Boeing has developed the lightest metal ever with Latticework. The metal is said to be the lightest & strongest metal ever known to science.
The structure is 99.99% air and is said to be 100 times lighter than styrofoam. Its wall thickness is merely 100 nanometers which makes it 1000 times lighter than a human hair. It is a 3-dimensional open cellular polymer structure and is invented & inspired by the concept of the structure of human bones.
The inventors tell that even though our bones are rigid and hard on the outside, they are indeed open cellular in the inside which makes them light in weight by strong. This prevents bones from getting easily crushed. Since it is made up of hollow tubes woven into one another, it is can be compressed as well.
Originally it was designed for the Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The Boeing is, however, looking forward to using this metal in development of aircraft structure. Being a lightweight yet strong material, it will serve as a great raw material for aircraft’s internal structure including, lobby, luggage storage sections, isle floors and seats etc. Thus, helping in making aircraft much lightweight and fuel-efficient.
Besides this can be used in multiple ways including batteries, electrodes, catalyst supports, and acoustic, vibration or shock energy damping. In the film developed by Boeing, HRL’s scientist Sophia Yang describes the metal briefly. Watch the video below:
