Professor Christopher Hutchinson from Monash University (Australia) dreams of a future in which the materials of construction will be truly multifunctional. According to the scientist, instead of creating the material and hope that its structure and properties are not evolve too much during the period of operation, it is necessary to recognize evolutionary change is inevitable and not to fight them, not avoid them, as from the outset to develop a future material so that the evolution proceeded in the direction of improving its properties.

An example of a functional structural material: silica particles on aluminum alloy (micrograph Monash University).

Creating such materials already today, Mr. Hutchinson manipulating atoms in steel and other alloys to make them not only resistant to stress, which causes a gradual degradation of conventional materials, but also of the evolving under its action towards improving performance. The manipulation of individual atoms are held through an electronic microscope, and with observation at the time of applying loads microstructural changes involve analytical instruments in synchrotron centers in Australia and France.

If you dream a little, in practice the use of such materials, for example, for the production of the wing, will instead of the expected metal fatigue from the constant vibrations to its strengthening and, therefore, much more long term safe operation.

Other exciting and no less important aspect of scientific activities of the group, Mr. Hutchinson is the development of functional alloys capable, for example, to effectively repel the water without special costly treatment. This would avoid many of the problems that are associated with a possible icing of the wing, characteristic for the cold countries (in fact, the example is not the most sensible, because the aircraft wing painted, and make the paint an even more water is much easier than trying to give such a property is already overburdened with the responsibility of structural material). The machine could vary their color, changing the nature of the light reflected by the surface of the body. Hull vessels would possess antimicrobial properties, avoiding accumulation shells and seaweed and improving transport efficiency...

Future materials that combine functional and structural properties, said the Professor.

Based on the materials of Monash University.