"Ultralight Carbon Nano Tube Wire Development" Theme Selected for NEDO Project
- Furukawa Electric to help realize an energy conservation society by reducing wire weight and loss -

May 29, 2017

Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd. is proud to announce that its theme of "ultralight carbon nano tube (CNT) wire development" has been selected for the "Project for Super-Rapid Development Infrastructure Technologies for Super-Advanced Materials" run by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO). The project will significantly accelerate development toward realizing the practical use of CNT wire, by applying advanced computer sciences such as artificial intelligence and multiscale simulation in order to establish methods to develop revolutionary materials, and by greatly optimizing experiments and prototypes.

Background

CNT is a material formed from sheets of carbon atoms joined in a hexagonal shape. These sheets are then formed into hollow cylinders. This material offers a range of benefits such as 20 times the strength of steel and excellent metallic conductivity—at one-fifth the weight of copper. A type of nano carbon material, CNTs are expected to reduce weight and greatly improve performance for electronic components. This ultralight and highly functional material will be crucial in realizing a low carbon society.
However, new technologies must be developed in order to take advantage of the superior characteristics offered by CNT. Through the NEDO project, Furukawa Electric has developed CNT conductors that offer world-class conductivity—and has also proved the practical viability of ultralight CNT wires by continuing to develop wire products, creating prototypes of small motors, and more.

Content

Furukawa Electric's proposed "ultralight CNT wire development" theme has been selected for NEDO's "Project for Super-Rapid Development Infrastructure Technologies for Super-Advanced Materials." The project will run from the 2017 fiscal year until the 2021 fiscal year. Furukawa Electric will participate in the Advanced Material High Speed Development Technology Research Association, in order to help establish innovative material development methods (multiscale simulation) that utilize advanced computer sciences and the like, as well as to discover technical breakthroughs and accelerate development toward realizing the practical use of CNT wires—with the ultimate goal of drastically reducing prototype man-hours and development periods.
Furukawa Electric will continue to leverage the high strength, low weight, and environment resistance properties of CNT, and to reduce wire weight and loss in order to help bring about an energy conservation society.

About Furukawa Electric Group

Furukawa Electric (TSE; 5801, ISIN; JP3827200001) Group started business in 1884, when its copper-smelting facility and wire manufacturing factory was established. Since then Furukawa Electric has become pioneers in the latest technologies by addressing diverse technological issues. Furukawa Electric has released products in a number of areas, including telecommunications, electronics, automobiles, and construction, with the three types of materials it works with at their core, namely, optics, plastics, and metals. Many of these products have attained the top global market share, and all of its products have contributed to society in numerous business areas. Furukawa Electric reported consolidated revenues of JPY 843.3 billion (approximately USD 7.8B) for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2017.

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