New Aerogel Supports 400,000 Pounds Per Inch

[Guest]

An ingenious way of incorporating the very-old with the not-so-old has resulted into something new and potentially wonderful for the world of aerogels.

New Aerogel Supports 400,000 Pounds Per Inch : Read more

 

[sabot00]

Wow, I thought the brick was floating until I looked closely.

 

[Camikazi]

Nature, teaching scientists how things are done since the beginning of time

 

[Darkk]

Since Aerogel is also fire proof I wonder if we will start seeing this in new buildings?

 

[gmarsack]

Since it can resist such massive pressures, could this be used in deep sea applications? I wonder if this material could be applied to such applications. Would be awesome to see what's at the bottom of some of our deepest oceans without using a robot to go there.

 

[tuc0]

er, what the hell is Aerogel? never heard of it.

 

[Geef]

NASA uses this stuff on Satellites and in Space suits.

 

[baracubra]

[citation][nom]gmarsack[/nom]Would be awesome to see what's at the bottom of some of our deepest oceans without using a robot to go there.[/citation]

Dark murkey water and a couple of rocks... maybe even a fish or two

 

[WyomingKnott]

[citation][nom]tuc0[/nom]er, what the hell is Aerogel? never heard of it.[/citation]
Try Google, or the search engine of your choice. Ignorance is perfectly fine, there are many things that I don't know. But please take 30 seconds to look (as long as you are online) before flaunting it.

 

[back_by_demand]

[citation][nom]Darkk[/nom]Since Aerogel is also fire proof I wonder if we will start seeing this in new buildings?[/citation]
That would be hilarious, sheets of this stuff are used to build a house, then a fire breaks out burning the furniture.
A fire truck arrives and starts dousing it with fire hoses.
The house soaks up all the water and expands to 500 times it's original size and destroys the neighbourhood.

 

[g00fysmiley]

vry interesting tech article. aero gels are exciting and have alot of uses but alot of lmitations, this should help with much of the limitations. if only they had a cheaper way of manifacturing it to allow for like the university of georgia experimant showed. a nearperfectly insulated house

 

[zak_mckraken]

Now THAT's a Shamwow!

 

[back_by_demand]

[citation][nom]g00fysmiley[/nom]a nearperfectly insulated house[/citation]
Except if it rains

The aerogel can also be used as a very efficient sponge. Since by volume the aerogel is 99 percent air, a 60-milligram piece of the aerogel can hold about a gram of water

 

[safcmanfr]

[citation][nom]back_by_demand[/nom]Except if it rains[/citation]

I presume the house, if using this aerogel, would still have a roof with tiles and outside rendering so the stuff doesnt get wet.

having said that, near perfectly insulated houses already exist, so who cares?

 

[nexus9113]

[citation][nom]back_by_demand[/nom]That would be hilarious, sheets of this stuff are used to build a house, then a fire breaks out burning the furniture.A fire truck arrives and starts dousing it with fire hoses.The house soaks up all the water and expands to 500 times it's original size and destroys the neighbourhood.[/citation]

But on the bright side, changing your cottage to a mansion would be cheap and easy!

I don't think it would be a good material for buildings though, doesn't seem to be very dense (99% air) which means that areas with high winds could easily topple a structure made with the material.

What seems like a better use is in the construction of building foundations in areas where the ground is a little less than solid (swamp/marshland areas and sandy deserts), as it would not be too dense that it would begin to sink (like concrete) and would be strong enough to support a heavy building. I'm also curious as to how it holds up against extreme temps. It would also be cool to see cars made of the stuff, uber light and uber strong, like fiber bodies, but wouldn't shatter like a cheap wine glass.

 

[gm0n3y]

[citation][nom]gmarsack[/nom]Since it can resist such massive pressures, could this be used in deep sea applications? I wonder if this material could be applied to such applications. Would be awesome to see what's at the bottom of some of our deepest oceans without using a robot to go there.[/citation]
Except for that whole absorbing water thing. Though I guess if they coated it in something that could be OK. Still a little sketchy though.

 

[HavoCnMe]

Say goodbye to Shamwow, hello Aerosham!

 

[borisof007]

[citation][nom]back_by_demand[/nom]A fire truck arrives and starts dousing it with fire hoses. The house soaks up all the water and expands to 500 times it's original size and destroys the neighbourhood.[/citation]

I lol'd