Add to ORKGThe use of a material for a specific application is governed by considerations on the expected conditions during its lifetime. For aerospace applications for instance, lightness, reliability and thermal stability ofthe material are of major importance. No material will ever possess all the desired properties at the same time. Therefore the engineer is left with optimising the materials and minimise the impact of the ever-present 'disadvantageous' properties. By introducing the potential of 'Self Healing' in a material, the lifetime and reliability could be significantly improved. Introduction of safety factors in the design could be minimised, leading to leaner structures. Making an aircraft from concrete may seem far-fetched, but isn't tha...