Nanotechnology is a classification of technology on a vary small scale. It includes technologies that allow us to study a single cell, etch the encyclopedia on the head of a pin, and create an extremely complex crystal lattices. QUASAM is a material that utilizes nanotechnology in it's creation. The nanotechnologies used position the atoms of the QUASAM family into a specific arrangements that do not occur naturally in nature. QUASAM-like materials that occur naturally are diamonds and graphite.

QUASAM is a general term for many carbon forms that are virtually impossible to find in nature. QUASAM was discovered in 1995-1996 by Atomic-Scale Design, Inc and Dr. Benjamin Dorfman and has US patents No. 6,080,470. This family of compounds generally take and combine many features of other carbon solids, such as diamond and graphite. Different QUASAM materials have a wide range of properties, such as an extremely wide range of electrical conductivity and flexibility. They have a very low density (on the order of 1.7 g/cm³) making them ideal for use in aviation. Furthermore, they are very ecologically sound, being based on carbon, and much less polluting than metal structures or ceramics.

QUASAM more specifically is a mixture of various forms of solid carbon. In nature, solid carbon forms three forms, "chains" as seen in polymers such as plastics, "planes" such as graphite, and "tetrahedrons" such as diamond. The type it is is determined by the hybridization of the carbon. Plastic carbon is hybridized sp, graphite is hybridized sp², and diamond is hybridized sp³. QUASAM is primarily composed of carbons that are hybridized sp³/sp².

QUASAM has already been produced as a free-standing material.

This information is courtesy of Dr. Benjamin Dorfman through email correspondence.

Glare

Currently aluminum is the most commonly used material on airplanes. Aluminum sheets, usually one millimeter thick is sheeted over the airframe. Although aluminum is light and durable, glare has additional advantages. Glare is composed first of a thin layer of aluminum, then a thin layer of strong fiberglass, and then another layer of aluminum. Each layer is about one millimeter thick. These aluminum and fiber-reinforced plastic composites, were first developed in the 1970s. Bonded materials can trace their history back to early bonded wood and bonded metal aircraft structures.

Glare has more protection in the event of a fire, is more resistant to damage, and is less sensitive to metal fatigue. The U.S. Air Force used GLARE on the freight door for the recent C-17 while the new airbus AX33 is considering constructing the entire aircraft out of GLARE.

Carbon fiber

Carbon fiber is a synthetic fiber that results from the heating, oxidizing, and carbonizing of polyacrylonitrile polymer fibers. It is used in the production of high performance aircraft. A polymer is a giant molecule made up of repeating units, long connecting chains of carbon molecules. To turn this polymer molecule into a fiber, it is subjected to extreme heat and pressure. The discovery of carbon fiber dates back to the late 1800s when Thomas Edison was testing thousands of different materials to use as a filament in the lightbulb. Fibers can also be manufactured as carbon paper which is very effective and durable as a superior filtration element.

The demand for carbon fiber grew from the aerospace industry’s need in the ’60s for building materials that were lighter and stronger than steel or aluminum and could facilitate the design of lighter weight, higher performance aircraft, to carry larger payloads while using less fuel. 

Aluminum was originally used to create almost all of the plane except the major supports which were made of steel. When jet engines were introduced the steel supports were replaced by titanium because it worked well against the intense heat created form the engines. Advanced composites, i.e. graphite and boron filaments in a cured epoxy matrix  have the added advantage that they are lightweight and extremely durable.

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