Week of 11/7: Free Post

Week of 11/7: Free Post

Plastics as Strong than Metal?!

I'm sorry to say this, but this will be my last free post for my blog. All that is left after this is an overview about everything I learned from my blog. For the final blog, I decided to look up the top material science news of 2012. At number 2 was an article titled, "Plastics as Strong as Metals." This caught my attention instantly, especially since I want to focus on the metallurgic side of material science.

A researcher from Tel Aviv University is currently working on an environmentally friendly plastics that are stronger than any plastics that we currently have available. Landfills are currently filling up an incredibly fast with non-biodegradable plastics which could be a huge issue. It is projected that by 2020, there will be 200 million tons of plastics consumed each year, so a biodegradable plastic is greatly needed. This new plastic could potentially replace some metal parts that are currently used in everyday products. For example, they could replace some parts in cars where applicable. Plastics take less energy to produce, weigh less, and therefore more cost effective. These parts would require less maintenance and last even longer!

If new plastic like this is produced, it could change the world. It might also have some type of influence on what division of material science I choose to major in. If this actually pulls through, then it could have a devastating effect on the metallurgic manufacturing industry. However, an entire new industry would emerge, and I could have potential to emerge in this new industry.

 Elsevier. "Plastics as Strong as Steel." Materials Today. 11 Jun 2012. Web.           14 Nov. 2013.

Metals. Photograph. Chaparral Technologies, 2009. Fort Worth, TX. Web. 9        Nov 2013.