Research Progress
Fly-eyes could reduce glass fogging
Post: 2014-09-29 16:31  View:1060

An anti-fog coating modelled on the nano-structure of a fly eye could one day be used on windows for cars, planes and buildings, say researchers.


The coating could also protect electricity or telecommunication networks from freezing, suggests new research published in the journal Small.

Professor Shi Xue Dou and team at the University of Wollongongs Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials, together with colleagues from China have now been inspired by the eye of the common green bottle fly (Lucilia sercata) to make a new anti-fogging material.

The fly eyes can see clearly in moist environments without fogging up.

Fogging occurs when moisture drops of larger than 190 nanometres in diameter form on surfaces, scattering light and making the surface more difficult to see through.

The researchers found that when the green bottle fly was put in a humid environment with droplets of less than 10 micrometres, condensation only occurred on its body, but not on its compound eyes.

Looking more closely with microscopes, they found the 5 millimetre eyes were made up of thousands of repeating hexagonal units, each with a diameter of the order of 20 micrometres.

These units were, in turn, covered with numerous, near hexagonal bubble-like protuberances with diameters of around 100 nanometres.

"We suspect that these well-ordered, close packed, hierarchical hexagonal nanostructures are one of the origins of the superior superhydrophobicity and anti-fogging properties of the green bottle fly eyes," write the researchers.

Zinc nanoparticles
The researchers used zinc nanoparticles to assemble small hexagonal structures to mimic the flys eye.

"By investigating the surface structure of the compound eyes of the green bottle fly, we successfully synthesised hierarchically-mimicking bio-inspired inorganic nanostructures via a two-step molecular self-assembly method," they write.

After constructing the material, the researchers then tested it and found that it was superhydrophobic just like the insects eye.

Being superhydrophobic means water cannot wet the material and this paves the way for it being used for anti-fogging, and also anti-freezing, anti-corrosive and self-cleaning, say the researchers.

"This amazing superhydrophobic anti-fogging property is especially important in developing anti-freezing-fog materials for applications in some extreme and hazardous environments," write the researchers.

Freezing fog occurs when water vapour is super-cooled and forms a dense ice layer. This can cause havoc with electrical and telecommunication networks, and reduce the lift force that keeps aeroplanes in the air.

The material could also be used as a transparent coating on the windows of cars, airplanes and buildings, add the researchers.

Mosquito eyes have previously inspired anti-fog materials, but the structure of their eyes are quite different, say the researchers.

 

Also, the researchers say the system used to make previous bio-inspired anti-fogging inorganic nanostructures is not as suitable for mass production as the chemical synthesis they have used.

 

The above story is based on materials by ABC Science Online. 
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above

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