in it for the long-term economy.)
Re: MIT Engineers Create New Material Stronger Than Steel and Light as Plastic
#59Earlier quoted context omitted.
Is that really the case for anyone but dedicated hobbyists? I would be honestly shocked to learn that the average life of any laptop brand runs higher than 5-6 years on average before being discarded.
In my experience, the average PC gamer upgrades their PC with a few new parts every few years, and even that isn't certain. Replacing the whole thing every 5 years seems atypical, that's a lot of money to be throwing around (particularly when many PC gamers are in it for the long-term economy.)
The average PC gamer is, of course, not the average computer user which is far more likely to be using a generic laptop or smartphone.
Which is all to say, I understand why we want modularity, but - for most computer users - a much more necessary path forward is a reimagining omaterials recyclability.
Re: MIT Engineers Create New Material Stronger Than Steel and Light as Plastic
#60Earlier quoted context omitted.
In my experience, the average PC gamer upgrades their PC with a few new parts every few years, and even that isn't certain. Replacing the whole thing every 5 years seems atypical, that's a lot of money to be throwing around (particularly when many PC gamers are in it for the long-term economy.)
The average PC gamer is, of course, not the average computer user which is far more likely to be using a generic laptop or smartphone. Which is all to say, I understand why we want modularity, but - for most computer users - a much more necessary path forward is a reimagining omaterials recyclability.
I think the average computer user is even more likely to be using old hardware than a gamer. The average Joe browsing facebook could be perfectly content with a 15 year old computer. Gamers at least are pressured to periodically update their hardware by the appeal of games that demand more than their old computer can provide.