The earliest blacksmiths in the Bronze and Iron Ages figured out that when they deformed metal through bending or hammering, it became stronger. This process, known as work or strain hardening, is ...

Carbon steel is an iron-carbon alloy. Although pure iron is not intrinsically strong, adding carbon imparts great strength to this material. Crude iron, which is used in steel production, has a high ...

Knots are known for boosting the strength of materials, from the tiniest twists of DNA to (potentially) the very fabric of the universe. Now, Caltech engineers have developed a new material consisting ...