Could We See Graphene Used In BMX?

Over the years, BMX has pretty much put it’s main focus on metal materials such as 4130 Chromoly, 7075 and 6065 Aluminum, Hi-Ten steel on entry level bikes and occasionally titanium, despite very high cost to use the material. Obviously we’ve also seen an increase in plastic use with the nylon and polycarbonate mixtures used for plastic pegs and plastic pedals, too. This morning we spotted an interesting piece on Cycling Industry News that talks about the current use of Graphene in bicycle manufacturing and the potential of 3D Graphene (explained in the video above) that could be a game changer. Allegedly this material uses 5% the density of steel, with 10 times more strength. What does that mean exactly? It means it’s a lot LIGHTER and STRONGER than traditional steel, which is why this could be an interesting material for BMX. Over the years, the BMX industry has battled with the weight versus strength balance to create products that are not only light weight, allowing it the ability to control your bike better, but strong and reliable, so you don’t have to worry about it breaking when you send it down a stair set, over a big box jump or down at the trails. Since this new 3D Graphene material is still in development, and BMX tends to be a little behind in adopting new technology, it’s an interesting idea to consider. We don’t know the kinds of costs involved, but maybe, just maybe, some day you will see this material popping up in our little world.

“A team of MIT engineers has successfully designed a new 3-D material with five percent the density of steel and ten times the strength, making it one of the strongest lightweight materials known. (Learn more here.)

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is an independent, coeducational, privately endowed university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Our mission is to advance knowledge; to educate students in science, engineering, and technology; and to tackle the most pressing problems facing the world today. We are a community of hands-on problem-solvers in love with fundamental science and eager to make the world a better place.

The MIT YouTube channel features videos about all types of MIT research, including the robot cheetah, LIGO, gravitational waves, mathematics, and bombardier beetles, as well as videos on origami, time capsules, and other aspects of life and culture on the MIT campus. Our goal is to open the doors of MIT and bring the Institute to the world through video.

Video: Melanie Gonick/MIT
3-D printing footage and experiment simulation: Gang Seob Jung/Zhao Qin
Graphene animation: Pond5/edited by Melanie Gonick”

What do you think? Let us know in the comments below!