One of the positive outcomes of any war is that technology really advances during conflict. And when the war’s over a lot of that technology can be harnessed for peaceful purposes. Pykrete is one such material, it didn’t really set the war theaters on fire but that was a period of wacky ideas and pykrete was as far out as any. Another favorite slightly weird invention is the machine gun with a curved barrel that the Germans invented so that their soldiers could take cover behind walls and fire without exposing themselves.
Anyway, on to pykrete; it is a mix of 14% sawdust or even newspaper pulp and 86% ice. The resulting composite is almost as strong as concrete. The British actually experimented with aircraft carriers made from pykrete. All they needed was sawdust, the sea provided the ice. The wood pulp and sawdust formed an excellent insulating material that covered the ice and prevented it from melting even in warm waters. In fact so chuffed were the Brits with pykrete that they launched an ultra-secret Project Habbakuk to build a veritable floating island from which the country’s navy and airforce could launch attacks on German U-boats.
Apparently, the project was dumped after the Americans did not appear too keen on it. But this is food for thought for those with an adventurous streak, a floating barge or raft made from ice and carrying a rubber dinghy for security, in case the ice melts.
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