Ancient Alchemist were in search of the great sorcerer's stone, today,
using electron strapping, scientist have found a way to convert ordinary
cement into metal. Not only are scientist able to convert liquid cement
into liquid metal, but also take a non-electrically conductive material,
and turn it into one that his highly conductive. This phenomenon of
trapping electrons and turning liquid cement into liquid metal was
recently discovered, but not fully understood until now. By knowing how
this process takes places, scientist now know the conditions needed to
create and trap electrons in materials, and by doing this, they are
able to develop and test other materials to find out if we can make
them conduct electricity using this method.
“This new material has
lots of applications, including as thin-film resistors used in
liquid-crystal displays, basically the flat panel computer monitor that
you are probably reading this from at the moment,” said Chris Benmore, a
physicist from the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE).
The results were reported May 27 in the journal the Proceeding of the National Academy of Sciences in the article "Network topology for the formation of solvated electrons in binary CaO-Al2O3 composition glasses."
“The
team of scientists studied mayenite, a component of alumina cement made
of calcium and aluminum oxides. They melted it at temperatures of 2,000
degrees Celsius using an aerodynamic levitator with carbon dioxide
laser beam heating. The material was processed in different atmospheres
to control the way that oxygen bonds in the resulting glass. The
levitator keeps the hot liquid from touching any container surfaces and
forming crystals. This let the liquid cool into glassy state that can
trap electrons in the way needed for electronic conduction.”
Scientist
discovered that if the conductivity was created when the free electrons
were trapped in the cage-like structures that formed in the glass.
Then the trapped electrons provided a mechanism for conductive
conductivity similar to the mechanism that happens in meals.
FUTURE IMPLICATIONS:
The
method could possibly one day be applied directly to 3D printers.
Giving engineers the ability to print intricate electronic designs that
could be used in everyday electronics. However, this scientific
development not only applies on earth. But also in space – the
compounds and elements that are found in cement can also be found on the
moon.
By applying the same method that we use on earth, we could
possibly build large enough 3D printers that use this process to help
build and establish a moon colony. If this method could be perfected, by
2023 when we hope to send people to Mars to establish a permanent Mars
colony, this method could be one of the biggest economical driving
forces of expanding the mars colonies without requiring substantial
financial support from earth.
Not only could this method be used
in the development of space colonies, but also transforming readily
available resources into precious metals and other rare resources. This
method in the years to come could change the way that we view global
resources and our ability to access them. Opening and door to global
development, and hopefully world peace.
Source: http://www.anl.gov/articles/formula-turning-cement-metal
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