145: Chapter 145 The Game in the Land of Abundance

Chengdu Tianfu New Area Planning Exhibition Hall, December 18th, morning.

Wu Yi stood in front of the sand table, looking at the miniature model of this "City of the Future" before him.

The 500-mu new material pilot base was marked in green on the sand table, adjacent to the Tianfu International Airport and the starting station of the Chengdu-Europe Express Rail. This was not the largest plot, but the location was excellent—a five-minute drive from the airport and ten minutes from the railway freight yard.

"Mr. Wu, this way, please." Li Jianguo, Director of the Tianfu New Area Management Committee, led him toward another sand table. "This is the core area of the 'Spark New Material Industrial Park' we have planned, covering 3,000 mu, to be developed in three phases."

Li Jianguo was 50 years old, a graduate of the Civil Engineering Department at Tsinghua University. He spoke with a distinct Sichuan accent, but his word choice was precise and his data solid. He wasn't wearing a suit today, but rather a dark jacket paired with cargo pants, the hems still dusted with dirt from the construction site.

"Phase one is 1,000 mu, including an R&D center, pilot production lines, and testing laboratories. Electricity, water, and gas supplies are all backed by dual circuits." Li Jianguo pointed to the pipe markings on the sand table. "See this blue line? It's a liquid nitrogen pipeline, connected directly from the adjacent air separation plant, providing 24-hour supply with 99.999% purity."

Wu Yi's eyes flickered slightly. Liquid nitrogen was a necessity for materials laboratories, used for low-temperature testing and sample preservation. Most parks only provided bottled liquid nitrogen; very few had pre-installed pipelines—the cost was high, and the demand wasn't usually that great.

"Director Li, you know your stuff." Wu Yi rarely offered praise.

"I have to," Li Jianguo laughed. "My son is a PhD student in materials science at Stanford, and every time we video chat, he complains about their lab lacking liquid nitrogen. So, when planning the park, I specifically added this line—our Chinese scientists shouldn't have worse experimental conditions than foreigners."

The statement was made naturally, but Wu Yi caught the deeper meaning: this local official not only understood investment attraction but also understood the pain points of researchers.

"What about electricity prices?" Wu Yi asked the critical question. Material R&D and pilot production were heavy power consumers, especially high-temperature furnaces and vacuum equipment; electricity costs could account for 30% of operating expenses.

"Direct power supply." Li Jianguo pulled up a file on his phone. "Specially approved by the province; the electricity rate per kilowatt-hour is 30% lower than in the east. Plus, we've signed an agreement with the power grid company: power outages will not exceed two hours per year—and even if there is an outage, backup generators will start within 30 seconds."

Wu Yi calculated quickly in his mind: 30% lower electricity prices could save at least 50 million in electricity costs per year. More importantly, it was the stability of the power supply—if the power suddenly cut out during the material sintering process, a batch of samples worth millions would be completely ruined.

"And there's this." Li Jianguo lowered his voice. "We have a cooperative channel with the Mianyang Ninth Academy (China Academy of Engineering Physics). They can handle performance testing, irradiation testing, and extreme environmental testing for certain 'special materials'."

Wu Yi looked up sharply.

The Mianyang Ninth Academy was the cradle of China's nuclear weapons and cutting-edge defense technology. Many of their testing facilities were one-of-a-kind in the country, or even world-leading. If they could utilize these facilities, Spark New Material's R&D progress could be accelerated by at least double.

This was a true trump card.

"Is it compliant?" Wu Yi asked cautiously.

"Completely compliant." Li Jianguo said seriously. "Some of the Ninth Academy's equipment is open to the public through the military-civilian integration channel. Of course, a security review is required, but since Spark is already a defense supplier, there are no issues with your qualifications."

Wu Yi was silent for a few seconds, then wrote in his notebook: Ninth Academy Channel—Strategic-level resource.

Chengdu-Europe Express Rail Qingbaijiang Station, December 18th, afternoon.

Amidst the roar of the trains, Wu Yi stood on the platform, watching a container train fully loaded with electronic products slowly pull out.

"This is the third trip today." Wang Qiang, the station master of the Chengdu-Europe Express Rail, introduced. "From Chengdu to Poland, Lodz, the total distance is 9,826 kilometers, with a transit time of 12 days. It's 20 days faster than shipping from Shanghai Municipality, and the freight cost is only 15% higher."

"What about capacity?" Wu Yi asked.

"We run 15 scheduled trains per week, which can reach 20 during peak times. For a standard container, from Chengdu to Europe, door-to-door, the total cost is about $8,000." Wang Qiang handed over a data sheet. "If you have a stable supply of goods, we can sign an annual agreement, and the price can be reduced by another 10%."

Wu Yi flipped through the data. A portion of Spark's new materials needed to be exported to Europe—aerospace, automotive manufacturing, and high-end equipment; these clients were sensitive to delivery times and were willing to pay a premium for speed.

Shipping was cheap, but it often took 30-40 days, and with customs declaration, clearance, and inland transport, it could drag on for two months. The 12-day direct route of the Chengdu-Europe Express Rail was a revolutionary change for the supply chain.

"If I need to transport..." Wu Yi carefully chose his words, "what about 'special cargo'? For example, precision materials with strict requirements for temperature, humidity, and vibration?"

Wang Qiang glanced at him and then made a "please" gesture. "Mr. Wu, this way."

The two arrived at the other end of the platform, where there was a separate loading and unloading area, separated by wire fencing, with armed police on guard.

"Confidential special train system." Wang Qiang showed his identification and passed through security. "Used specifically for transporting high-value, highly sensitive cargo. The carriages are specially made, with constant temperature and humidity, and the shock resistance level reaches the GJB-150 standard. The entire journey is escorted by armed police, using Beidou + GLONASS dual positioning, reporting location and status every 15 minutes."

Wu Yi looked at those silver-white special carriages: "The cost?"

"50% more expensive than the regular train, but absolutely worth it." Wang Qiang said. "Last year, we transported satellite components for China Aerospace Science and Industry, fighter jet parts for Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group, and for the Nuclear Power Institute... ahem, anyway, it's all national strategic equipment. Three years of operation, zero accidents, zero delays."

Wu Yi jotted down another line in his notebook: Logistics Security Level A+—can transport sensitive cargo.

Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group workshop, December 19th, morning.

At the workshop entrance, Wu Yi signed a confidentiality agreement. The sound of the pen tip sliding across the paper was exceptionally clear in the quiet corridor.

Deputy Chief Engineer Zhou Weiguo, 55, had a tall and straight figure, and his eyes held the sharpness unique to test pilots. He shook Wu Yi's hand with a firm grip: "Mr. Wu, welcome to Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group."

The workshop was brightly lit, but lacked the noise of a typical factory. Workers wore dark blue uniforms, operating quietly at their respective stations. The air was filled with the distinct smell of aviation aluminum alloy cutting fluid.

"This way." Zhou Weiguo led Wu Yi to a composite material production line. "We have already trial-used your Spark metal matrix composites in small batches on the vertical stabilizers of the J-20 improved variant."

He signaled a worker to open a vacuum bag and took out a silver-gray sheet. The sheet was very thin, but its rigidity was excellent; tapping it with a finger produced a crisp metallic sound.

"The weight reduction effect is astonishing." Zhou Weiguo handed over the test report. "For a vertical stabilizer of the same size, using your material is 18% lighter than using traditional titanium alloy. Moreover, the stealth coating adhesion is better, and the RCS (Radar Cross Section) test results decreased by 0.3 orders of magnitude."

Wu Yi carefully reviewed the report. The data was beautiful, even better than Spark's own test results—Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group's technical level was indeed superb.

"However," Zhou Weiguo changed the subject, "there is a problem."

He led Wu Yi to a workbench deep in the workshop, where a test piece with obvious cracks was placed.

"The coefficient of thermal expansion doesn't match." Zhou Weiguo pointed to the cracks. "The difference in the coefficient of thermal expansion between your material and the original titanium alloy frame of the J-20 is 15%. There's no problem during ground testing, but after long-term supersonic flight, the skin temperature rises, while the frame temperature change lags behind, generating micron-level stress—once it accumulates to a certain point, this type of fatigue crack appears."

Wu Yi crouched down and used a magnifying glass to carefully observe the direction of the cracks. Typical stress corrosion cracks, originating at the interface and extending into the material.

"Probability of occurrence?" He asked.

"Currently, after 200 hours of test flights, the probability of cracks appearing is 3%. It's not high, but in the aviation field, even one in ten thousand is unacceptable." Zhou Weiguo's voice was serious. "And this is just the vertical stabilizer; if it were the main wing or the fuselage skin..."

He didn't finish the sentence, but Wu Yi understood. Plane crashes often stem from a tiny crack.

"Our next-generation material is already addressing this issue." Wu Yi stood up. "The new formula adjusts the ratio of the reinforcing phase, and the coefficient of thermal expansion can be matched to within 5% of the titanium alloy. In addition, we are also developing a gradient transition layer material that allows for a smooth transition of thermal expansion between the two materials, completely eliminating interface stress."

Zhou Weiguo's eyes lit up: "When can you supply it?"

"Small samples have already been made in the laboratory, but for mass production, pilot testing and verification are still needed." Wu Yi looked into his eyes. "If the Spark Industrial Park settles in Chengdu, we can build a joint aviation materials laboratory here. Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group can send engineers to be stationed here, and we can design materials together, formulate processes together, and conduct verification tests together. The problem iteration cycle can be shortened from the current six months to one month."

This statement hit the nail on the head.

The biggest bottleneck in aviation material R&D is not technology, but the iteration speed of "design-manufacture-test." In the traditional model, the material company designs the formula, hands it to the aircraft manufacturer for testing, feedback is provided, and then it's revised—a back-and-forth process that takes months.

If the entire process can be completed within one park, efficiency can be increased by more than five times.

Zhou Weiguo was silent for a long time, then shook Wu Yi's hand again: "Mr. Wu, just for that statement, I will speak for you in Chengdu. Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group needs this kind of partner—not a simple buyer-seller relationship, but a deeply integrated R&D community."

The handshake was powerful; Wu Yi could feel the determination of this old pilot.

Walking out of the workshop, the winter sun in Chengdu was just right. Wu Yi squinted, looking at the silhouettes of the high-rises in the Tianfu New Area in the distance.

In the competition among the four cities, Chengdu had revealed almost all its trump cards: discounted electricity prices, the Ninth Academy channel, the Chengdu-Europe Express Rail, and the cooperation with Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group. Every card precisely hit Spark's strategic needs.

But Xian had Xidian University and aerospace research institutes, Wuhan had its automotive industry cluster and Yangtze River shipping, and Zhengzhou had airport advantages and the strongest execution capability.

This game had only just entered its climax.