科學(xué)家們創(chuàng)造了世界上第一個(gè)液態(tài)金屬晶格

科學(xué)家們創(chuàng)造了世界上第一個(gè)液態(tài)金屬晶格

Researchers have developed the world's first liquid metal lattice, a design that could pave the way for devices that fully heal themselves when damaged.

研究人員已經(jīng)開發(fā)出世界上第一個(gè)液態(tài)金屬晶格，這一設(shè)計(jì)可能為設(shè)備受損后完全自我修復(fù)鋪平道路。

The team from Bingham University has already built several structures with it, from soccer balls to honeycombs to even a not-at-all creepy hand.

賓漢姆大學(xué)的研究小組已經(jīng)用它建造了好幾個(gè)建筑，從足球到蜂巢，甚至還有不怎么令人毛骨悚然的手。

CHRISTIAN COTRONEO

Describing the process in the journal Additive Manufacturing, their take on liquid metal begins with Field's alloy — a kind of metal made from bismuth, indium, and tin that melts at the relatively low temperature of 62 degrees Celsius. That's low enough to melt in hot water. But when the alloy is cooled, it solidifies, becoming as tough as most other metals.

他們?cè)凇短砑觿┲圃臁冯s志上描述了這一過程，他們對(duì)液態(tài)金屬的研究始于菲爾德的合金——一種由鉍、銦和錫制成的金屬，能在相對(duì)較低的62攝氏度的溫度下熔化。這個(gè)溫度低到足以在熱水中融化。但當(dāng)合金冷卻時(shí)，它會(huì)凝固，變得像大多數(shù)其他金屬一樣堅(jiān)硬。

The technique involves 3D-printing a lattice or skeleton for a structure from Field's alloy. Then the lattice is filled with a layer of rubber. Think of it like skin over the bones that protect our own organs. As long as the temperature remains below 62 degrees, the structure stays rigid and intact.

這項(xiàng)技術(shù)涉及到用菲爾德的合金3d打印結(jié)構(gòu)的晶格或骨架。然后在格子里填上一層橡膠。把它想象成保護(hù)我們自己器官的骨頭上的皮膚。只要溫度保持在62度以下，結(jié)構(gòu)就會(huì)保持剛性和完整。

But when the temperature rises above that mark, the Field's alloy does its melting act. The thing is, the rubber layer still keeps everything together — only now, the structure can be bent, shaped and even pressed into a pancake. Let the alloy cool and it hardens again. But the rubber shell pulls the alloy back into its original form.

但是當(dāng)溫度超過這個(gè)界限時(shí)，磁場(chǎng)中的合金就會(huì)發(fā)生熔化作用。問題是，橡膠層仍然保持所有東西在一起——只是現(xiàn)在，結(jié)構(gòu)可以彎曲，成形，甚至壓成薄餅。讓合金冷卻，它又變硬了。但是橡膠殼將合金拉回原來的形狀。

"Without the shell, it won't work, because the liquid metal will flow away," Zhang explains in a press release. "The shell skeleton controls the overall shape and integrity, so the liquid metal itself can be confined in the channels. We spent over half a year developing this manufacturing process, because this new lattice material is very hard to process. You need to find the best materials and processing parameters."

張?jiān)谝环菪侣劯逯薪忉尩?“沒有外殼，它就無法工作，因?yàn)橐簯B(tài)金屬會(huì)流失。外殼骨架控制著整體的形狀和完整性，因此液態(tài)金屬本身可以被限制在管道中。”我們花了半年多的時(shí)間來開發(fā)這種制造工藝，因?yàn)檫@種新的格子材料很難加工。你需要找到最佳的材料和工藝參數(shù)。”

If you're getting a Terminator vibe here, lead researcher Pu Zhang doesn't blame you. Liquid metal literally came from the future in the 1991 classic sci-fi film.

如果你有終結(jié)者的感覺，首席研究員張璞并不責(zé)怪你。液態(tài)金屬實(shí)際上來自于1991年的經(jīng)典科幻電影《未來》。

"To be honest, I've never watched that movie!" Zhang notes in the press release.

“說實(shí)話，我從來沒看過那部電影!”張?jiān)谛侣劯逯刑岬健?/p>

This wouldn't be the first time scientists have experimented with liquid metal. Last year, Chinese researchers took an even more direct page from Terminator by demonstrating how highly deformable alloys like gallium can be infused with magnetic particles like nickel and iron to create a liquid metal that can be sculpted with magnets. That research, they noted, could lead to shape-shifting, or soft, robots that, hopefully, won't make war on the human race.

這不是科學(xué)家第一次用液態(tài)金屬做實(shí)驗(yàn)。去年，中國研究人員從《終結(jié)者》中獲得了更直接的一頁，展示了如何將高度可變形的合金(比如鎵)與鎳和鐵等磁性粒子混合，從而制造出可以用磁鐵雕刻的液態(tài)金屬。他們指出，這項(xiàng)研究可能會(huì)催生變形機(jī)器人，或稱軟體機(jī)器人，希望它們不會(huì)對(duì)人類發(fā)動(dòng)戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)。

The potential for the new liquid metal lattice, on the other hand, is mostly out of this world. Spacefaring vessels and even satellites don't encounter any wind resistance or atmospheric friction of any kind. So the low melting point of Fields alloy isn't an issue. But they do get banged around a lot.

另一方面，這種新型液態(tài)金屬晶格的潛力很大。航天飛船甚至衛(wèi)星都不會(huì)遇到任何形式的風(fēng)阻或大氣摩擦。所以菲爾茲合金的低熔點(diǎn)不是問題。但它們確實(shí)經(jīng)常被撞。

"A spacecraft may crash if it lands on the moon or Mars with some kind of impact," Zhang explains in the release. "Normally, engineers use aluminium or steel to produce the cushion structures, but after you land on the moon, the metal absorbs the energy and deforms. It's over — you can use it only once.

張?jiān)谛侣劯逯薪忉尩?“如果一艘宇宙飛船在月球或火星著陸時(shí)受到某種撞擊，它可能會(huì)墜毀。”通常情況下，工程師使用鋁或鋼來制造緩沖結(jié)構(gòu)，但當(dāng)你登上月球后，這種金屬會(huì)吸收能量并變形。它結(jié)束了——你只能用一次。

"Using this Field's alloy, you can crash into it like other metals, but then heat it up later to recover its shape. You can use it over and over again."

“使用這種磁場(chǎng)的合金，你可以像其他金屬一樣撞擊它，然后加熱，恢復(fù)它的形狀。”你可以一次又一次地使用它。”