University of Rochester scientists Chunlei Guo and Anatoliy Vorobyev have developed a technique using extremely precise laser patterns that renders metals superhydrophobic: in other words, incredibly water-repellent.
Imagine a much more powerful Teflon — except that Guo and Vorobyev’s material isn’t a coating but part of the metal itself. Water actually bounces off the surface and rolls away.
The possibilities are many, Guo says. Kitchenware, of course. Plane fuselages: No more worrying about de-icing, because water won’t be able to freeze on the plane in the first place.
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Watch out, water.
The scientists’ paper was published in the Journal of Applied Physics. The project was also funded by the U.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research.
