What will replace Carbon Fiber ?

Artificial "Spiber" silk is tougher than Kevlar

 

Sounds really interesting!

 

oh snap, beat me to it

 

I'm involved with American Aerogels. Current Areogel tech is very interesting and has some wonderful properties. I don't see it as a CF competitor though.

 

I think it will still be CF, but better production methods. I.e. being able to make the shape you want by weaving the CF into it rather than laying down layers of the stuff. Of course an aluminum honeycomb under it (like F1 car chassis) will still be done to make it lighter and stronger than pure CF in multiple layers.

 

Except you'd be thinking of Transparent aluminum!

 

Actually, THIS is closer than we might think...

Transparent Alumina (Aluminum Oxynitride) ? Properties, Production and Applications

" Once confined to the world of Star Trek, transparent alumina is now very much a reality, and can have significant real-world applications.

Transparent alumina, also known as aluminum oxynitride, is a transparent polycrystalline ceramic with a cubic spinel crystal structure made of nitrogen, oxygen and aluminum.

It is optically transparent in the near-ultraviolet, visible and infrared regions. It is four times harder than fused silica glass, 85% harder than sapphire and 15% harder than magnesium aluminate spinel. The material remains solid up to 1200°C (2190°F). It has good corrosion resistance and resistance to damage from radiation and oxidation. It is about three times harder than steel of the same thickness."

 

WOW, this stuff exists, another Star Trek Sci-Fi idea inspiring reality.

Now all we need to do is build the rest of the ship around the transparent aluminum windows and we are set!

Back on topic, I think we are only beginning to see the use of composite materials, the future could easily be mixes of composiite materials, maybe no carbon fibre cloth at all. Mixing in different materials solves some of the problems with carbon fibre, namely the fact it cracks too easily from an impact.

Neil