Steel is one of the most common materials in the world. It is used in buildings, tools, bridges, automobiles, airplanes and appliances. Over the years, the strength of steel has been used by engineers to support structures, by architects for the design of different buildings, by the military for ships, tanks and planes and even by Hollywood in many movies that promote Superman as the "Man of Steel".

In fact, for more than two centuries, steel has been the material of choice for strength and durability. However, it now looks like the use of steel in our modern world is about to significantly decline. There is another material on the horizon that is stronger and lighter and is currently being developed in a Florida State University laboratory. It should be available next year and it is a discovery that could change the world.

The truth is that the demise of steel may have begun in 1985. That was the year that British scientist Harry Kroto joined researchers at Rice University for an experiment to create the same conditions that exist in a star. The scientists wanted to find out how stars, the source of all carbon in the universe, make the element that is a main building block of life. During their experiment, a strange discovery was made.

They discovered a molecule with 60 carbon atoms shaped like a soccer ball. The molecule reminded Harry Kroto of the geodesic domes promoted by Buckminster Fuller, an American architect, inventor, and futurist. So, Kroto was inspired to name the new molecule Buckminsterfullerene, or just Carbon 60 for those of us who prefer long chemical names to be short.

Thirty three years later, a material produced from that Carbon 60 discovery is now nearing production in the laboratories of Florida State University. The new material looks a lot like ordinary carbon paper. It is called Buckypaper.

However, we should not expect to find Buckypaper as stationery in our office supply stores next year. The fact is that it is a carbon molecule whose powerful atomic bonds make it twice as hard as a diamond.

Also, consider that Buckypaper is one tenth the weight of, but potentially 500 times stronger than, steel when its sheets are stacked to form a composite. It even disperses heat like steel while it conducts electricity like metal or silicon.

Certainly, the Army Research Lab and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research have taken notice of this unusual new material. Both have awarded Florida State University with multi-million dollar grants to develop Buckypaper in their laboratories for military use.

But military use will not be Buckypaper’s only possible contribution to society. This new material is destined to change the world if scientists can develop processes that will allow it to be mass-produced cheaply. Indeed, it will revolutionize the way bridges, automobiles, airplanes, computers, TVs and many other things are made.

Consider that a composite material that is five hundred times stronger than steel with only a fraction of the weight means a huge increase in fuel efficiency for commercial airlines and automobiles. It means an advantage in the battlefield for the soldier wearing stronger, yet lighter, armor. Certainly, it will re-engineer how tanks, military aircraft, and large ships are made and function.

In addition, Buckypaper would be more energy efficient than Cathode Ray Tubes and, as one of the most thermally conductive materials known, Buckypaper would allow computers and other electronic equipment to disperse heat more efficiently than is currently possible. This, in turn, could lead to even greater advances in electronic miniaturization.

The material would shield airplanes from lightning strikes and even allow military aircraft to cloak their electromagnetic signatures which would make planes undetectable by radar.

In every aspect of society, Buckypaper would change the way things are built and work. The potential benefits of this new material to modern society are enormous. Indeed, this new material called Buckypaper could change the world.

However, this new material would have at least one important draw back. Certainly there would be a drop in attendance for those Superman movies from Hollywood. It is hard to imagine that the "Man of Buckypaper" could ever replace the "Man of Steel".

 http://www.eworldvu.com