Imagine making plane parts out of a material that is 100 times lighter than styrofoam.
That’s the future that Boeing is imagining, thanks to recent advances in the development of revolutionary microlattice metals.
The microlattice, first created back in 2011, is made up of a series of small, hollow metal tubes which are criss-crossed and interlaced to bolster the overall strength of the lattice.
“The trick is to fabricate a lattice of interconnected hollow tubes with a wall thickness 1,000 times thinner than a human hair,”
said Dr. Tobias Schaedler, lead author of the microlattice research, in an interview with RT.
Despite being 99.99 percent air by volume, microlattice metal is remarkably strong, and Boeing is looking to integrate the material into some of the structural components of its planes. The groundbreaking material could also help increase fuel efficiency by reducing the overall weight of the planes.
Check out the video below to learn more about microlattice metal and see it in action:
(h/t RT)