While we know that nanotechnology has been used to improve products such as Miller Lite beer and tennis balls, news of a nanotech-made swimsuit that reportedly “dries itself” is here just in time for spring break. And while the SwimSport would likely never make it into Victoria Secret swimsuit line, it might become a hit if it can do what it promises: repel water and keep beachgoers dry.
The Brooklyn-based company Sun Dry Swim, which makes the SwimSport, uses an invisible, non-toxic mesh. Since “water cannot adhere to the material and the fibers cannot soak up liquid,” the water beads off the suit the same way it rolls off your skin. The whole suit is made of the mesh material, so the suit can look and feel like a normal one-piece.
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Tired of running out of cell phone juice in the middle of a conversation? A professor at Texas A&M University may have just the answer for turning your chatter into power.
Chemical engineering professor, Tahir Cagin is using piezoelectrics, a material made of either crystals or ceramics, to generate electricity. Piezoelectrics were used in World War I in sonar devices. Today, they’re found in microphones, inkjet printers, and even cigarette lighters. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is making a shoe with piezoelectrics that can change the energy created by walking into electric power for charging soldiers’ equipment. Some European clubs even use them to transform the dance power from late night partiers into power to light up the club.
Cagin discovered that when piezoelectrics are small and thin (between 20 and 23 nanometers to be exact), twice the amount of energy is created. By finding the ideal length, he was able to convert the mechanical energy it creates into electric power.
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Cell phones are fragile: One slip of the fingers and yours can be headed for a disastrous meeting with the sidewalk, leaving you headed to the store for a replacement. Once again, however, nanotechnology might be coming to our rescue.
Clemson University scientists led by Apparao Rao say they’ve created a new process to help make phones, car bumpers, or other often-broken items a little more resilient. The researchers built beds of tiny coiled carbon nanotubes that act as spring-like shock absorbers, protecting the object from a fall or collision.
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