Plastic Regenerates After Being Damaged

We do know that the LG G Flex smartphone does come with a kind of self-healing cover, but that material has not really made an appearance anywhere else. Well, fret not, as in a laboratory located in the University of Illinois, a smooth sheet of plastic will not only heal itself, but it goes one up by regenerating. Yes, you read that right – regenerate. The particularly restorative characteristic of this material made possible by the delivery of two isolated fluid streams as seen above which were dyed red and blue, where the liquid would fet together and harden afterwards.

This is a definite breakthrough, especially when you consider how existing self-repairing materials would bond only tiny microscopic cracks, but the new regenerative materials will be able to fill in large cracks as well as holes through the regrowth of the material. Thanks to professor Scott White and his research team, they shared, “We have demonstrated repair of a nonliving, synthetic materials system in a way that is reminiscent of repair-by-regrowth as seen in some living systems.”

Something tells me that the gadget world would benefit greatly from such material being used in their chassis or external case, don’t you think so? Best of all is, the plastic’s mechanical strength is maintained after the regeneration process.

Edwin Kee
Categories: General
Tags: Science