Fullerenes are nanoparticles that consist of 60 carbon molecules forming the shape of a football. The new material is to exhibit three times the strength of conventional composites while weighing significantly less, Siemens’ engineers reckon. A mixture made up of merely one percent of fullerenes is sufficient to provide greatly increased hardness, Siemens says.

Turbines featuring the new material could be much lighter and operate at much higher revolution speeds. Meanwhile superconductive electricity cables could be coated with fullerene-enhanced aluminium, providing them with improved stability. “Since fullerenes hardly have an impact on the conductivity of aluminum, the cable could be made thinner, thus enabling material savings.”