As many a fancy-refrigerator-owner will know, fingerprints tend to be highly visible on stainless steel. A new transparent coating could help, however, as it goes about reducing the appearance of prints in three ways.
Continue Reading
We've already heard about water-repellant materials that copy the structure of the lotus leaf. Now, however, scientists have created a flexible optical plastic that wards off liquids even better, and it was inspired by something else – the humble Enoki mushroom.
Continue Reading
To make ships and submarines slippier, Anish Tuteja, an associate professor of materials science and engineering at the University of Michigan, is working on an "omniphobic" coating that not only repels water, but many other substances, like oil, alcohol, and even peanut butter.
Continue Reading
Using waste products of the petroleum and refining industries, researchers have created an absorbent polymer that can quickly soak up crude oil and diesel from sea water.
Continue Reading
Our phones follow us everywhere – which often puts them in the line of fire for spilt drinks or rain. But now a team at the University of Michigan has developed a durable, clear coating that could help phones – or any surface, for that matter – repel almost any liquid.
Continue Reading
When it comes to naturally repelling things, the humble cicada seems to have a few tricks up its sleeve. Now scientists have zeroed in on the insect's ability to repel water, which could provide inspiration for anti-icing and self-cleaning materials further down the track.
Continue Reading
To make water repellent coatings that are a self-healing, a team of scientists led by Jürgen Rühe at the University of Freiburg in Germany has come up with a superhydrophobic that sheds its outer skin like a snake to repair itself after being damaged.
Continue Reading
Soon we could start to see a new class of waterproof products that stay hydrophobic for the long haul. That's thanks to a breakthrough by University of Michigan researchers to create a water-repellent spray-on coating they claim is hundreds of times more durable than similar substances.
Continue Reading
There are already processes that allow materials to become superomniphobic – repellant to liquids including oils. Wouldn't it be easier, however, if there was just a superomniphobic tape one could apply? Well, now there is.
Continue Reading
Most superhydrophobic coatings aren't overly durable, meaning their water repelling properties can be easily lost. Now ANU scientists have developed a new spray-on superhydrophobic coating that is much more robust than existing solutions and low-cost to manufacture and apply.
Continue Reading
See the stories that matter in your inbox every morning