The experts, who wrote about their invention in the journal Science, added a small amount of nickel to an iron-based 

alloy, and found that the new material can recover its original shape at any temperature from -196 to 240 degrees 

Celsius.


Lead author Toshihiro Omori at the Department of Materials Science, Graduate School of Engineering in Tohoku University, 

said this new material was far more elastic than other superelastic alloys, which cannot revert to their original form 

outside the -20 to 80 degrees Celsius range.


"Our ferrous alloy has temperature insensitivity by one order of magnitude. This property is very important because 

materials are subject to change in temperature in most cases," Omori wrote in an email in response to questions from 

Reuters.


<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/30/us-science-alloy-elastic-idUSTRE75T5AE20110630?

feedType=RSS&feedName=scienceNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FscienceNews+%28New

s+%2F+US+%2F+Science%29" target="_blank">Read it all here</a>

Japan experts design superelastic alloy, may resist quakes

(Reuters) - Researchers in Japan have developed a superelastic alloy, which can spring back to its original form in extreme temperatures, they said in a report on Friday, adding that they hope it may be used in buildings to absorb shocks from earthquakes.