MIT engineers invent plastic that's stronger than steel

                          The most read architecture and design stories of 2022 on dezeen

February - MIT engineers invent plastic that's stronger than steel

The top read article on dezeen in February was about a new plastic that is twice as strong as steel. The material, developed by chemical engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), is as lightweight and moldable as plastic but is nearly as strong and durable as steel.

The material's characteristics prompted its creators to think of employing it as a structural material as well as a coating to increase the longevity of items.

According to Strano, this type of barrier coating might be utilized to shield steel buildings or the metal in cars and other vehicles.

The two-dimensional molecular structure gives the polymer super-strong

2DPA-1 is a polymer, a class of substances that includes all plastics. But while all other polymers grow in one-way chains, with new molecules added to their ends, 2DPA-1 grows in two dimensions, forming a sheet called a polyaramid.

"Instead of creating a spaghetti-shaped molecule, we can create a paper-like molecular blueprint where we make the molecules bind together in two dimensions," Strano said. It is this two-dimensional quality that gives 2DPA-1 strength, eliminating the gaps that exist between polymer chains in other plastics.

Though the molecular sheets may hypothetically be stacked to create a building material or utilized as nanotubes or nanofibres in a composite material like carbon fiber, there are still more potential uses for 2DPA-1.

In addition to being durable, it also shares other desirable qualities with other plastics, such as being lighter and using less energy to make than materials like steel and glass.

The researchers told Dezeen that they could envision it being utilized as a separating barrier as well as a structural reinforcement material in construction.

It is simple to produce material in big quantities.

The ease with which 2DPA-1 may be manufactured in huge quantities is another encouraging feature.

Additionally, the engineers propose that it ought to be recyclable. In other forms, it might be possible to chemically recycle it like nylon. If it is used as fibers, it should be able to be re-spun or pulped like Kevlar fibers.

At the moment, 79% of plastic waste is disposed of in landfills or the environment, where it will linger for thousands of years.