Arthur T Knackerbracket has found the following story:
As anyone who has ever straightened their hair knows, water is the enemy. Hair painstakingly straightened by heat will bounce back into curls the minute it touches water. Why? Because hair has shape memory. Its material properties allow it to change shape in response to certain stimuli and return to its original shape in response to others.
What if other materials, especially textiles, had this type of shape memory? Imagine a t-shirt with cooling vents that opened when exposed to moisture and closed when dry, or one-size-fits-all clothing that stretches or shrinks to a person's measurements.
Now, researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have developed a biocompatible material that can be 3-D-printed into any shape and pre-programmed with reversible shape memory. The material is made using keratin, a fibrous protein found in hair, nails and shells. The researchers extracted the keratin from leftover Agora wool used in textile manufacturing.
The research could help the broader effort of reducing waste in the fashion industry, one of the biggest polluters on the planet. Already, designers such as Stella McCarthy are reimagining how the industry uses materials, including wool.
Journal Reference:
Luca Cera et al, A bioinspired and hierarchically structured shape-memory material, Nature Materials (2020). DOI: 10.1038/s41563-020-0789-2
-- submitted from IRC
(Score: 3, Interesting) by DannyB on Friday September 04 2020, @03:33PM (2 children)
There might be many applications of this technology.
What if textiles could straighten out when removed from the dryer, as if they had just been ironed?
What if flags could stiffen when blown (cooled down) by wind?
What cloth based auto body panels could remain rigid -- as long as you don't get them wet? Or much lighter rocket boosters, as long as you don't get them wet.
Suppose clothing could have ballast compartments that would fill with water upon becoming wet, in order to make the clothing significantly heavier?
The lower I set my standards the more accomplishments I have.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 04 2020, @03:39PM (1 child)
Neo sez, "Whoa!"
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Friday September 04 2020, @03:50PM
Lone Ranger: Woe!
Neo: Party on Dudes!
The lower I set my standards the more accomplishments I have.