Metal harder than diamond found?

1 ANSWERS

1. Brett
   

   Scientists discover material harder than diamond:
   
   Up until now diamond has been considered to be the hardest material known to man, but scientists from two universities in Shanghai and Las Vegas have conducted new resarch in to a material known as wurtzite boron nitride which is believed to be even harder. On top of that, another material known as lonsdaleite may be even harder than that.
   
   "Currently, diamond is regarded to be the hardest known material in the world. But by considering large compressive pressures under indenters, scientists have calculated that a material called wurtzite boron nitride (w-BN) has a greater indentation strength than diamond. The scientists also calculated that another material, lonsdaleite (also called hexagonal diamond, since it’s made of carbon and is similar to diamond), is even stronger than w-BN and 58 percent stronger than diamond, setting a new record."

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