The Evolution of Materials
THE MAGAZINE DEVOTED TO NICKEL AND ITS APPLICATIONS
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THE THEORY OF EVOLUTION suggests that only the most adaptable survive. The same is true in the design
world. Using corrosion-resistant, high-strength stainless steel, means potable water distribution systems and
reinforced concrete structures will survive for many years to come.
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One of my favourite science writers is Stephen Jay Gould (1941-2002), who, besides being a world-renowned paleontologist, was a great communicator.
As a paleontologist, he naturally wrote about the evolution of living species, and in his various books, read by the general public and specialists alike, he stressed that scientific discoveries have profound implications for society and culture.
In this issue of Nickel Magazine, we address another significant evolution, albeit one that's taking place in the non-living realm of materials. We refer to the ongoing changes in global design. These changes are evident in two areas that are of particular interest to the Nickel Institute: pipes for distributing potable water, and reinforcing bar used in concrete structures.
Increasingly, the materials chosen by engineers for these applications are nickel-containing stainless steels. As you will discover in this issue, engineers in Ireland have decided to use S31600 stainless steel reinforcing bar in several concrete highway bridges over salt-water estuaries, and architectural engineers in Asia have chosen S30400 and S31600 stainless steels for high-pressure water pipes in tall buildings.
Not only are the engineers of new projects choosing corrosion-resistant, high-strength stainless steel, so are the experts responsible for retrofitting existing systems. At the University of Missouri, for example, energy management engineers are using stainless steel to replace carbon steel in that institution's extensive water distribution network. The advantages, in this case, are ease of installation, long operating life, and low maintenance.
The ascendancy of nickel-containing stainless steels has everything to do with durability, recycleability, and life-cycle costing. Note the story on our back cover, which tells of a copper-nickel material that has yet to be embraced by the designers of ocean-going vessels. This material offers the same benefits to marine designers that stainless steel offers building and construction designers. The incredible foresight of Dr. Kenneth W. Coons, who built the Asperida in 1967, has provided us with valuable data on the durability and suitability of this material for marine vessels. Not only does it exhibit little metal loss after thirty years in salt water; it provides a smooth surface free of "bio-fouling" (barnacles and such which reduce the energy efficiency of ocean vessels). In other words, the materials evolution we are seeing on land has potential to spread to the world's oceans as well.
Stephen Gould helped us understand that evolution proceeds in relatively short episodes of rapid change followed by long periods of stability, and that only the most adaptable survive. The materials evolution we are witnessing today could well be similar to Gould's biological one. One thing is certain: they both hold profound implications for society and culture.
Editor
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