Graphene aerogel is seven times lighter than air, can balance on a blade of grass.

Chinese material scientists have created the world’s lightest material: A graphene aerogel that is seven times lighter than air, and 12% lighter than the previous record holder (aerographite). A cubic centimeter of the graphene aerogel weighs just 0.16 milligrams — or, if you’re having a problem conceptualizing that, a cubic meter weighs just 160 grams (5.6 ounces). The graphene aerogel is so light that an cube inch of the stuff can be balanced on a blade of grass, the stamen of a flower, or the fluffy seed head of a dandelion









The potential applications for this stuff are astronomical, literally!

Just imagine the prospects in the aerospace industry alone! We may even be able to build interplanetary space vehicles out of this stuff considering how light and strong it is and the recent advances being made regarding the use of plasma propulsion. I wonder how good it is at absorbing radiation/cosmic rays?

www.extremetech.com...

www.extremetech.com...

So if it is lighter as air...

Then explain why it doesn't rise up.. Float away?
How hard is it too balance a helium filled balloon on a hair? :-)


It is nice stuff... but not lighter as air.

reply to post by andy06shake

How does it compare to the silicon counterpart? That has extraordinary insulating qualities.
The original aerogel is whitish/bluish, and called "solid smoke." This graphite version fits the bill much better.

reply to post by EartOccupant


"It is nice stuff... but not lighter as air."

I guess not since it does not seem to float away, but imagine the possibilities in construction!

Originally posted by stars15k
reply to post by andy06shake

 

How does it compare to the silicon counterpart? That has extraordinary insulating qualities.
The original aerogel is whitish/bluish, and called "solid smoke." This graphite version fits the bill much better.

I have no idea how it compares. I thought the Nazi Germans pioneered aerogel in the 40s with there invention of Victalen(Frozen smoke). Supposedly it had radar absorption properties.

Originally posted by EartOccupant
So if it is lighter as air...

Then explain why it doesn't rise up.. Float away?
How hard is it too balance a helium filled balloon on a hair? :-)


It is nice stuff... but not lighter as air.

I found this on a different website, it's a comment, but it seems legit.

For its size, the block of material is “lighter” than air, but the solid as a whole is still denser because air permeates through it.

Think of it this way. The material is still as dense as the stuff it is made from. Remove all the space within it and you have a small lump of carbon.

It's bad reporting - as usual - with a hint of truth smothered in "Look at moi, look at moi!!" thrown in for good measure and to keep all the reddit folk arguing.

Having said that, I can imagine the concept, but as always with me, I have an unimaginably hard time putting it into words. Ohhhh...

Originally posted by winofiend

For its size, the block of material is “lighter” than air, but the solid as a whole is still denser because air permeates through it.

I'm quite sure that doesn't make sense. Fortunately, it's cryptic enough that it hardly has to.

We have plenty of reference points for "Lighter than air", so it shouldn't require a technical end run around the definition of "lighter"... or "air"... or "than".

If the weight of an equal volume of air would be greater, then the object/substance in question is lighter than air.

All that said, it's a pretty awesome picture. How soon till there's a block of it at Disneyland beside a new model of the next space shuttle that will never go into production?

The statement is simply made to get more clicks. It is not wrong, although scientifically inaccurate. In vacuum this material is 7x lighter than air, if they occupy the same amount of space, although in real world (non-vacuum) air permeates through the voids in its structure. It does not float away. So it can be said that this material is lighter than air, as in vacuum it is.

We should not nag on the semantics that much. This material is a great discovery and improve certain fields a lot. Despite the technically inaccurate article by the publishers, who are probably not material scientists and do not have full understanding of the field , the discovery is remarkable and should be recognised more.

The picture where a 2g block of this material could hold up a 2,5 kg block was nice

www.extremetech.com...

Thanks for the share, S&F

reply to post by Cabin


Ironically, thats what I take

For its size, the block of material is “lighter” than air, but the solid as a whole is still denser because air permeates through it.

to mean.

But that doesn't make sense apparently. So..

yeah lol

reply to post by andy06shake

I think there was another thread on this, but your pictures are better. Yes, the possibilities are amazing. In everything. Clothing. Space exploration. Everyday objects ("Throw me another wall, would ya?"), sports (new sports could be developed, or imagine a bike made of this stuff), backpacks and tents, other things people carry for a good distance, like telescopes or even computer bodies. Now this is tech that governments and the big money people should be funding to the hilt.

Originally posted by EartOccupant
So if it is lighter as air...

Then explain why it doesn't rise up.. Float away?
How hard is it too balance a helium filled balloon on a hair? :-)


It is nice stuff... but not lighter as air.

I'm not sure where the article author is getting that figure - air is about 0.13 milligrams per CC at STP, this stuff is slightly heavier at 0.16 mg.

Guess you can't expect a lot from journalists, though.

Interesting video

Originally posted by Aleister
reply to post by andy06shake

 

I think there was another thread on this, but your pictures are better. Yes, the possibilities are amazing. In everything. Clothing. Space exploration. Everyday objects ("Throw me another wall, would ya?"), sports (new sports could be developed, or imagine a bike made of this stuff), backpacks and tents, other things people carry for a good distance, like telescopes or even computer bodies. Now this is tech that governments and the big money people should be funding to the hilt.

Cheers mate. The possibilities with this stuff seem endless, I'm thinking they should construct space stations/ships myself! Probably never happen all the same!

Totally Awesome, have skimmed through article will save for reading later in the day. This stuff always amazes me. S&F for sure.

reply to post by TheLaughingGod

Your video kind of pops the bubble. This material is very brittle, so nothing will be made of it that has to bounce around in the real world (the guy mentions insulation, which may work). And he says "It can hold 4,000 times its own weight." Which is nothing. If it weighs almost nothing, then 4,000 times that will be like a paperclip or a herd of butterflies or something.

Originally posted by Aleister
reply to post by TheLaughingGod

 

Your video kind of pops the bubble. This material is very brittle, so nothing will be made of it that has to bounce around in the real world (the guy mentions insulation, which may work). And he says "It can hold 4,000 times its own weight." Which is nothing. If it weighs almost nothing, then 4,000 times that will be like a paperclip or a herd of butterflies or something.

4000 times one´s weight is a lot. It weighs nothing, but still large blocks of it can be made. For example on one of the pictures 2g of it are able to hold 2,5 kg block, potentially 8 kg. 250g of it might hold a ton. 1 kg- 4 t .

One of possible uses is cleaning up seas from pollution, different filtering systems can be improved a lot with it. It actually has lots of different practical uses. It does not weigh much, although if 2g block is possible, then it is likely that 1kg or much large block would be possible.

Search for 'graphene coated carbon nanotubes' for elasticity queries. However what you are looking at here is the future of super conductivity and capacitor research.