Smart and Modern Materials.

• All Smart and Modern materials are amazing, but it's important you learn the difference between the two
• Learning these two phrases will guarantee you some marks should it come up in the exam (and it often does)
• Smart Materials


  Change when an outside force is added
• Smart Materials


  • Thermochromic ink changes colour with heat
  • Electroluminescent materials glow when electricity is passed through them
• Modern Materials


  Have specific properties at all times
• Modern Materials


  • Fluorescent materials are bright enough to show up in the dark
  • Reflective material reflect light
  • Phosphorescent materials glow in the dark
• Smart and Modern materials are being developed all the time and your exam could ask you for a specific example of both
• Graphene


  • Developed from the same lead that is in your pencils
  • A super thin layer of graphite which provides a light weight, super strong, flexible material which is also a great conductor of heat and electricity
  • A fairly new material which is being developed into a wide variety of products such as vehicles, aeroplanes and sports racquets
• Nano materials


  • Tiny particles (nano) are woven into fibres to solve a whole range of problems
  • Deodorant in sports socks, antibacterials into wound dressings and Teflon onto things like school uniforms to help keep them clean are just a few examples
• Technical textiles


  • Functional modern materials being developed all the time to help make fabrics
• Kevlar


  • A synthetic fibre which can be woven to create a super strength, lightweight fabric which has uses such as motorcycle protective clothing and bullet proof vests
• Nomex


  • A fire resistant fabric with the resistance built into the fibres before it's woven so it can't be washed out
  • Used by firefighters and racing drivers
• LCD


  • Liquid Crystal Display are flat screen displays which use liquid crystals to modify to create the shape formed by an image on a screen
  • They have been developed to be more flexible and high-definition as well as being energy efficient
• Glass Reinforced Plastic (GRP)


  • A combination of glass fibre and thermosetting plastic which together makes a tough mouldable materials for use in car bodies, boast and kayaks
• Carbon Fibre reinforced plastic (CRP)


  • A mixture of carbon fibres and thermosetting plastic, lighter, stronger and more expensive than GRP
  • Used in helmets, laptops and sports equipment
• Thermochromic pigments


  • Colours changing additives that change with heat
  • Used in baby spoons, mugs and clothing to indicate temperature
• Shape Memory alloy


  • Have the ability to remember an original shape when heated
  • Used in glasses if you accidently bend them - they can pop back into shape when you dip them in hot water
  • Or switches which can turn on when a specific heat is reached
• Photochromic pigment


  • These pigments change colour in response to light
  • A great example of this is glasses which become tinted and turn into sunglasses when you go out into the sun