50 yrs. of Star Trek!

[Guy Sotomayor Jr]

> On Sep 9, 2016, at 6:58 PM, Fred Cisin <cisin at xenosoft.com> wrote:
> 
> On Fri, 9 Sep 2016, Guy Sotomayor Jr wrote:
>> Actually it actually *does* exist and is reasonable to manufacture.  Here’s the
>> article: http://www.nrl.navy.mil/media/news-releases/2015/transparent-armor-from-nrl-spinel-could-also-ruggedize-your-smart-phone
>> 
>> It’s basically a sintered process where the ceramic is formed (this particular one is called spinel)
>> and the process is to put the powder in a press, raise the temperature and evacuate the air.
>> The result is a clear crystal that has better properties than glass.  The size of the piece is only
>> limited by the size of the press.
> 
>>>> Ah yes, but can you make in sheets 60 feet by 10 feet by 1 inch thick and
>>>> withstand the pressure of 18,000 cu ft of water?  :)
> 
> THAT would be a big heated vacuum press

…and if someone decided they needed it, it would get built.  To “cure” some of the composites
on the 777X, Boing is building 3 autoclaves that are 28 ft wide and 120 ft long so it’s not
outside of the realm of possibilities.

What *is* cool about the process for “transparent aluminum” is that it’s scalable.  To get
bigger pieces you just need a bigger press.  Unfortunately it probably will never be as
cheap as large scale glass making which can be done on a continuous process.

TTFN - Guy