Isn't this basically fiberglass?

bennyfreshness 6 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Basalt is stronger than glass fibers (made from silica / quartz / sand), but not as strong as carbon fiber. Also, its more expensive than glass, but less expensive than carbon. Generally considered eco friendly.

Interestingly where carbon fiber's failure mode is instant, failing catastrophically (like say chalk), basalt will be more gradual (like say wood), in some use cases that's an advantage.

Overall though its still not mass produced, uncertain if it will ever reach scale.

If interested in fibers and composites, the YouTube channel Easy Composites is really interesting / educational. For example you can use flax fiber.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AD98L9XlCTU

	▲	exmadscientist 5 hours ago \| parent [-]
		It's a very good alternative to carbon fiber. It also has one very interesting property that carbon fiber doesn't: it's not conductive. This means, for example, that you can put it in an MRI machine and get signal back. You can't do that with carbon fiber, which shields the return RF signals and gives you a dark image, but doesn't damage anything. Basalt weave composites are basically completely transparent on an MRI. (For the same reasons, it also can be microwaved successfully. Carbon fiber can not be microwaved. Do not microwave real carbon fiber or carbon fiber composites.)

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fainpul 6 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

It looks visually similar to woven Kevlar, which is a bit stronger.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevlar

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RantyDave 5 hours ago | parent [-]

Quite. I don't see why we need this in a world that already has Kevlar, Dyneema and Carbon.

	▲	ggm 5 hours ago \| parent \| next [-]
		Price performance. If the failure mode is slow, then my sport (rowing) could love this for cheaper boat construction which is stronger than fibreglass but cheaper than carbon fibre. I imagine surfboards and kayaks could work too. Being flexible and non conducting is useful.
	▲	jabl 3 hours ago \| parent \| prev \| next [-]
		In addition to what sibling posts say, basalt is certainly abundant. Per Wikipedia, 90% of volcanic rock on earth is basalt. We're not going to run out of it.
	▲	pfix 5 hours ago \| parent \| prev \| next [-]
		See uses here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basalt_fiber I am no material scientist, so cannot comment on actual facts why it might be better in specific cases than Kevlar, Dyneema or Carbon. But from experience there's a lot I don't know and especially in engineering there's a lot to consider when putting materials under stressful conditions that might put this in in a specific spot superior to those mentioned above.
	▲	Cthulhu_ 4 hours ago \| parent \| prev \| next [-]
		I can imagine (I have no clue about this, I just watch manufacturing videos) that this is easier to mass produce. A less refined version of this is used to make Rockwool, an insulation material similar to fiber glass. Melt the stuff, extrude it, ????, profit. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6FWPTZjwLo
	▲	adrian_b 2 hours ago \| parent \| prev \| next [-]
		All those burn. Basalt does not burn, so its main competition is glass fiber, not organic fibers. Also, those 3 mentioned by you are currently quite expensive in comparison with other fibers.
	▲	nottorp an hour ago \| parent \| prev \| next [-]
		I suppose because basalt cannot be patented. Or at least cannot be patented outside the US. Say, is Carbon in your statement a trademark?
	▲	nirse 4 hours ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		It seems to be more heat resistant?