SOM unveils graphene-enhanced space habitat in collaboration with the University of Manchester

2021-10-07T08:30:00-04:00

SOM has entered the interplanetary market as plans for a new space habitat prototype have been unveiled thanks to a collaboration with a team from the Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre at the University of Manchester.

Anticipating a future demand for infrastructure in space, SOM aims to develop a 2D scalable model with the potential to be made commercially available in the next five to ten years using robotics that can manufacturer complex shapes using an array of advanced materials like graphene.

Image courtesy SOM

“As architects, our role is to combine and integrate the most innovative technologies, materials, methods and above all the human experience to designing inhabited environments,” SOM senior designer Daniel Inocente said in a statement. “Conducting research using graphene allows us to test lightweight materials and design processes that could improve the efficacy of composite structures for potential applications on Earth and future use in space.”

Manchester has been...

A team of scientists have made graphene—the strongest material in the world—into a building material

2017-01-09T12:47:00-05:00

The space elevator—a theoretical mode of transportation where transport modules move up and down a long cable that connects Earth to space—has long been the stuff of futuristic fantasy...Now, a team of MIT scientists has designed one of the strongest lightweight materials in existence, taking us one step closer to realizing that sci-fi dream—and creating a formula for a material that could revolutionize architecture and infrastructure right here on Earth, too.

The material in question is called graphene, a two-dimensional form of carbon. At just one atom thick, graphene has so far proven to be inoperable as a building material, even though it's the strongest material we know about. But the team of MIT invented a process that could change that. Using heat and pressure, they were able to create 3D geometries that proved to be ten times stronger than steel, but 5% less dense.

According to the researchers behind the projects, the move from 2D to 3D is similar to rolling up a piece of paper, in the process creating a tube, which is a strong architectural form. Apparently, the material has other possible benefits for architecture. For example, because graphene is porous, it could act as a filter for water and air. And its strength could make buildings more resilient to extreme weather patterns.

At the moment, graphene is too expensive to be readily adapted to building purposes. But the 3D geometry invented by the MIT team could be used with mater...

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SOM unveils graphene-enhanced space habitat in collaboration with the University of Manchester

A team of scientists have made graphene—the strongest material in the world—into a building material