Fibers are chosen for the material and a

matrix is chosen for its ability to bond the fibers.

Particleboard - a plywood substitute
Natural rubber - plastic's great-great-great
granddad.
Vulcanized - 1839 Charles Goodyear
The nanotubes are typically functionalized,
Sonication. Here you suspend the nanotubes in
a polymer solution and
bombard them with sound waves. That gives
you the needed dispersion,
but lengthy sonication can damage the tube
walls as well.
PPE is a rigid polymer that does not bend easiy
A weak, noncovalent force sticks the polymer to
the nanotubes
This noncovalent functionalization between
tube and coating allows the nanotubes to
disperse evenly in a polymer
Single-Walled
Nanotubes
(SWNTs) noncovalently functionalized so that each tube
acts as a unit that reinforces the fiber
In situ - in place - all components are thrown
together and mixed
Peroclation Theory - a connected network
made from a random arrangement
Spanning cluster - connecting network
Peroclation threshold - point where electric
current spans from one end of the plastic square
to the other
Zyvex and Michigan Tech - 0.05 to 0.1 weight
percent of SWNts (1g of SWNTs for every 100g
of composite)
2 advantages:
- Better dissipation of electrostatic charges
- Electromagnetic shielding capabilities
Dispersion is key to achieving good electrical
conductivity
Phosphor - any material that emits visible light
when exposed to radiation - red green blue
colors
Electrochromatics - materials that change color
when energized by an electrical current.
NanoChromatic Displays (NCD) - large number
of partiles that can quickly switch on or off

bi-stable - Each pixel stays colored until actively

turned off - no need for backlighting
Microcapsules - positively charged white
particles and negatively charged black particles
sandwiched between two electrodes
Spider Silk - spun to a fiber, baptized with the
name Biosteel - w/c can be 20 times stronger
than an equivalent strand of steel.
Carbon Nanotubes - can be 100 stronger than
steel.
Fountains of Paradise - Arthur C. Clarke's Novel.
describes a space elevator that reaches far into
space.
NiTiNOL - Nickel, Titanium, Naval Ordinance
Laboratory.
SMA - Shape-memory alloy
- Pesudo-elasticity - rubberlike quality
- Shape memory - stored energy
Solid-state - SMAs remain as solid
SMAs are biocompatible. SMAs have admirable
mech properties
SMAs are expensive to manufacture. SMAs have
poor fatigue properties
SMP - Shape-memory polymers
Buckypaper - disoriented network of carbon
nanotubes formed into a flat sheet
Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG) sensor - sensor
version of fiber optics - enables a material to
register stress in real time.
+ Requires no electricity, just light
+ No electricity = no electromagnetic
interference by other sensors
+ Can be incorporated into a composite -> Fiber
can be used to measure T,P, Strain.
Copper - can sense strain much like FBG when
coated with interspersed magnetic coatings.
The magnetic coating controls the wire's
impedance - the degree to which the wire
resists the flow of electricity