Space Elevator, Can we build one? |
Space Elevator, Can we build one? |
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![]() Member ![]() ![]() ![]() Group: Members Posts: 147 Joined: 3-July 04 From: Chicago, IL Member No.: 91 ![]() |
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Guest_Richard Trigaux_* |
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probably true.
At least this report is not a STUDY of what could be theoretical/thermodynamical limits into nanotube length. It seems that they just picked samples of state-of-the-art "ropes" and tested them. And they found they had much less strength than individual nanotubes. But this is a known result: we don't know yet to make nanotubes larger than say 1mm. But this don't mean that we cannot do this, and more and more people are working on this. So, with no foreseable theoretical limit, we can hope we will be able to build lengthy nanotubes, which will be very useful for the space elevator, or at least for many earthy purposes, such as much lighter cars or aircrafts, large building beams, super strong fabrics, etc. And this is not the end. While boron nitride showed harder that carbon diamond, perhaps boron nitride nanotubes, or other compositions, will be even stronger than carbon nanotubes. At least it is worth trying. Anyway today nanotube fabrication is something very rough: to evaporate carbon and hope it will solidify into nanotubes. Some do, but of course there is a lot of rubbish, and no quality product. It is a bit like throwing bricks at randon in hope they do a wall by themselves. Maybe there will be some more clever process, some catalyser able to build continuous and perfect nanotubes of whatever length we want. Or a nanomachine similar to the biological ones working in cells, but operating at a higher energy required to work with carbon bonds. It would rotate while adding carbon atoms, while being fed in energy by chemicals. As carbon atoms are usually not free alone, the nanomachine would start from things like methane molecules, which can be dissolved into a liquid medium. The only real limit on nanotubes would be it they show toxic like asbestos. Probably they will be, for the same reason (mechanically breaking cell membranes and chromosomes). In this case, of course, their use could be strictly forbidden or restricted only to very special areas. Like the space elevator... |
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