Artificial Nacre/Synthetic mother of pearl

[CortezPearls]

In case anyone out there is interested in synthetics/ceramics and understanding how nacre works, this is a very interesting article:

http://www.newscientist.com/article/...ef=online-news

[GemGeek]

Douglas, that article was fascinating.

[Caitlin]

Hi Douglas
Thanks for the great resource.I heard of something like this once before. I think it was being considered in a car-making process to replace the current plastic skins of the car.

Iridescent cars......Wouldn't it be nice if this substance looked like the inside of a pearl-bearing shell?

[GemGeek]

Wouldn't it be nice if this substance looked like the inside of a pearl-bearing shell?

My head spins just thinking of the possibilities!

[Miriam Reed]

Very interesting article, Douglas. It opens up some interesting possibilities. Biomimetics is such an interesting science!

[Monty Hall]

Iridescent cars......Wouldn't it be nice if this substance looked like the inside of a pearl-bearing shell?

Let's hear it for children of the sixties!!! Yes, that would indeed be ***fabulous***. I should like a Peacock Tahitian Honda Civic hatch, please

Douglas, thanks for sharing that article.

-CarolK

[pattye]

Thanks Douglas, fascinating info!

[Caitlin]

LINK

By Eric Bland | Thu Mar 25, 2010 05:11 AM ET The chief natural sources of mother of pearl are the pearl oyster, freshwater pearl mussels and abalone shell, shown here.
Getty Images



THE GIST:

• Artificial nacre, or mother of pearl, can now be mass-produced.
• The material is flameproof, super strong and as cheap as paper to make.
• It could be used to fireproof homes and to make cars more fuel efficient.

A natural pearl is a rare treasure, but new mass-produced mother of pearl could soon be as cheap and versatile as paper.
Flameproof yet flexible, thinner than office paper but 20 times as strong, the new material could eventually make aircraft lighter and comfortably protect police from bullets.
"Natural nacre is this perfect marriage of stiffness, strength and toughness," said Andreas Walther, a researcher at the Helsinki University of Technology and a co-author of a recent paper in the journal Nano Letters.
"Our artificial nacre compares very well to the natural material."
Synthetic nacre has long been a goal for both material scientists and biologists. For material scientists man-made nacre could provide strong, lightweight, cheap and environmentally-friendly material for a huge variety of products.
For biologists, synthetic nacre would provide a new way to study the complex mesh of soft protein and hard calcium carbonate that mollusks use as protection and women as decoration.

[Mikeyy]

I can't wait until the invent artificial romance and adventure. Artificial risk and an artificial sense of achievement. It will go well with artificial nacre. I wonder if these guys give their girlfriends artificial flowers? (I am rolling my eyes) Faux=Fake in my book.

[Lagoon Island Pearls]

Faux=Fake in my book.

So true.

These days, real natural pearls are suspect by default, because of the keishi, dyed or FWP claims.

Artificial nacre may likely cause even the finest cultured pearls to meet with the same skepticism.

[Josh]

Mikey what you said!

[Caitlin]

Funny as always, Mikey! Well, I am surprised by your reactions, though.

I think the last thing thing they will use artificial nacre for is jewelry. They want to use it in cars, spaceships etc to make them lighter stronger and almost impervious to fire. I would love a kitchen counter made out of this! Or a bathtub. At least a back-splash or some tile for the fireplace.

How about a United Airlines-proof guitar case?

I can't wait until the invent artificial romance and adventure. Artificial risk and an artificial sense of achievement.

PS we already have the above. For the former, it is called "the movies", and for the latter: Disney World"!

I reported on this about a year ago, so it looks like they are making progress. I am looking forward to seeing what this looks like. Maybe it could be the new "Bakelite".

While they probably will get around to making jewelry, I don't think that would be the first choice or most important one, at all. I have mylar earrings from the 70's, but mylar never made the cut for jewelry in general.

[Pearl Dreams]

The artificial nacre sounds like a superb material for non-jewelry uses. Thanks for the article!

[Hanaleimom]

I like the idea of back-splash and bathtub. Lots of ideas ... dishes and cups too.

[Josh]

I wish I was as funny as Mikey and as smart as Caitlin.