Two scientists at the University of Rochester have come up with a way to make metal surfaces water-repellent. That is a big deal because the tendency of metals to retain poses several challenges, which can now be solved with the latest discovery in metal treatment. A number of metals that include aluminum have already been tested for the ability to repel water after being subjected to a treating process that involves powerful laser beams.
Tested metals
Chunlei Guo and Anatoliy Vorobyev of UR, detailed their findings with regards to metal surface treatment in a publication known as Journal of Applied Physics. They treated various metals so that they give them the ability to repel water.
The duo tested metals such as titanium, platinum, brass, stainless steel and aluminum. The ability of a metal to repel water can give it a longer life than usual. Additionally, a water-repellent metal can achieve self-cleaning because the repelled water was found to drop off with the dust on the surface of the metal.
Possible practical application
Metal surfaces treated to be water repellent can have a wide range of practical application in the world today. For example, they can be used as anti-icing surfaces to protect power transmission lines, communications antennas and air conditioners.
The other interesting discovery that Guo and Vorobyev made from treated metal surfaces is that they absorb more light. That makes them suitable for use in the solar industry for efficient conversion of solar to electric or thermal energy.
Water-repellent metal surfaces could also help with the collection of the rain water, which is used in the developing world as a source of drinking water. The current technique of funnels is not very efficient.
Financial support for the project
The project was funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation at $620,000. A U.S. government agency also contributed $750,000 to fund the study.
The metal treatment technique still requires more work before it can be adopted for practical application.
