Researchers from the Technical University of Munich have fashioned industrial grade hook-and-loop tape - commonly known as velcro - out of steel, which they say can operate at temperatures up to 800 degrees Celsius, and withstand tensile loads up to 35 metric tons per square meter. The new connectors, known as Metaklett, are modeled on the burrs that some plants have evolved for seed dispersal - which allow them to adhere to the coats of animals.

Josef Mair, a mechanical engineer who heads a team that helped develop the university’s working prototypes, says the connectors could be used in automotive systems — such as near exhaust pipes where extreme heat and corrosive gases might degrade other fasteners.

“Things can get very hot, for example, in the automotive sector. A car parked in direct sunlight can reach temperatures of 80 °C, and temperatures of several hundred degrees centigrade can arise around the exhaust manifold," said Mair.

In addition to bearing heavier loads in extreme temperatures, the invention has advantages over synthetic fasteners in that it can also withstand corrosive chemicals.

"Aggressive disinfectants are used for cleaning purposes in hospitals, and traditional hook, and loop fasteners are too weak for use in the construction of building facades," commented Mair.

Source: http://portal.mytum.de/pressestelle/pressemitteilungen/news_article.2009...