2011 Beyond The Horizon of Carbon Fibers
1 Courtesy CERN - Geneva
Raffaella Grassi NTT Carbon Fiber Group 05/10/2011
It comes out in the news of Sep. 22, 2011. Reuters’ Robert Evans reports: “An international team of scientists said on Thursday they had recorded sub-atomic particles traveling faster than light -- a finding that could overturn one of Einstein's long-accepted fundamental laws of the universe. Antonio Ereditato, spokesman for the researchers, told Reuters that measurements taken over three years showed neutrinos pumped from CERN near Geneva to Gran Sasso in Italy had arrived 60 nanoseconds quicker than light would have done. "We have high confidence in our results. We have checked and rechecked for anything that could have distorted our measurements but we found nothing," he said. "We now want colleagues to check them independently." Fig. 1 - LCH Collision layout
If confirmed, the discovery would undermine Albert Einstein's 1905 theory of special relativity, which says that the speed of light is a "cosmic constant" and that nothing in the universe can travel faster. That assertion, which has withstood over a century of testing, is one of the key elements of the so-called Standard Model of physics, which attempts to describe the way the universe and everything in it works. The totally unexpected finding emerged from research by a physicists working on an experiment dubbed OPERA run jointly by the CERN particle research center near Geneva and the Gran Sasso Laboratory in central Italy. A total of 15,000 beams of neutrinos -- tiny particles that pervade the cosmos -- were fired over a period of 3 years 1
from CERN toward Gran Sasso 730 (500 miles) km away, where they were picked up by giant detectors.
Fig. 2 LCH Under construction – [Courtesy CERN Geneva]
Light would have covered the distance in around 2.4 thousandths of a second, but the neutrinos took 60 nanoseconds -- or 60 billionths of a second -- less than light beams would have taken. "It is a tiny difference," said Ereditato, who also works at Berne University in Switzerland, "but conceptually it is incredibly important. The finding is so startling that, for the moment, everybody should be very prudent." Ereditato declined to speculate on what it might mean if other physicists, who will be officially informed of the discovery at a meeting in CERN on Friday, found that OPERA's measurements were correct. "I just don't want to think of the implications," he told Reuters. "We are scientists and work with what we know."
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Much science-fiction literature is based on the idea that, if the lightspeed barrier can be overcome, time travel might theoretically become possible. The existence of the neutrino, an elementary sub-atomic particle with a tiny amount of mass created in radioactive decay or in nuclear reactions such as those in the Sun, Fig. 3 - Hollywood time machine. The 1960s TV show The Time Tunnel was science fiction, but in some cases time travel doesn't violate the laws of physics. In fact, it might be used to break a supersecure quantum code, according to a new theory, which illustrates one of the conflicts between quantum mechanics and general relativity. [mptvimages.com]
was first confirmed in 1934, but it still mystifies researchers.
It can pass through most matter undetected, even over long distances, and without being affected. Millions pass through the human body every day, scientists say. To reach Gran Sasso, the neutrinos pushed out from a special installation at CERN -- also home to the Large Hadron Collider probing the origins of the universe -- have to pass through water, air and rock. The underground Italian laboratory, some 120 km (75 miles) to the south of Rome, is the largest of its type in the world for particle physics and cosmic research. Around 750 scientists from 22 different countries work there, attracted by the possibility of staging experiments in its three massive halls, protected from cosmic rays by some 1,400 metres (4,200 feet) of rock overhead.” That being said, there are different reactions we can have confronting ourselves with this new frontier. You can lough on it, thinking something strange has been casually found by those strange pals at CERN, as Mr. Steen Hørdum, Test Pilot at Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, from who “did not see that coming”.
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The other reaction is keeping the information seriously. CERN is one of best labs in the world. And again we face two possible points of view. The first is considering this fact as expected, nothing to be surprised about. Mr. Brad Morantz, PhD, Technical Fellow and Data Scientist at Cognitive Decisions from Phoenix, Arizona, who writes this comment “I am not surprised, glad that something was done to prove it.” And asked to explain this affirmation, Mr. Morantz adds “1) I predicted this 40 years ago. 2) If you look at history, we always violate assumptions. We humans think that we know it all, that we are masters of Science. We are not (never forget this) and we learn more with time. 3) The Mu Meson travels at a velocity beyond C. 4) Sir Isaac Newton started with Newtonian physics and created Calculus. After that was a progression of scientists, Lawrenz, Eddington, Russell, Einstein, Hawking (to name a few), and it will continue. The big question is: Are we humans ready for it? I doubt it.” We all appreciate Mr. Morantz’s ability of predicting something which was clear only to Star-Trekkers 40 years ago, whether we could not agree with is pessimistic opinion about human capacity of such a mind change. There is a more enchanting and captivating point of view, explained by Mr. Kirk John Larson, MBA, MPM, Senior Field Engineer at Lockheed Martin in Melbourne, Florida, who writes “The CERN Particle Accelerator is designed to study sub atomic structures which is itself misleading given the quantum physics defines protons, neutrons and electrons as sub-atomic. The quantum elements the CERN and other particles are sub-sub- Fig. 4 – CERN UA5 – ppbar interaction at 540GeV [Courtesy CERN Geneva] atomic in nature. 4
Additionally, quantum mechanics mathematically suggests that at the sub atomic level, the laws of physics break down into the sub-natural laws that combine to produce the laws we all know and love today. However, there is another angle of observation from the physics corner that might articulate why sub-atomic particles show signs of greater than C variations in velocity. That happens to be at the Astrophysics level where the deep space Hubble photos show galaxies traveling away at velocities near C 15 Billion years ago, while Galaxies near us still show signs of acceleration away from us. If this pattern is observably correct, then the outer limits of the Universe still show signs of inflationary processes just beyond our visible range which may or may not be visible. If so, an inflationary process is still ongoing then, functionally we may have observable evidence that the Universe may in fact still be a solid. This would then articulate that the speed of light is policed by either dark energy or something preventing the light and other particles form moving on and forcing the enormous energy requirements to move on. Given the level of science thus far achieved, physics has shown that matter and energy is little more than variations in density, and if we could demonstrate that space all though is a vacuum, no different than the space within an atom, then dark energy maybe more prolific and smaller than currently understood. If however, dark energy is somehow removed from filling the void that is space, particle acceleration would fundamentally be different than the definition of the current laws of physics. My point is simply that >C capacities at the subatomic level may well enable more than what we think is possible without imploding the planet in an artificially constructed black whole. The day physics does bring a surprise should be the only day of surprise. Just a thought.� 5
A thought which brings with it a lot of interesting issues. With NTT Carbon Fiber Group, we are used to explore any and every possibility to improve quality, business, accountability, and so on. For this reason we also put our attention where it presently is not yet stably looking. Quantum physics could drive to interesting possibilities; we should have already glanced when working with and about carbon fiber nanotubes. Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are allotropes of carbon with a cylindrical nanostructure. Nanotubes have been constructed with length-to-diameter ratio of up to 132,000,000:1, significantly larger than for any other material. These cylindrical carbon molecules have unusual properties, which are valuable for nanotechnology, electronics, optics and other fields of materials science and technology. In particular, owing to their extraordinary thermal conductivity and mechanical and electrical properties, carbon nanotubes may find applications as additives to various structural materials. Their name is derived from their long, hollow structure with the walls formed by one-atom-thick sheets of carbon. Nanotubes are categorized as single-walled nanotubes (SWNTs) and multi-walled nanotubes (MWNTs). Individual nanotubes naturally align themselves into "ropes" held together by van der Waals forces. Applied quantum chemistry, specifically, orbital hybridization best describes chemical bonding in nanotubes. The chemical bonding of nanotubes is composed entirely of sp2 bonds, similar to those of graphite. These bonds, which are 6
stronger than the sp3 bonds found in alkanes, provide nanotubules with their unique strength. Carbon nanotubes are the strongest and stiffest materials yet discovered in terms of tensile strength and elastic modulus respectively. This strength results from the covalent sp2 bonds formed between the individual carbon atoms. In 2000, a multi-walled carbon nanotube was tested to have a tensile strength of 63GPa (gigapascals). For illustration, this translates into the ability to endure tension of a weight equivalent to 6422 kg on a cable with crosssection of 1 mm2.
Fig. 6 - The four allotropic forms of graphite-like carbon, which are characterized by sp2 bonds and threefold coordination and are grouped under the general name of graphenes: (a) Two lattice planes of graphite crystal, where each plane represents an ideal grapheme with only hexagonal rings (b) The fullerene C60, formed by 12 pentagons and 20 hexagons. (c) A nanotube, having a cylindrical shape and an indefinite length. (d) A threeperiodic, D-type schwarzite, characterized by a lattice with the diamond structure. While the crystalline forms of fullerenes, nanotubes, and graphite are held together by van der Waals forces in three, two, and one space directions, respectively, schwarzite is entirely covalent in three dimensions.
Fig. 5 - sp2 bonds of carbon atoms
Further studies, conducted in 2008, revealed that individual CNT shells have strengths of up to ~100 GPa, which is in good agreement with quantum/atomistic models. Since carbon nanotubes have a low density for a solid of 1.3 to 1.4 g/cm3, its specific strength of up to 48,000 kN·m·kg−1 is the best of known materials, compared to highcarbon steel's 154 kN·m·kg−1.
Because of the nanoscale dimensions, electrons propagate only along the tube's axis and electron transport involves many quantum effects. Because of this, carbon nanotubes are frequently referred to as “onedimensional”.
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At the today’s state of the art, carbon fiber nanotubes already have a variety of applications, to which we can add an even greater number of potential applications, a wide screen of experimental applications, Table 1 - Potential Carbon Fiber Nanotubes applications currently under development
Textiles Body armor
Concrete Polyethylene Sports equipment Space elevator
synthetic muscles High tensile strength fibers Bridges Flywheels Carbon nanotube springs
Fire protection
Artificial muscles Buckypaper
Chemical nanowires
Conductive films
Electric motor brushes
Light bulb filament filament Magnets Optical ignition
Solar cells
Superconductor Ultracapacitors
CNT can make waterproof and/or tear-resistant fabrics MIT is working on combat jackets that use CNT fibers to stop bullets and to monitor the condition of the wearer. Cambridge University developed the fibres and licensed a company to make them CNT in concrete increase its tensile strength, and halt crack propagation Adding CNT to polyethylene can increase the polymer's elastic modulus by 30% Stronger and lighter tennis rackets, bicycle parts, golf balls, golf clubs, and baseball bats CNT are under investigation as possible components of the tether up which a space elevator can climb. This requires tensile strengths of more than about 70 GPa Due to their high contraction/extension ratio given an electric current, CNTs are ideal for synthetic muscle Fibers produced with polyvinyl alcohol required 600 J/g to break CNT may be able to replace steel in suspension and other bridges The high strength/weight ratio enables very high rotational speeds Single-walled carbon nanotubes aligned in parallel can be elastically stretched for an energy density 10 times greater than that of current lithium-ion batteries, with the additional advantages of long cycling durability, temperature insensitivity, no spontaneous dischange, and arbitrary discharge rate Thin layers of buckypaper can significantly improve fire resistance due to the efficient reflection of heat by the dense, compact layer of CNT or carbon fibers CNT's have sufficient contractility to make them candidates to replace muscle tissue Thin nanotube sheets are 250 times stronger than steel and 10 times lighter and could be used as a heat sink for chipboards, a backlight for LCD screens or as a faraday cage to protect electrical devices/aeroplanes CNTs can be used to produce nanowires of other elements/molecules, such as gold or zinc oxide. These nanowires in turn can be used to cast nanotubes of other chemicals, such as gallium nitride. These can have very different properties from CNTs—for example, gallium nitride nanotubes are hydrophilic, while CNTs are hydrophobic, giving them possible uses in organic chemistry Transparent, electrically conductive CNT films and NanoBuds to replace indium tin oxide (ITO) in LCDs, touch screens, and photovoltaic devices. Nanotube films show promise for use in displays for computers, cell phones, Personal digital assistants, and automated teller machines Conductive CNTs are used in brushes for commercial electric motors. They replace traditional carbon black. The nanotubes improve electrical and thermal conductivity because they stretch through the plastic matrix of the brush. This permits the carbon filler to be reduced from 30% down to 3.6%, so that more matrix is present in the brush. Nanotube composite motor brushes are better-lubricated (from the matrix), cooler-running (both from better lubrication and superior thermal conductivity), less brittle (more matrix, and fiber reinforcement), stronger and more accurately moldable (more matrix). Since brushes are a critical failure point in electric motors, and also don't need much material, they became economical before almost any other application. alternative to tungsten filaments in incandescent lamps Multi-walled nanotubes (MWNT) coated with magnetite can generate strong magnetic fields A layer of 29% iron enriched single-walled nanotubes (SWNT) is placed on top of a layer of explosive material such as PETN, and can be ignited with a regular camera flash GE's CNT diode exploits a photovoltaic effect. Nanotubes can replace ITO in some solar cells to act as a transparent conductive film in solar cells to allow light to pass to the active layers and generate photocurrent Nanotubes have been shown to be superconducting at low temperatures MIT is researching the use of nanotubes bound to the charge plates of capacitors in order to dramatically increase the surface area and therefore
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Displays
Transistor Electromagnetic antenna
energy storage ability CNTs can be used as extremely fine electron guns, which could be used as miniature cathode ray tubes in thin high-brightness, low-energy, lowweight displays. This type of display would consist of a group of many tiny CRTs, each providing the electrons to hit the phosphor of one pixel, instead of having one giant CRT whose electrons are aimed using electric and magnetic fields. These displays are known as field emission displays (FEDs) CNT transistors have been already experimentally developed CNTs can act as antennas for radios and other electromagnetic devices
With the openings coming from the fascinating discovery from CERN, quantum mechanics of the carbon nanotubes environment could sweep towards unexpected trails. The true point of view here is really applying what sci-fi brings to us, through one of its more significant representatives, Isaac Asimov: "To know the limit of possible, you must cross the border into the impossible". We should not point the finger to what seems impossible to us, but let the horizon expand to a farther limit.
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Raffaella Grassi, CEO of NTT Aerospace and Member of the Board of NTT Carbon Fiber Group, has a consolidated background being Officer with specialty in Management and Business Development, Contract Management and Long Term Marketing Strategies at NTT Group since long time. Ambitious and focused leader, with extensive international experience and with proven and lasting results within a broad range of industrial solutions, project sales and service. During long term employments prior NTT Aerospace challenge, developed, planned and executed a number of successful change projects, all of which has contributed significantly to the growth and profitability of those companies. During current employment with NTT, Mrs. Grassi implemented a strict excellence based strategy while developing business using an easy understanding of complex concepts and problems, and converting analysis, solutions and ideas into logical and durable strategies.
NTT Carbon Fiber Group http://www.gontt.com Ask for more information to info@gontt.com
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