Metallurgy - Metals at the Molecular Scale

The Naked Scientists Podcast

Dr Chris Smith

Science Radio, Engineering, Naked Scientists, Natural Sciences, Technology, Life Sciences, Health & Fitness, Medicine, Science

4.6 • 957 Ratings

🗓️ 28 May 2011

⏱️ 59 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

What happens when a blacksmith meets a metallurgist? This week we explore what's happening at the molecular scale when the smithy works a piece of iron, we meet the superalloys that survive temperatures way above their melting points inside jet engines, and at the Rolls Royce precision casting facility we discover how precision plane engine parts can be cast from a single metal crystal. Also, in the news this week, how the blind brain has a built-in sonar, an attractive new magnetic material turned on by a current, and a new technique to detect troublespots brewing inside arteries. Plus,... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Transcript

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0:00.0	Stripping down science, the naked scientists.
0:07.0	The Naked Scientists. Hello, it's Sunday the 29th of May. Welcome to the Naked Scientists. I'm Chris Smith.
0:27.4	This week, what do you get if you mix a blacksmith with a metallurgy research scientist.
0:33.0	The or endure it is, the softer it goes.
0:36.0	Now when I hammer it, it's going to be easier to handle.
0:39.0	Iron's got this really, really unique property that at about 700 Celsius it transforms from being one
0:44.7	crystal structure to another. So just using the skill of a blacksmith, Gordon's managed to
0:48.6	control the atomic structure of a piece of iron, really amazing skills.
0:53.0	We're also off to Rolls Royce to find out how they make the materials that can withstand
0:57.2	one of the harshest environments known, the inside of a jet engine, and how do you measure the shape of something less than a billionth of a
1:05.6	millimeter across?
1:06.6	Well UK scientists have done just that this week but what is it that they measured?
1:11.2	Find out shortly.
1:12.2	The Naked Scientists Podcast is powered by UK Fast.
1:17.0	The UK's best hosting provider on the web at UKfast.
1:21.0	UK.
1:23.1	And up first to take a look at the latest scientific breakthroughs is Diana O'Carroll.
1:32.1	Yes well researchers from Ontario this week have identified which parts of the brain are involved in human
1:38.1	echolocation. Traditionally associated with bats, whales and sonar, echolocation is a technique used to find one's
1:45.5	position by bouncing sound off surfaces and waiting for the echo. The study performed by
1:50.8	law Thaler and colleagues at the University of Ontario and the Rotman Research Institute. The study
1:55.0	subjects, one had been blind since 13 months,
	...

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