Lamborghini will send carbon fiber to the ISS for study

A cargo ship will depart next month for the International Space Station. Mounted on an Antares rocket, it will include Lamborghini carbon fiber samples.

Lamborghini wants to test his carbon fiber in the upper spheres. The Italian automaker will shortly send carbon fiber samples to the International Space Station for testing in "extreme conditions", only possible in space explains Slash Gear. The results of these tests should allow a more relevant use of this material in the automotive sector, of course, but also in the medical field.

An initiative led by Lamborghini and his partner, the Houston Methodist Research Institute

Associated for several years at the Houston Methodist Research Institute, as part of joint research on carbon fiber composite materials, Lamborghini will send a total of five different materials onboard the ISS and intended for its occupants.

These materials will be subjected to tests supervised by the Houston Methodist Research Institute and carried out by the astronauts present within the space station. We also learn that this research is sponsored by ISS US National Laboratory, and thus partially funded by the US government. The financial weight of this initiative does not rest on the sole shoulders of the Italian manufacturer.

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Materials destined to be tortured where "no one will hear them scream"

Among the five materials sent into space, epoxy resin "prepreg" (prepreg) and an autoclaved polymer fabric. The largest sample, says Lamborghini, is a continuous composite fiber printed in 3D.

This material, in particular, is described by the brand as relevant for additive manufacturing and could boost the mechanical performance of composite materials to "  match a good quality aluminum  " in structural use. More modestly, staple composite fibers will also be added to the batch of components to be tested.

These different materials will be subjected in space to a variety of tests to estimate their resistance. Destined to remain a total of six months in the company of astronauts of the ISS, the latter will be exposed to "massive" doses of ultraviolet radiation, but also to solar radiation, or to gamma rays. Once the tests are complete, the samples will finally be returned to Earth for study.