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Have we been able to reproduce the conditions to bend rocks? (Even if in a lab.) (lemmy.ca)

submitted 8 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

28 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Tectonic activity bends rocks all the time, even hard ones like granite. That takes a ton of heat, pressure and time. It also makes sense that in the right conditions, sheets of rock simply don't have the room to shatter so they must bend.

Have we been able to do the same in a lab and would it have any commercial use? Bending a random bit of hard rock would be an interesting novelty, for sure.

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (1 children)

Yes... can even make a slinky..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4h3r4BUFES0

[–] [email protected] 0 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

That is actually more of an illusion that is exploiting any bit of natural flexibility over a given length.

If you took a circle of rock that is 30cm in diameter, cut it into a spiral at a width of 5mm, you get a length of rock that is now about 14m, but in a coil.

So, if the material had a flex of 1mm per half meter, you would see a total deviation of about 28mm from end to end. The "illusion" part is that while it's only flexing a small amount, you can see the entire range of flex at once.

It's still a spring, but it hasn't actually been significantly bent or reformed. Also, it's still really cool.