FEBRUARY 13, 2006

A chance to spend more money

Formula One teams will always spend money on new technology which will give them an advantage and the composite engineers in F1 circles will be very interested by the latest development in the nanotechnology world where researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York, have discovered new uses for nanocomposites which will dramatically improve the ability of materials to reduce vibration, especially at high temperatures.

A paper published in the journal Nano Letters argues that by dispersing nanotubes throughout traditional composites will create a new generation of materials with vastly improved damping qualities which soak up vibration. These increase as the temperatures rise.

The Institute argues that these materials will have uses in a wide variety of industries notably in the aerospace, automotive engineering and military sectors.