SEARCHING IN THE MATERIALS WORLD

摘要

Materials can be organized by type (metals, plastics, ceramics, chemicals, glasses, biomaterials), composition or grade (element, composite, alloy, polymer, medical-grade, food-grade), field that they're used in (aerospace, buildings/construction, manufacturing, medical, biotechnology), or specific application (automotive, additive manufacturing, electronics). Materials questions are often the gold standard for the "you've either found it or you haven't; it's either right or it's wrong" type of reference question. Adding to their complexity is the constantly increasing variety of next-generation materials in applications from biomedical to aerospace that arise from ongoing research. Information sources for answering materials questions must be as accurate and as accessible as possible. Unfortunately, they are as diverse in content and organization as the materials they cover.