HIGH-TECHNOLOGY MATERIALS: A KEY TO INDUSTRIAL COMPETITIVENESS AND STRATEGIC CAPABILITIES

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP84S00558R000400150003-2
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 21
• Document Creation Date: December 21, 2016
• Document Release Date: January 14, 2008
• Sequence Number: 3
• Publication Date: July 1, 1983
• Content Type: REPORT

Intelligence
High-Technology Materials:
A Key to Industrial
Competitiveness and
Strategic Capabilities
A Research Paper
Secret
GI 83-10167
July 1983
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
412
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
 Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
 Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
EfF~ Directorate of
Secret
Intelligence
High-Technology Materials:
A Key to Industrial
Competitiveness and
Strategic Capabilities
Branch, OGI,
This paper was prepared by Civil
Technology and Industry Division, Office of Global
Issues. Comments and queries are welcome and
may be directed to the Chief, Technology Analysis
Secret
G183-10167
July 1983
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
 Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
Secret
Summary
IrItormation available
as of 23 June 1983
ti as used in this report.
High-Technology Materials:
A Key to Industrial
Competitiveness and
Strategic Capabilities
development costs and uncertain markets.
Advanced materials are becoming increasingly important to the economic
and military strength of industrialized nations. They are enhancing the
competitiveness and performance of a wide range of civil products and
military weapon systems. Markets, both civil and military. potentially
affected by advanced materials transportation, electronics, computers,
telecommunications, machine tools, and weapon systems, among others
are cumulatively worth hundreds of billions of dollars annually. Moreover.
the flow of dual-use advanced materials and associated manufacturing
processes from civil to military applications, already sizable from military
to civil, is growing to the extent that large civil markets may attract
substantially more R&D investment than military programs can support.
Although opportunities are great, risks are high because of sizable
Industry experts believe that four classes of advanced materials merit
special attention:
? Electronic materials-especially new semiconductor materials such as
gallium-arsenide.
? Electro-optical materials-such as fiber optics and sensors for a wide
variety of information applications.
? Fiber-reinforced composites-strong, lightweight structural materials
used in transportation applications.
? Structural ceramics used in a variety of high-temperature applications,
such as fuel-efficient diesel engines for automobiles, trucks, and militar
tanks.
Significant commercial applications already exist or seem likely N ]thin this
decade.
competition for sales could develop.
Leading foreign governments, looking to high technology to improve their
long-term industrial competitiveness, are moving quickly to develop indige-
nous capabilities in these key classes of advanced materials. Japan and
France, in particular, are undertaking unprecedented national programs
for R&D. In the short term, they are encouraging firms to be aggressive in
installing production capacity for some of the most promising new
materials, even in the face of weak demand. Given the high stakes involved,
serious overcapacity in the production of advanced materials and fierce
iii Secret
(,i er ioi
.114 I IQ~?
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
 Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84S00558R000400150003-2
Foreign successes in advanced materials have several important economic
and strategic implications for the United States:
? Industrial Competitiveness. Foreign leadership in advanced materials
can translate into strong competitive leverage for products in world
markets. Foreign governments may apply measures, such as direct
funding and subsidies, that permit domestic manufacturers to take more
risks in the application of advanced materials than their US competitors.
Furthermore, foreign suppliers may give preferential price or availability
concessions on advanced materials to other domestic manufacturers,
enhancing their product competitiveness relative to US manufacturers.
? Dependency. To the extent that dual-use advanced materials-those with
military as well as commercial importance-and manufacturing process-
es are developed and applied more rapidly in Japan and Western Europe
for commercial reasons, the United States may find itself dependent on
foreign sources of supply for materials important in military as well as
commercial applications. Market uncertainties and potential excess
world capacity may discourage potential US suppliers from developing
new materials and building production capacity. Hence, the relevant
production technology-design and manufacturing capabilities, produc-
tion experience, and know-how-for key military applications may never
be established.
? Technology Transfer. Emergence of strong foreign capabilities in ad-
vanced materials complicates US efforts to control the flow of such
technology to the Communist countries. Enforcement of COCOM
restrictions on the transfer of advanced materials technologies becomes
more difficult as the number of possible sources of these technologies
increases. The Soviets have been seeking a number of dual-use materials
technologies, including those for production of carbon-carbon materials
and carbon fibers.
? Technology Diffusion. Similarly, it will be difficult to control the
diffusion of dual-use materials technology among non-Communist coun-
tries.
Advances in materials also pose competitive problems for US industry.
Certain mature industries, such as steel, face problems that may affect
demand and jobs. Many of the new materials are nonmetallic and are
gradually replacing metals in a wide variety of applications. Demand for
metals could slacken or even decline.
25X1
25X1
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84S00558R000400150003-2
 Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
Secret
Summary
Introduction
High Commercial and Strategic Stakes
Reaching a High-Risk Market
7
Industry Structure
8
Intensifying Foreign Competition
8
Implications for the United States
10
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
 Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
Secret
High-Technology Materials:
A Key to Industrial
Competitiveness and
Strategic Capabilities
Introduction
This paper inaugurates the Agencv's coverage or
advanced materials in non-Communist countries.
Materials have always been the cornerstone of indus-
trial development, a concept aptly captured in the
nomenclature for man's earlier ages: stone, copper,
bronze, and iron. Exploitation of these materials has
spurred industrial progress, resulting in significant
performance improvements in civil products and in
military weapon systems. In the 20th century, ad-
vances in structural and electronic materials have
allowed man to transport himself around the world
and into space and to transmit, manipulate, and store
his information. Now, as the developed world looks to
high technology to revitalize its industries and to
reestablish its military advantage, it appears that
advanced materials will play a major role.
The commercial and military impact of the materials
now emerging from R&D laboratories will be signifi-
cant. Soon, even better and cheaper materials will be
available. The decade-long increase in energy costs,
which, for example, drove commercial aircraft fuel
costs to roughly half of the operating costs, triggered a
widespread effort to develop and exploit advanced
materials to improve fuel efficiency in vehicles. Coin-
cident with this development were the quicker-than-
ever advances in manufacturing processes-which
have yielded new parts and reduced production costs
of old parts, making them competitive in a wider
variety of applications. Coupled with ongoing im-
provements in semiconductor-based microelectronics,
these factors contribute to a pace in advanced materi-
their important leverage in civil and military applica-
tions. These materials can have a tremendous impact
on the competitiveness of products cumulatively worth
hundreds of billions of dollars annually. Moreover,
some materials can impart unique advantages to
military weapon systems. (Some of the most promising
applications are described in the table.) Once such
materials can also be made cheaply, their competitive
impact will be magnified considerably, and they will
become the workhorse materials of tomorrow. (See
glossary for types, definitions, and details.)
25X1
25X1
Advanced materials enhance equipment performance 25X1
and/or product competitiveness in one or more of the
following applications:
? In special components critical to system perform-
ance. Although unit prices may be small relative to
overall system costs, the value of such components
to the system is high. Example applications are:
semiconductor-based memory chips and micro-
processors, the single light-emitting crystal in a
laser, and composite "Chobham" armor (defending
against shaped charges) in modern tanks.
? As substitute materials in equipment, providing
either greater durability or lower operating costs.
Examples are: fracture-resistant composites in heli-
copter rotors and lightweight materials in fuel-
efficient automobiles.
? In components for improving human health, such as
body replacement parts with ultimately incalculable
benefits.
Many of the applications most affected by advanced
materials are found in the transportation and infor-
mation sectors. In civil and military transportation
als development that is unprecedented.
High Commercial and Strategic Stakes
The importance of advanced materials considerably
exceeds their sales value as commodities because of
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
 Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
Selected Advanced Materials and Applications
Application
Structural
Metals
Single crystal High temperature
turbine blades in
aircraft jet engines
Amorphous Transformer cores
Lightweight High-stress parts in
alloys airframes and auto-
mobiles
Strength; resistant to
fracture at high tem-
perature
Easily remagnetized
without loss of
structural strength
Fuel efficient in
vehicles
Ceramics High-temperature a Fuel economy
engines in automobiles
and tanks
Automobile parts such Lighter and more
as turbocharger rotors, durable than metals
cylinder liners and at high temperatures
heads, and pistons
Cutting tools Wear resistant
Engineering Vehicle dashboards Cheaper than non-
plastics and equipment shells plastics; tough,
corrosion resistant
at moderate tempera-
tures
Construction; Inexpensive
modular housing
Fiber-rein- Aircraft, automobile,
forced plastics high-speed train bodies
(including
carbon-carbon)
High-stress parts;
helicopter rotors,
aircraft wings, and
brakes; automobile
drive shafts and
leaf springs; casings
for rocket motors for
jet engines
Stealth aircraft
Metal matrix Automobile engine
blocks
Piston heads in
automobile engines
Strong and stiff
relative to weight
Strong and lightweight;
hence fuel efficient
in vehicles
Fracture resistant
under high stress
Poor radar reflector
In castings, much
stronger than unre-
inforced metals
Greater durability
at high temperature
Under development;
being field tested
Economics may be
marginal
The uncooled, ceramic
engine is a 21 st-
century application
Currently used in
operating prototypes
Continuing develop-
ments; some high-
performance plastics
no longer advanced
Increasingly
available
In commercial aircraft,
safety fears hold back
use in wings and
fuselage
Increasingly
available
Long-range potential
Currently in working
prototype
Costs barrier to
widespread use
Raw materials inexpen-
sive and widely available
Brittleness barrier to
wide use
High cost of tool break-
age limits use to special
applications
Consumer dislike
barrier to
extensive use
Large Third World
market
Effects of aging
not well understood
High cost of parts
fabrication barrier
to widespread use
May outcompete more
publicized ceramics
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
 Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558ROO0400150003-2
Secret
Functional
Advanced semi-
conductors
Gallium- Electronic circuits, Switching speed of Already used in
arsenide lasers, sensors, devices significantly military applications
receivers faster than silicon
Fiber optics (glass) Speed-of-light, RF b Already replacing metal
emission-free means of wires
transmitting information
Lasers Widely available
Optical-computing Ultrahigh speed A next-century
elements application
Index of refraction of Early in development
electro-optics sensi-
tive to pressure,
temperature, sound,
and magnetic field
Membranes Chemical industry Chemical separation In development
processes inexpensive
and pollution free
Water desalination In development
Body replacement Minor use to date
parts: artery, vein walls
a The higher the operating temperature of an engine, the better its
fuel efficiency. Ideally, the weight and expense of cooling systems
can be eliminated.
b Radiofrequency emissions in conventional communications often
degrade system performance and risk compromise of transmitted
information.
As costs fall, industrial
use may increase rapidly
Notable military
interest, such as for
submarine detection
Numerous potential
applications: market
could expand rapidly
applications, researchers are looking to improve the
performance, durability, and fuel efficiency of vehi-
cles through innovative use of advanced materials:
? Uniquely configured, ultrathin wings made of fiber-
reinforced plastic composite material give at least
one advanced research aircraft significantly greater
maneuverability than current-generation aircraft
(figure 1).
? Diesel engines with the pistons, manifolds, cylinder
heads, and liners made of ceramics can be operated
at high temperatures, improving thermodynamic
efficiency, horsepower, and fuel consumption. Ex-
perts anticipate increases of 30 percent or more in
fuel mileage in automobiles, trucks, and tanks.
Moreover, as technology advances permit higher
engine operating temperatures, cooling systems can
be made smaller and lighter, and eventually may be
eliminated.
? Durable single-crystal turbine blades will help
stretch the operating lifetime of commercial aircraft
jet engines, as well as permit their operation at
higher temperatures.
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558ROO0400150003-2
 Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
Figure 1
Advanced Research Aircraft Made Possible With Composite Materials
Use of composites: Wings-100?/
Airframe-55?/
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
 Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
Secret
Figure 2
Use of Advanced Materials in Commercial Aircraft
Stahlizcr tips
Improved aluminum alloy
or forged fittings
Advanced materials in the Boeing 767 are designed to produce a
light, durable, and fail-safe structure with low cost of ownership.
Kevlar/graphite hybrid composite
Graphite composite
and stringers
? In civil airframes, composites may be near the
threshold of a major increase in use. The newest
airframes (such as the Boeing 767) already use
composites extensively in secondary structures, such
as elevators, spoilers, rudders, and engine cowlings
(figure 2). Sizable rewards await airframe manufac-
turers who can safely and economically use compos-
ites extensively in the primary structures-main
wings and fuselage-of large commercial aircraft.
? Automobile bodies will become lighter through
more extensive use of engineering plastics, compos-
ites, and advanced alloys (figure 3). Enormous capi-
tal already invested in metal-stamping equipment,
however, is one barrier to rapid change to nonmetal-
lic materials.
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
 Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84S00558R000400150003-2
Figure 3
Selected Potential Uses of Advanced Materials in Automobiles
All-composite or aluminum body
Liquid crystal displays in
dashboard of engineering
plastics with fiber-optic wiring
Aluminum radiator-not needed
for all-ceramic engine
Cast aluminum or
composite suspension
/Titanium or composite
springs
Composite or lightweight
alloy drive shaft, wheels
Advanced nonmetallic structural materials also prom- approach theoretical performance limits, researchers
ise some relief from dependency on Third World are experimenting with faster semiconductor materi-
suppliers of strategic mineral additives to metal al- als such as gallium-arsenide (roughly an order of
Toys. magnitude faster) and indium-antimonide (three or-
ders of magnitude faster when used in optical switch-
In civil and military information applications, re- es). Optical fibers made of silicon glass are outcom-
searchers are looking to increase computing speeds, peting copper wires in communications applications
expand memory capacities, and reduce power require- because of greater message-carrying capacity; the
ments for electronic components by exploiting ad-
vanced materials. As silicon-based semiconductors
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84S00558R000400150003-2
 Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
Secret
same diameter cable is capable of carrying at least an
order of magnitude more messages simultaneously.
Electro-optical sensors hold great promise for moni-
toring a wide variety of conditions-temperature,
pressure, and electromagnetic radiation, among oth-
ers-important in a wide variety of applications, such
as target-homing antitank projectiles and intelligent
robots.
Additionally, advanced materials have the potential
for competitive impact on a variety of products and on
the industrial base itself. Examples include:
? Membranes, to significantly lower energy require-
ments for many chemical processes and reduce costs
of depolluting effluent from manufacturing plants.
? Photovoltaic materials, for inexpensive, pollution-
free generation of electricity.
? Materials that enhance the quality of life, such as
nontoxic, fire-retardant plastics, fibers to replace
carcinogenic asbestos, and body replacement parts.
Sometime in the next century, combinations of com-
ponents and equipment based on advanced materials
could be integrated into systems with dramatically
enhanced capabilities. For example, "smart," highly
maneuverable, and perhaps relatively inexpensive
missiles-using advanced sensors and microprocessors
for navigation and target homing plus lightweight
structural materials and fuel-efficient propulsion sys-
tems-may revolutionize military aircraft.
Reaching a High-Risk Market
The problems and risks in bringing new materials and
products to the market are often sizable. Costs,
timing, and marketing are all critical factors. Devel-
opment is costly and time consuming-often substan-
tially exceeding a decade-with no guarantee of
technical success or economic feasibility. Rewards for
innovative companies include proprietary technology
advantages-patented materials or manufacturing
processes-that can be converted into quasi-monopo-
listic production of high-value-added materials or
products. Possibilities of spinoffs from commercial to
military applications can be an additional incentive.
Materials researchers face different risks depending
on whether they are principally suppliers or users of
advanced materials. Market uncertainty is the great-
est risk to suppliers of innovative materials-especial-
ly of structural materials. Sizable multiple markets
Countering the historical trend, the flow of dual-use
advanced materials and associated manufacturing
processes from civil to military applications is grow-
ing. Cost and durability requirements are the driving
factors:
? For some advanced materials, large civil markets
can attract substantial/v more R&D investment
than military programs can support, achieving
economies of scale and driving down production
costs of devices and equipment sooner than might
occur otherwise, as has happened most prominently
in microelectronics.
? Although performance requirements for materials
are typically higher in military applications, re-
quirements for durability are often signficantly
higher in corresponding civil uses; jet engines for
commercial aircraft, for example, are expected to
last an order of magnitude longer than those for
military aircraft.
Civil developments in materials technologies are in-
creasingly important to the military for several
reasons:
? Use of inexpensive components lowers the cost of'
weapon systems.
? Military R&D funds can be focused on narrower
objectives and hence more effectively used.
? Skills, know-how, and experience gained on civil
programs are transferable to military programs.
? Civil product ion facilities provide surge capacity for
the military in times of national emergency.
are often necessary before suppliers will devote re-
sources to the development and production of ad-
vanced materials. Prospective suppliers desire accu-
rate estimates of markets in order to size production
facilities appropriately to achieve economies of scale
without building excessive capacity. Potential users,
however, are seldom able to forecast accurately their
needs for new materials. A number of suppliers,
burdened with financial pressures, therefore often
find it expedient to license technology, even to over-
seas competitors.
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
 Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
The risks for the material, users (product manufactur-
crs) are some%~ hat lower than for the suppliers be-
cause they understand their product markets better.
But timing in product development and market entry
can be critical. At one extreme. companies that fail to
apple advanced materials technology at an early stage
may be hard pressed to catch up with competitors, as
their technically outdated or overpriced products
slump in market share. At the other extreme, ovcrag-
gressiveness in application of advanced materials can
be disastrous. The Rolls-Royce bankruptcy and bail-
out in the 1970s b\ the British Government resulted
in part from using unproven turbine blades made of
composite material in a new jet engine.
IndustrN Structure
The importance and pervasiveness of advanced mate-
rials in civil and military applications have driven
many corporations, as well as most governments, to be
acuve rn materials i,& u. in inc conventionai sense,
however, there is no materials industry per se and no
major players dominate the field. In the United States
alone, research groups pursuing advanced materials
number in the hundreds, if not the thousands. Most
groups reside within manufacturing firms some of
which are multinationals or in universities affluent
enough to afford the necessary research equipment.
Additionally, a few independent laboratories special-
iic in pursuing materials research for both single and
multiple clients, including foreign participants.-1
Government im olvement in materials R&D, once
rather selective, is on the upswing. The (IS Govern-
ment has pursued materials R&D only for advanced
military, nuclear, space, and more recently, energy-
related applications. Success or failure in developing
and exploiting other advanced materials has been left
primarily to the free enterprise system. Overseas, this
government private industry pattern has been mir
rored to a large degree, but this is changing. Some
foreign governments, particularly the .Japanese and
French, are no longer willing to leave national pro-
gress in materials R&D to the uncertainties inherent
in private-sector investment decisions.
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
25X1
25X1
25X11
25X1
25X1
25X1
 Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
Secret
Western Europe. The French announced in late 1982
their national program for materials development
funded at I billion francs ($140 million) : for three
years. Under the Mitterrand government's new plan
for industrial revitalization, the French are counting
heavily on newly nationalized companies to take the
25X1
25X1
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
 Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84S00558R000400150003-2
Implications for the mte a
Industrial Competitiveness. Foreign developments in
materials technology have long-term competitive con-
sequences for US industries. Foreign superiority can
lead to proprietary application of advanced materials
and manufacturing processes that translate into prod-
uct performance and manufacturing cost advantages
in a number of industries, enhancing the competitive-
ness of foreign products in world markets. In particu-
lar, foreign firms may gain several advantages:
? Some foreign firms may barter advanced products
with US firms to gain additional materials technol-
ogy, making them potentially competitive across an
even broader spectrum of products in the future.
? Foreign governments may apply measures that per-
mit domestic manufacturers to take more risks in
the application of advanced materials than their US
competitors. Measures could include direct funding,
subsidies, tax breaks, and loans backstopped by
guarantees that will save unsuccessful companies
from bankruptcy.
? Foreign suppliers may give preferential price or
availability concessions on advanced materials to
other domestic manufacturers, enhancing their
product competitiveness relative to US manufactur-
ers. Should this happen, US product manufacturers
would become vulnerable to the actions of foreign
materials suppliers. For self-protection, US product
semiconductor devices.
manufacturers may find it necessary to bear the
extra costs of stockpiling or manufacturing consid-
erable quantities of the advanced materials they
need; US semiconductor manufacturers, for exam-
ple, are already doing this with polysilicon for
Market uncertainties and potential excess world ca-
pacity may discourage potential US suppliers from
developing new materials and production capacity.
Hence, the relevant production technology -design
and manufacturing capabilities, production experi-
ence, and know-how-for key military applications
may never be established.
Technology Transfer. Emergence of strong foreign
capabilities in advanced materials complicates US
efforts to control technology transfer the flow of
such materials and manufacturing processes to the
Communist countries. Enforcement of COCOM re-
strictions on the transfer of advanced materials tech-
nologies becomes more difficult as the number of
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84S00558R000400150003-2
25X1
 Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
Secret
possible sources of these technologies increases. Many
of these technologies are dual use; they could be
important militarily as well as commercially. A vari-
ety of evidence indicates the Soviets have been seek-
ing a number of such technologies, including those for
production of carbon-carbon materials, carbon fibers,
and Kevlar (a duPont trade name).
Irrespective of foreign successes, advances in materi-
als also pose competitive problems for US industry,
especially certain mature industries, such as steel.
Many of the new materials are nonmetallic and are
gradually replacing metals-steel, aluminum, and
copper, for example-in a wide variety of applica-
tions. Demand for metals could slacken or even
decline.
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
 Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
secret
Appendix
Glossary'
Advanced materials Manmade, high-value-added, nonliving materials that enhance the performance of
the products or equipment in which they are used. Some experts make a distinction
by application as to whether a material is high technology. Superallovs, for
example, having been used in aircraft for years, may be considered high-
technology materials by some only when applied to automobiles.
Amorphous metals New, unconventional, noncrystalline metals, also known as glassy or rapidly
solidified metals.
Carbon-carbon materials A variety of fiber-reinforced plastics formed at low temperatures, then baked at
high temperatures to increase strength and heat resistance. Primary use has been
in aircraft brakes, rocket nozzles, and reentry vehicles.
Carbon fibers By far the most commonly used short structural fiber in composites, specifically in
fiber-reinforced plastics. High-temperature carbon fibers are properly called
graphite fibers. Most carbon fibers are PAN-based; breakthroughs in processing
pitch may be needed to make carbon fibers widely competitive with cheap glass
fibers.
Nonmetallic, nonorganic materials. Compared to most metals, ceramics such as
brick are attractive for structural applications because they are lightweight,
resistant to corrosion and abrasion, durable at much higher temperatures, and
under static loads are nearly as strong. The chief disadvantage is their brittleness;
they are susceptible to fracture, especially under dynamic loads. This weakness is
partially inherent in the tightly bonded atomic structure that contributes to
positive characteristics, as with diamonds. Ceramic-matrix composites reinforced
with ceramic or metal fibers may prove to be fracture resistant.
Advanced coatings is an exploding subfield, both in new materials and manufac-
turing processes. A modern jet engine, for example, typically contains about a half
dozen high-technology coatings for corrosion and abrasion protection. Among the
more exciting future prospects are protective materials directly applicable to
decaying structural materials, such as rusty steel and concrete. New process
equipment, such as "electron beam epitaxy" machines, can be used to modify
surfaces or to apply ultrathin, precision-thickness coatings of a wide variety of
materials.
Combinations of two or more individual materials, joined to enhance strength. The
three basic types of composites are reinforced (for example, fiberglass), laminar
(for example, plywood), and ultralight honeycomb-like structures. The most
common reinforcing materials are fibers. Bonding between fibers and matrix
materials is critical. Matrix materials may be organic (for example, polymers),
metal, or ceramic. The only common commercial composites are fiber-reinforced
plastics.
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
 Fiber-reinforced
plastics (FRPs)
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84S00558R000400150003-2
Gallium-arsenide (GaAs)
High-technology
materials
Kevlar
Materials technology
PAN
Pitch
Solid materials with an orderly atomic structure. Crystals are important in both
structural and functional applications. Single-crystal metal parts are stronger than
their conventional counterparts; the latter are weakest along the boundaries
between their numerous crystals. Functionally, many materials, such as semicon-
ductors, can reliably transmit light or electrons only when they are in crystal form.
Fibers, often in crystal form, are used structurally to strengthen materials and
functionally, in fiber optics, to transmit information. Fibers may either be short (as
in fiberglass) or continuous (as in fiber-optics or filament tape). The chief benefit of
reinforcing fibers is to stop crack propagation, a problem common to most metals,
plastics, and ceramics. Of the high-technology organic fibers, the most important
are carbon fiber and Kevlar (a duPont trade name). The latter has many uses, in-
cluding projectile trapping applications: bulletproof vests and jet engine casings
(trapping broken turbine blades).
Continuous fibers, usually made of silicon glass, capable of transmitting informa-
tion-carrying light in a bendable path. Made into cables, these fibers are replacing
metals (mostly copper, some aluminum) in communications applications.
Plastic (or resin) matrix material reinforced with fibers. Fiberglass is the most
familiar example of a composite-glass fibers randomly oriented to stiffen a resin
matrix. A typical composite airframe part is made of several dozen laminations of
FRP material in which continuous fibers are laid in a single direction. In
successive laminations, fibers are oriented at different angles for greater strength.
Most part fabrication is done expensively by hand (partly because production runs
for aircraft tend to be small), prior to hours-long curing in ovens (called
autoclaves). High-temperature FRPs are known as carbon-carbon composites.
An advanced semiconductor material, which has several uses in electronics:
memories, logic circuits, laser sources, sensors, and communications transmitters
and receivers. In the first two applications, GaAs is ideally preferable to the now
commonly used silicon because it is inherently about five times faster. In
manufacturing, however, it is considerably more difficult to achieve required
purities with GaAs than with silicon.
High-strength, continuous fiber made by duPont. Kevlar is used in many
applications, including jet engine casings and bulletproof vests.
As used in this paper, collectively: advanced materials, associated manufacturing
processes, and know-how.
Acronym for polyacrylonitrile, a synthetic fiber from which most carbon fibers are
made. Substantially more expensive than pitch.
Inexpensive residue from oil refineries, which researchers worldwide are seeking to
cheaply convert into high-quality carbon fibers.
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84S00558R000400150003-2
 Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84S00558R000400150003-2
Secret
Materials that convert light (sunlight being of primary interest in terms of major
applications) to electricity. Costs have fallen, but these materials remain about an
order of magnitude away from being competitive as an alternative source of
energy.
Organic materials made from crude-oil hydrocarbons. Despite the runup in oil
prices during the last decade, plastics remain considerably cheaper than metals.
Engineering plastics are those with higher performance properties that qualify
them as high-technology materials.
Semiconductors Materials, such as gallium-arsenide, that allow electric current to move within
them under certain controllable or exploitable conditions. Precision applications
that do not tolerate errors, such as memory chips and logic circuits, require high-
purity semiconductor materials. As the term is commonly used, it refers only to
this latter, narrower group of semiconductor materials. Notwithstanding, there are
additional high-technology semiconductor materials, such as indium-antimony,
being used in other high-technology applications.
Strategic minerals Commonly used phrase (and literally something of a misnomer) for selected
chemical elements, such as cobalt and chromium, typically found only in certain
minerals, and used to make high-quality steel and superalloys.
Superalloys High-temperature steel alloys containing sizable amounts of nickel and/or other
alloying elements, such as cobalt, obtained from strategic minerals.
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84S00558R000400150003-2
 Secret
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2
Secret
Approved For Release 2008/01/14: CIA-RDP84SO0558R000400150003-2