Boffins create $3m tennis racquet
January 14, 2003
FOR $3 million, Lleyton Hewitt can buy himself a tennis racquet 10 times stronger than the one he currently uses but weighs the same.
Scientists from the Australian National University (ANU) today unveiled a new method of producing microscopic carbon tubes, set to be used in a new generation of tennis racquets.
The carbon nanotubes are 10 times stronger than carbon fibre but until now have been difficult to produce in bulk quantities - a carbon nanotube tennis racquet would cost about $3 million.
The new production technique pioneered at ANU enables the production of large quantities of carbon nanotubes, raising the potential to use them for everything from sporting equipment to car bodies.
"Carbon nanotubes are already used in small quantities to strengthen a new range of carbon fibre racquets but a racquet made entirely of carbon nanotubes would have significant advantages in racquet rigidity and power," said Ying Chen from the ANU's Physical Sciences and Engineering research school.
"Ask Lleyton Hewitt or Andre Agassi if they would like a racquet that is 10 times as strong but no heavier than their existing carbon fibre racquets and I expect they would probably say yes.
"Carbon nanotubes are far stronger than steel, ten times stronger than carbon fibre and would have a huge range of commercial applications if they could be produced for a reasonable cost."
Dr Chen said a ball milling process had been used to develop the new technique of producing carbon nanotubes.
He said the process involved mechanical grinding of cheap graphite powder and heating of the pre-treated materials at controlled temperatures.
"Compared with other synthesis method, the ball milling process has advantages of large quantity production and low cost," Dr Chen said.
"As production scales increase, the costs will come down - just as costs have come down for carbon fibre products."
AAP