The Solar Impulse, a Swiss project to manufacture and fly a manned, solar powered plane that can fly long-distance reached a new milestone last week as the first plane, HB-SIA, flew for 26 hours, relying in the dark on energy stored during the day. Belgian chemical and pharmaceutical group, Solvay, sponsors the aircraft alongside other companies. The investment is not just a financial one for Solvay, however, as Solvay Advanced Polymers, the plastics division of the company, has contributed 6,000 parts to the plane, which relies on their ultra high-performance polymers.
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