It is reported that Japanese Kobe Steel has developed a lightweight kind of aluminium which is as hard as regular steel but can be easily moulded into unconventional shapes.

The idea is to use porous aluminium in automobiles. Because it is so comparably light the researchers believe it could drastically reduce the carbon footprint of new cars. It costs less than aluminium sheeting or composite carbon fiber and could begin production as soon as April

Despite all the fancy green tech gizmos a vehicle packs, when it comes down to it weight is a serious sticking point for how well a car can curb its emissions. Foam resin is placed between two 0.15mm aluminium sheets and then heated at over 200 Celsius the result is a material as hard as steel but only 3mm thick. It is highly malleable and can be rolled and curved but its material strength means it's tough to bend out of shape.

Kobe Steel says porous aluminium is up to 80% lighter than steel and 60% lighter than regular aluminium. The problem is the material can't be welded together and it has to be riveted Kobe hopes to flog it to manufacturers to roll out on vehicle interiors.

At least for this purpose Kobe may cut competition out of the market: In Japan, the average selling price for regular aluminium per square meter is over JPY 2,000 or roughly USD 25. Kobe will sell its porous aluminium at JPY 1,500 or USD 18 per square meter vastly cheaper than the useful but expensive composite carbon fiber.

(Sourced fromwww.techeye.net)