Stilsuits, anyone?
Aug. 21st, 2007 06:59 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
wolven7From 3QuarksDaily:
'A MIRACLE material for the 21st century could protect your home against bomb blasts, mop up oil spillages and even help man to fly to Mars.
'Aerogel, one of the world’s lightest solids, can withstand a direct blast of 1kg of dynamite and protect against heat from a blowtorch at more than 1,300C.
'Scientists are working to discover new applications for the substance, ranging from the next generation of tennis rackets to super-insulated space suits for a manned mission to Mars.
'It is expected to rank alongside wonder products from previous generations such as Bakelite in the 1930s, carbon fibre in the 1980s and silicone in the 1990s. Mercouri Kanatzidis, a chemistry professor at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, said: “It is an amazing material. It has the lowest density of any product known to man, yet at the same time it can do so much. I can see aerogel being used for everything from filtering polluted water to insulating against extreme temperatures and even for jewellery.”
'Aerogel is nicknamed “frozen smoke” and is made by extracting water from a silica gel, then replacing it with gas such as carbon dioxide. The result is a substance that is capable of insulating against extreme temperatures and of absorbing pollutants such as crude oil.'
So. It Filters, absorbs, clears and processes. Can withstand a kilo of dynamite (per square what, though?), and over a thousand degrees, centigrade, of direct heat.
I think that's wonderful, and I want a biomechanical suit, lined with it.
'A MIRACLE material for the 21st century could protect your home against bomb blasts, mop up oil spillages and even help man to fly to Mars.
'Aerogel, one of the world’s lightest solids, can withstand a direct blast of 1kg of dynamite and protect against heat from a blowtorch at more than 1,300C.
'Scientists are working to discover new applications for the substance, ranging from the next generation of tennis rackets to super-insulated space suits for a manned mission to Mars.
'It is expected to rank alongside wonder products from previous generations such as Bakelite in the 1930s, carbon fibre in the 1980s and silicone in the 1990s. Mercouri Kanatzidis, a chemistry professor at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, said: “It is an amazing material. It has the lowest density of any product known to man, yet at the same time it can do so much. I can see aerogel being used for everything from filtering polluted water to insulating against extreme temperatures and even for jewellery.”
'Aerogel is nicknamed “frozen smoke” and is made by extracting water from a silica gel, then replacing it with gas such as carbon dioxide. The result is a substance that is capable of insulating against extreme temperatures and of absorbing pollutants such as crude oil.'
So. It Filters, absorbs, clears and processes. Can withstand a kilo of dynamite (per square what, though?), and over a thousand degrees, centigrade, of direct heat.
I think that's wonderful, and I want a biomechanical suit, lined with it.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
welcome to the world of 1999
Date: 2007-08-22 03:25 am (UTC)as for being pretty damned awesome all around this (http://www.lospremiagrumi.com/data/Aerogel_matches.jpg) pretty much explains it.
Re: welcome to the world of 1999
Date: 2007-08-22 03:57 am (UTC)Re: welcome to the world of 1999
Date: 2007-08-22 04:00 am (UTC)Re: welcome to the world of 1999
Date: 2007-08-22 04:01 am (UTC)Re: welcome to the world of 1999
Date: 2007-08-22 04:06 am (UTC)Re: welcome to the world of 1999
Date: 2007-08-22 04:08 am (UTC)DO NOT WANT
Date: 2007-08-22 04:14 am (UTC)Re: DO NOT WANT
Date: 2007-08-22 04:43 am (UTC)