materials science

3 articles · All tags

• How Zippers Work: Teeth, Slider and Interlocking Chain
  A zipper closes when a sliding wedge presses two rows of teeth together so each tooth locks into the gap opposite. Here is how the slider and teeth work.
• Steel and Alloys Explained: How Carbon and Chromium Work
  Steel is iron with a little carbon, and carbon atoms block the crystal defects that let iron bend, which is why steel is so much stronger than pure iron.
• Stress and Strain
  The two fundamental measures of how materials respond to loads: force per unit area and fractional deformation.