Tag: rackets

The materials science of tennis

An infographic titled "The materials science of tennis" by Compound Interest explaining the chemistry of balls and rackets. Ball cores are vulcanized rubber (natural rubber crosslinked with sulfur) filled with pressurized nitrogen gas. The outer felt is wool and nylon, dyed yellow with a dye such as Basic Yellow 40. Rackets evolved from wood (which warped), to aluminium, then composites (fibreglass, Kevlar), and now carbon fibre with plastic resins. Strings transitioned from cow gut to polyester and nylon.
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If you’ve been enjoying the tennis at Wimbledon over the past two weeks, chemistry probably didn’t cross your mind as you watched the players slogging the ball back and forth. However, a lot of science and honed materials go into both the rackets and balls used during each game, set and match. This graphic examines the key substances used and how they’ve changed over time.

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