Millinery Leaves
Posted in Uncategorized on 03/07/2008 06:10 am by admin
Millinery Leaves
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US $14.79
Brace yourself for a Hair-raising Car
Ronald Thomson, a hairdresser-turned-designer has invented a plastic made from human hair. Yes, human hair! The material is claimed to be ideal for car panels. If ever in the near future you hear of a car panel made out of hair, you will be shocked no more.
"It's better at crumpling in an impact than conventional materials," said Thompson. "And it doesn't leave sharp edges when it cracks." To create the plastic, the hair is smothered in epoxy resin, just like in the creation of fiberglass. The resultant product will be high in viscosity. It can either entertain supplementary reaction processes to attain a lower viscosity resin.
"The material we've developed has around 20 special properties, such as its crumple zone, which could have applications in car manufacturing, and the fact that micro-organisms can be grown in it, enabling desert land to be reclaimed," said Thompson. "It also breaks down well in soil, so it could have applications in agriculture."
The invention of Thomson is called PiliusX. At present, the product is now being tested at a university in London. The inventor hopes that automakers would like the eco-friendliness of his invention. To stress this fact, the hair rots down to nothing after use. If ever Thomson would be successful in courting automakers in using PiliusX for car panels, a significant percentage of annual waste would be slashed. It would also slash down production costs of vehicles. If that happens, prices of cars would also devalue.
In addition, the invention of Thomson would also serve as a valuable milestone in manufacture of auto parts and accessories. Aside from efficient Active Brakes Direct, powerful engines, reliable brakes as well as trendy car accessories automaker could add eco-friendly PiliusX car panels to the list of quality car parts accessories. An affordable and quality ally means an ideal move in the automotive industry.
Essentially, the Pilius X is processed from human hair. The said material is stronger by 20 percent than the standard fiberglass. The bio-polymer material is blended with a bio-resin to produce a sustainable and recyclable material.
Statistics shows that about 2800 tonnes of waste hair cuttings are produced annually in the United Kingdom. Hence, if Thomson’s invention be given a chance to make it to the industry significant tonnes of waste will be slashed.
Thomson, an ex-assistant hairdresser to John Frieda and Nicky Clarke, is the brains behind the eco-friendly chair made almost completely of human hair. The chair hair is one of the early attempts of Thomson using the PiliusX.
Thomson used a mixture of PiliusX and matrix polyester resin to build the hair chair. He began concentrating on the design of the chair when he quit his job as a hairdresser to venture in a brand new field called product design. The idea flashed on his mind on a work placement on the Batman Begins movie. He stretched a piece of fiberglass and it snapped. Thompson noticed how relatively fragile the fiber was. Having previously run a hair salon, Thompson considered the comparative resilience of human hair and knew that hair could serve the purpose better because it is much stronger. Moreover, he started collecting leftover hair from salons to finally come up with a clever invention. The hair chair is both recyclable and biodegradable.
Thomson admits his life been turned upside down by his discovery. “I ran my own hairdressers for 12 years and even worked with several Miss World contestants, but I was stuck in a rut and felt that it was stifling my creativity,” Thomson said. “I’ve always had a burning passion for design and environmental issues so, in 2000, I sold the business. I honestly couldn’t have predicted how things have turned out in the last six years.”
Thomson is looking at extending his hairy range to applications including structural beams, shoes – and even mascara. “I know some people think I’m bonkers, but products like fiberglass are damaging the environment and we need to look at alternatives,” he said. PiliusX application could also extend to millinery, clothing, marine industry and architecture.
About the Author
Anthony Fontanelle is a 35-year-old automotive.buff who grew up in the Windy City. He does freelance work for an automotive magazine when he is not busy customizing cars in his shop.
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