Green Steel
Cars may soon be filling up with unleaded parts, thanks to a new form of steel developed at the University of Pittsburgh. Manufacturers use lead-containing steel to make many automotive and other parts-the soft lead makes the alloy easier to machine, but it’s also toxic. So Pittsburgh researchers set out to find an environmentally friendly alternative.
Materials science professors Anthony J. DeArdo and C. Isaac Garcia examined the lead’s behavior at the molecular level. This insight helped them determine how tin could be used instead. The tin-containing steel can be machined at least as easily as the leaded alloy, says Bob Squier, president of Buffalo-based manufacturer Curtis Screw. In early manufacturing runs, says Squier, “It looks like it’s doing the job.” Squier’s company is part of an international consortium organized to commercialize the new steel, and has already received an order from Ford for parts made of the alloy.
Keep Reading
Most Popular
This new data poisoning tool lets artists fight back against generative AI
The tool, called Nightshade, messes up training data in ways that could cause serious damage to image-generating AI models.
The Biggest Questions: What is death?
New neuroscience is challenging our understanding of the dying process—bringing opportunities for the living.
Rogue superintelligence and merging with machines: Inside the mind of OpenAI’s chief scientist
An exclusive conversation with Ilya Sutskever on his fears for the future of AI and why they’ve made him change the focus of his life’s work.
How to fix the internet
If we want online discourse to improve, we need to move beyond the big platforms.
Stay connected
Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review
Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.