On August 27th 2015, NASA announced that it had created a material that can self heal after being punctured. The research, funded by NASA, and carried out at the University of Michigan, has produced a "Terminator style," material that may one day be used to protect spacecraft from being damaged by space debris.
The material consists of two layers of polymer with a third layer of a liquid resin called, Thiol-ene-Tryialkyborane, which is sandwiched in between them. When the material is punctured, the resin is released and mixes with the surrounding oxygen. The resin quickly hardens to form a solid plug in the damaged area.
University of Michigan researchers believe that the new material could also be used to line the inside of fuel tanks, in airplane hulls, or in just about anything that may face the risk of being depressurized due to a breach. The most notable possible application is the outer hull of the International Space Station.
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