Adamantium

[Caleb]

I just watched one of the X-men movies. Apparently, Wolverine has the adamantium claws that are "indestructible". I know that such an element/compound cannot possibly exist. But this got me thinking; what is the closest element/compound to being indestructible?

[Horza2002]

Diamond probably since it is the hardest known material.

 

There is a molecules called adamantite....its is a tribridged cyclohexane ring

[Mr Skeptic]

I'm thinking a diamond-nanotube composite. Diamonds by themselves will shatter when hit, so that kind of nerfs their indestructibility.

[seriously disabled]

According to Wikipedia aggregated diamond nanorods are the hardest materials.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aggregated_diamond_nanorod

[ercdndrs]

The compound Horza is probably talking about is actually called Adamantane, with the formula C10H16

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adamantane

[Caleb]

Okay... What element would be closest to being indestructible?

[hermanntrude]

i'd go for tungsten. Incredibly hard, massively high melting point. Probably rather brittle, though.

[Greippi]

i'd go for tungsten. Incredibly hard, massively high melting point. Probably rather brittle, though.

Tungsten carbide is one of the hardest alloys.

 

Boron is the hardest element, Cubic BC5 is not as hard as diamond, but much tougher.

 

SiO2 or Al2O3 with zirconia are the toughest (most resistant to fracture).

[Horza2002]

Yes ercdndrs thats what I meant

[vordhosbn]

i'd go for tungsten. Incredibly hard, massively high melting point. Probably rather brittle, though.

If we are not allowed to pick alloys - what about Iridium?

It's has less hardness and lower melting point, but more strength.

Edited May 14, 2010 by vordhosbn

[Greippi]

If we are not allowed to pick alloys - what about Iridium?

It's has less hardness and lower melting point, but more strength.

 

Strength? Iridium is really brittle.

 

 

Titanium is the strongest element, light too.

[Sisyphus]

There is no one measure of "destructible." It all depends on how you're destroying it. There is hardness, toughness, compressive strength, tensile strength, shear strength, etc.

 

There is also different ways of measuring each of these things. For example, titanium is stronger than steel per unit mass, but weaker per unit volume. A titanium bar will be lighter but thicker than a steel bar of the same strength.

[Arthur Dent]

I remember reading that a Titanium/Zirconium alloy was one of the strongest alloys possible, in hardness and tensile strenght. After googling it, I see it's used extensively in medicine for implants. And I guess that some ceramics, like the ones used in hi-end bulletproof vests, are extremely tough.

 

But of course, a material that would exhibit the properties of our friend Wolverine's claws doesn't exist, although if it did, it would save a lot of lives.

 

Robert

[Caleb]

But of course, a material that would exhibit the properties of our friend Wolverine's claws doesn't exist, although if it did, it would save a lot of lives.

 

Robert

 

Sadly, someone would use it to take lives too...

[the tree]

But of course, a material that would exhibit the properties of our friend Wolverine's claws doesn't exist, although if it did, it would save a lot of lives.

Sadly, someone would use it to take lives too...

In what way? It appears to be fairly light, so it wouldn't deal much damage as a projectile. Being obviously difficult to shape it would make a very expensive blade - according to the story it can only be shaped while it is in it's liquid form so it's unclear how the razor edges of Wolverine's claws are ever created. The simplest military applications would be as shielding or armour.

[Mr Skeptic]

In any case, there is no material that can't be destroyed, for example by heating it til it vaporizes.

[vordhosbn]

... there is no ...

we don't know of

 

[hermanntrude]

there is one material which is totally indestructible. If you try to destroy it, it's only replaced by more and it gets more and more dense over time. Currently it covers nearly all of the earth's land mass and is expanding.

 

 

it is of course, stupidity.

[Mr Skeptic]

Hm, good point. All the individual fundamental particles are more or less indestructible. Unless you happen to have an antiparticle to destroy it with. And if you were to somehow make a material with the properties of protons/neutrons (the binding energy is greater than the energy needed to create the particle) then you could have a multi-particle system that would be more or less indestructible.

[Caleb]

In what way? It appears to be fairly light, so it wouldn't deal much damage as a projectile. Being obviously difficult to shape it would make a very expensive blade - according to the story it can only be shaped while it is in it's liquid form so it's unclear how the razor edges of Wolverine's claws are ever created. The simplest military applications would be as shielding or armour.

 

Wouldn't you get a bit nervous if an indescructable tank rolled down your street?...

[spookyjeff]

Also it doesn't matter how heavy something is, if its "indestructible" that just means you can throw it harder before it breaks apart. Something like that would be an ideal projectile and casing for a rail or Gauss gun like weapon.

[Mr Skeptic]

Also it doesn't matter how heavy something is, if its "indestructible" that just means you can throw it harder before it breaks apart. Something like that would be an ideal projectile and casing for a rail or Gauss gun like weapon.

 

Eh, try shooting some indestructible styrofoam. Also, indestructible materials would likely be too expensive to use as a disposable projectile. I'd agree about the railing for the Gauss gun though.

[Caleb]

Suppose you filled the "indestructible" styrofoam with lead?

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Consecutive posts merged

Also, indestructible materials would likely be too expensive to use as a disposable projectile.

 

You're probably right, any good soldier wouldn't let indestructible bullets fly into enemy territory. Especially if it is a new invention. It would most likely be used as armor. Just one indestructible tank would level a heavily guarded city assuming it had enough ammo.

[seriously disabled]

The material inside neutron stars is known to be very dense but it only forms under extremely high pressure.

 

Other than that I don't believe such a material really exists and there are some reasons to believe that it doesn't. If it did, this would probably pose several problems like violaton of the law of conservation of energy. Another problem is that if such a thing exists it would contradict the big bang because according to the big bang everything started out as pure energy such light and electricity. This means that every solid material must broken down to these fundamental particles.

[Double K]

I can't help but see the "root" here as simple & "fantastic" (ie. the term being used from sci-fi or fiction directly)

 

Lets just break the word down quickly,

 

Adamant

1. unshakable in purpose, determination, or opinion; unyielding

 

•To create a noun denoting act, office, condition, or character, add the suffixes -(t)ium, -monium, -tas, -tus, -(t)ia, -ina to the noun stem.