ADVANCED COMPOSITE MANUFACTURING post by Joey Gonzalez

I was watching The History Channel the other day and they showed a bit on the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II. The main thing that struck me about it was how much cheaper the new F-35 is to manufacture than the F-22 Raptor even though the F-35 is nearly 40% composite. Yes, the F-22 is better in most performance aspects (has twice the payload, twice the maneuverability, and can control twice the battle space), however, the F-35 comes out on top when it comes to manufacturing and maintenance.

 The F-35's airframe makes heavy use of composite materials, with much work placed on reducing the cost of composite assemblies, which have traditionally been extremely expensive. But using the latest computer-aided design and manufacturing tools, the F-35 has been designed to be as cheap to manufacture as possible. For example, a previous cutting tool that was used to trim composites—a tool with PCD edges—would last for only 21 feet. After just this distance, the change in force from tool wear would cause delamination (a major failure mode in composite materials) to begin. The solution was a carbide tool in which the geometry directs cutting forces in a way that compresses the part’s layers together while they are being cut. The tool costs 1/3 the price of the previous tool, he says, but it routinely last for 100 feet before wear becomes a concern.

 The article below goes on about more ways Lockheed Martin rethought the manufacturing process. This is a great example of how bringing fresh perspective can yield drastic results.

 The History Channel episode à http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=akIoLEDH-S8

Composites machining article à http://www.mmsonline.com/articles/composites-machining-for-the-f-35

NANOTECHNOLOGY AND DEVELOPING COUNTRIES post by Thomas Ponikowski

In well-developed countries, nanotechnology allowed for the development of nanomaterials from which we can benefit greatly. We can enjoy smaller and smarter materials and devices that use less and less natural resources. Some of the newest discoveries could, in a very near future, improve lives of millions of people who live in poverty and harsh conditions in Africa and Asia. For example, carbon nanotube and zinc oxide nanoparticle filters can purify and decontaminate water. Water-cleaning nano agents can clear-out algae from water surfaces and prevent their further growth. Nano sensors installed on farmland can detect the deficiency of water, fertilizers, and pesticides and apply them accordingly. Efficient solar cells can provide sufficient energy source.  Drinks fortified with nano food additives that help absorb vitamins in malnourished people can save many lives. Besides offering many benefits, nanomaterials became a big concern for developing countries too. Poor African and Asian countries are exporters of many raw materials, like cotton, rubber, platinum, and copper.  Development of new and less expensive nanomaterials will result in dramatically lower demand for natural rubber. Synthetic rubber and various nanofibers and aerogels are used more often to replace or enhance traditional rubber. Platinum, traditionally used in catalytic converters in exhaust pipes, batteries and fuel cells, and copper wires are replaced by carbon nanotubes.   Cotton is used less, as textile industry takes advantage more often of materials enhanced with nanofibers that make fabrics lighter, more durable, drying faster, and not fading. Developing countries face lower demand on their main export goods. Their mining industry and agriculture might suffer and this could add another difficulty to already struggling nations. Should the United States, Japan, and other nations leading in nanotechnology make an effort and involve the developing countries in their plans for research and development of nanomaterials in the future?  More information about the impact of nanotechnology on developing countries could be found at http://www.etcgroup.org/upload/publication/45/01/southcentre.commodities.pdf.

AEROGEL post by Challyn Bentson

The supercritical drying of liquid gels of alumina, chromia, tin oxide, or carbon creates a material called aerogel. It is sometimes called frozen smoke because of its transparency. It has an unbelievably large internal surface area. In the Guinness Book of World Records, this material was named both the lowest density solid and the best insulator. I discovered that the reason aerogel is such a good insulator is because it is composed almost completely of gas, which is a poor heat conductor. When I first started looking into this material, my initial thought was to implement it in the military as some kind of armor. However, I learned that despite its amazing heat resistance and strong structure, it is prone to shattering if too much pressure is applied. My next thought was to use this material to insulate houses. Aerogel provides 39 times more insulation than fiberglass insulation. It is more expensive than other house insulation, but it would allow people to save money on heating and cooling expenses. The only time the heat would need to be adjusted is when a door or window opens. I think this material is amazing, and if it’s production keeps advancing it may wind up insulating everyone’s home!

IS GLASS A LIQUID OR A SOLID? post by Colin Lorenz

In many old windows, the panes are thicker at the bottom of than they are at the top. People often claim this fact as evidence of glass being a liquid. If the glass is close to the glass-tranistion temperature the more it shifts but if it is further way the molecules will move slower and appear more solid. Not all antique glass observes the property of being thicker at the bottom. This is discussed in more detail in the link below.

 http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=fact-fiction-glass-liquid

METAL RUBBER post by Colin Lorenz

Metal rubber is a material that is flexible and described as being indestructible. It can be frozen, doused fuel, or heated and still retain many of its properties. This material was developed by NanoSonic, Inc in Blacksburg, Va. The link is below.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/videos/2007/0409-metal_rubber.htm

THE PITCH DROP EXPERIMENT post by Colin Lorenz

The pitch drop experiment is one of the oldest ongoing physics experiments. This experiment was started in 1927 at the University of Queensland in Australia. This experiment was started by Professor Thomas Parnell. Pitch is a derivative of tar. It used to be used for waterproofing boats. The material looks very solid but it is actually fluid. It has a viscosity 100 billion times higher than water. Currently the ninth drop of the experiment is forming. The university’s website contains a webcam of the experiment. This link is provided below.

http://smp.uq.edu.au/content/pitch-drop-experiment

CERAMICS post by Tan Huynh

Many materials perform extraordinarily well for a specific task, but few have the ability to perform exceptionally well for many tasks. One such example of a material is ceramics. Traditionally, one might think of applications for ceramics that simply include containers like pots and bowls, but the versatility of this material goes far beyond that. One such use for ceramics includes construction material for buildings, such as brickwork. In fact, ceramics have been used in buildings for thousands of years by people such as the Egyptians and even the indigenous people of southwestern America. The type of ceramic material used in this situation is referred to as adobe. It is primarily used in areas of extremes, like deserts, where limited building materials are available. In addition, ceramics have high resistance to the conduction of thermal energy, which make them great internal environment regulators for the structures built in the areas of great temperature fluctuation. It is this same property of insulation that makes ceramics perfect for use in applications such as smelting, furnaces and other heat intensive operations. Also, ceramics are effective at withstanding sustaining compressive loads and are often used in foundations for buildings; an example of one common ceramic is concrete. This material can also endure high thermal energy created by the presence of friction which makes it excellent for devices like brakes and ball bearings where metal, which is more conductive of heat, is typically used.

Unfortunately, application of ceramics in these areas is less widespread because of the inherent brittleness within its crystalline structures. This means ceramics are unable to support severe shock loads without fracturing. Also, the production of ceramic parts in place of traditional metal parts, while often more task effective, often proves too expensive in comparison to its cheaper counterpart. This is because the process for creating ceramics is either complex, in the case of crystalline ceramics, or energy intensive, in the case of non-crystalline ceramics. Crystalline ceramics are made from mixture of dry materials, mainly minerals, and mixed with water. The ceramics product must be formed and allowed to dry slowly to prevent fracturing, which is time consuming. Still, though, the product is extremely brittle and must be cured, often in an oven named a kiln, to strengthen its crystalline structure. The other type of ceramic is non-crystalline ceramic. This type of material is formed by heating minerals to their melting point and forming them into a material also known as glass. Unfortunately, the minerals which give ceramics there high heat resistance make them difficult to melt to form these non-crystalline ceramics, which leads to greater energy consumption, and thus cost in production.

While it is true that metal is cheaper to produce than ceramics, ceramics still holds an edge, quite literally, over its competitor.  Although ceramics are indeed brittle, it is this same quality that makes them superior to metal when it comes to cutting applications. This is mainly due to the malleability of the two materials, which is the ability of a material to deform in shape. Most metals are quite malleable, which is good in manipulating them into required shapes, but bad in cutting applications. This is because as the cutting device is applied, the edge, or blade, will slowly deform and become dull after a short time when it is made of metal. Ceramic on the other hand, has almost no malleability and therefore will not dull.

Ceramic, despite its few drawbacks, proves to be quite the useful material. It is a sufficient building material because of its ability to insulate and support significant standing loads. Ceramic’s properties of insulation also prove useful in steady friction loads and heat intensive applications as well, and fair far better than metal. Also, their low malleability makes ceramics effective for cutting applications as well. It should also be noted that the properties of ceramics were also not lost to early humanity, and have been taken advantage of for thousands of years, and will be applied for thousands of years more.