An Electrifying Way to Stay Dry

Some gas, an electric current and you may never have to get wet again.

Researchers at the UK's University of Durham are developing super repellent techniques, an area of plasma chemistry, that are opening up a wide range of uses, from simple liquid proof textiles through to new ways of screening genetic material for disease.

Originally developed for the Ministry of Defence, the technology was designed to protect soldiers from weapons such as Mustard Gas which is, in actuality, droplets of liquid. By controlling the behaviour of a liquid, ensuring that individual droplets remain spherical when coming into contact with a treated surface, rather than soaking in and spreading, the process is able to direct a liquid into precise, selected areas, even on a very small scale. This can render textiles completely waterproof or provide specialist coatings for microscope slides as well as a host of other applications.

The University of Durham's technology is particularly notable for its sheer simplicity - effectively combining a gas and a source of electricity within a sealed chamber. No solvents are used in the process and the resultant coatings are capable of covering quite complex shaped objects.