Physicists from Saarland University and the ESPCI in Paris have shown how liquids on solid surfaces can be made to slide over the surface a bit like a bobsleigh on ice. The key is to apply a coating at the boundary between ...
General Physics
Feb 10, 2016
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Researchers from the University of Twente have succeeded in clearly identifying why droplets on soft, squishy surfaces react differently than on hard surfaces. A water droplet, for example, moves very differently over jelly ...
General Physics
Aug 5, 2015
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Researchers have gained valuable insights into the behaviour of water on strongly hydrophobic (water-repelling) surfaces. Understanding this behaviour should help scientists develop new types of surfaces with applications ...
General Physics
Jul 3, 2015
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A moth's eye and lotus leaf were the inspirations for an antireflective water-repelling, or superhydrophobic, glass coating that holds significant potential for solar panels, lenses, detectors, windows, weapons systems and ...
Nanomaterials
May 11, 2015
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42
(Phys.org) —When a rubber ball and a droplet of water are compressed onto a solid surface, they behave very differently. For the ball, the compression process is reversible, so the ball retains its original form when decompressed. ...
Beetles, cockroaches, and ants will have a harder time walking on facades or air conditioners in the future - thanks to the bio-inspired, anti-adhesive surfaces Prof. Dr. Thomas Speck, Dr. Bettina Prüm, and Dr. Holger Bohn ...
Materials Science
Sep 24, 2013
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(Phys.org) —Some animals—like the octopus and cuttlefish—transform their shape based on environment, fending off attackers or threats in the wild. For decades, researchers have worked toward mimicking similar biological ...
Materials Science
Aug 1, 2013
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Sometimes water spreads evenly when it hits a surface; sometimes it beads into tiny droplets. While people have noticed these differences since ancient times, a better understanding of these properties, and new ways of controlling ...
General Physics
Jul 16, 2013
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Unique nano-structures on guillemot eggshells eggs enable them to survive precarious habitats, on exposed cliffs with no nest. A new study, to be presented at the Society for Experimental Biology meeting in Valencia on July ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 4, 2013
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(Phys.org)—The world of rechargeable batteries is full of trade-offs. While lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries are currently the most commercially successful, their low energy density doesn't allow for a long driving range. ...
