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Stronger Than Steel, Able to Stop a Speeding Bullet—It’s Super Wood!
Scientific American ^ | 2/7/18 | Sid Perkins

Posted on 02/18/2018 11:28:50 PM PST by LibWhacker

click here to read article


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To: Vince Ferrer

Steel is flammable, given enough surface area. Try burning steel wool. Better yet, “hot hands” are made out of iron.


21 posted on 02/19/2018 2:49:26 AM PST by dangus
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"Wood is abundant and relatively low-cost — it literally grows on trees."
You learn something new every day!
22 posted on 02/19/2018 3:10:10 AM PST by Mr Radical (In times of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act)
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To: LibWhacker

Baseball bats, anyone?
I know, MLB mandates that bats be “natural” wood ... but if cheating via steroids is winked at, why not super bats?


23 posted on 02/19/2018 3:20:43 AM PST by CivilWarguy
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To: LibWhacker

Must be hell trying to drive a nail into this stuff...just sayin’


24 posted on 02/19/2018 3:47:13 AM PST by FrankR (An armed society is a polite society.)
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To: LibWhacker

Despite its new abilities, wood dense or otherwise burns just peachy


25 posted on 02/19/2018 4:15:49 AM PST by PIF (They came for me and mine ... now it is your turn ...)
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To: MilesVeritatis

“Densified wood? I thought this was going to be about an aging AlGore.”

The wood scored far better on a high school physics test.


26 posted on 02/19/2018 4:21:10 AM PST by Da Coyote
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To: E.Allen

The PT boats were outfitted with Packard V-12 marine engines that were a development of the Liberty L-12 engines from WW-1.

A few experimental boats had Merlin’s but all production PT boats had the Packards.

Regards

alfa6 ;>}


27 posted on 02/19/2018 4:41:35 AM PST by alfa6
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To: LibWhacker

Isn’t it good, Norwegian wood?


28 posted on 02/19/2018 4:46:02 AM PST by Flag_This (Liberals are locusts.)
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To: Flag_This

29 posted on 02/19/2018 4:47:23 AM PST by dfwgator
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To: Olog-hai

“They were making certain planes with wood fuselages even during WWII, but I don’t think I’d like to fly in an airliner made of densified wood.”

De Havilland Mosquito bomber.


30 posted on 02/19/2018 4:50:21 AM PST by dljordan (WhoVoltaire: "To find out who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize.")
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To: LibWhacker

If this process were used on liberals’ heads, their brains would be impenetrable.


31 posted on 02/19/2018 4:52:10 AM PST by sergeantdave (Teach a man to fish and he'll steal your gear and sell it)
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To: Olog-hai

“...but I don’t think I’d like to fly in an airliner made of densified wood.”

You will like it, if no choice. Decades ago, I vowed to fly over an ocean in a 2-engine jet...so much for that vow over the years.

As to this, I worry about composites. Their early history, with much smaller planes, was that they’d seem all good and fine through many pressurization cycles, and then BOOM! you have 100,000 small pieces to pick up...and forget investigating, of course.

As it is, that’s life...

I


32 posted on 02/19/2018 4:57:05 AM PST by BobL (I shop at Walmart and eat at McDonald's...I just don't tell anyone)
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To: abb

How did he get the mahogany out of the Japanese occupied Philippines?


33 posted on 02/19/2018 4:59:18 AM PST by Alas Babylon! (Keep fighting the Left and their Fake News!)
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To: LibWhacker
It's Super Wood!

But can they keep it up?

34 posted on 02/19/2018 5:01:05 AM PST by Fightin Whitey
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To: LibWhacker

But how does it stand up to termites?


35 posted on 02/19/2018 5:02:15 AM PST by Boomer One ( ToUsesn)
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To: Vince Ferrer

“if it is still very flammable, then a lot of uses where it could replace metals would be scratched off the list.”

Wood is one of the best fire-blocks in the building industry, but of course it will burn eventually. But steel will soften and then melt, particularly if a bunch of Leftists don’t let you insulate it with asbestos, as we saw in on 9-11. So it’s all in the relative characteristics - that fact that it will eventually burn may be outweighed by how long it takes to weaken.

But for smaller structures this has the potential to revolutionize the business, maybe to the point where women will be able to handle stick material and sheathing (instead of complaining about being excluded from the trade). But the first use I can see is where something like 2x6 of this would be as strong as a manufactured beam measuring 4 x 16, or something like that - that’s what phases it in, then it can work down to the more common uses of wood (walls and decking).


36 posted on 02/19/2018 5:03:28 AM PST by BobL (I shop at Walmart and eat at McDonald's...I just don't tell anyone)
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To: LibWhacker

If things ever get to commercial scale production, the cost savings will go down quickly, as quickly as demand for wood would goes up. How far down? That depends on whether or not supply of wood can be greatly increased (a political as well as commercial question), and how quickly.


37 posted on 02/19/2018 5:16:38 AM PST by Wuli
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To: Vince Ferrer

“If it is still very flammable, “

I could be barking up the wrong tree here, but as a wood burner I know the harder the wood (denser) the greater the heat value. I’m suspecting this densified wood would burn hotter and longer than the same material before being processed.

Now I’m certain the scientists (I’m suspecting Hu is a real scientist) have or are figuring out how to make this new product as fire resistant as gypsum, metal or concrete.


38 posted on 02/19/2018 5:23:11 AM PST by redfreedom
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To: PLMerite
For super wood we have (trumpet fanfare)

SUPER TERMITE


39 posted on 02/19/2018 5:23:30 AM PST by from occupied ga (Your government is your most dangerous enemy)
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To: LibWhacker

Densified wood? My doc gave me some pills for that...


40 posted on 02/19/2018 5:35:07 AM PST by laker_dad
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