A laser-focused, scalable process to make materials repel water

Mool Gupta, a researcher in the University of Virginia School of Engineering supported by the NSF Partnerships for Innovation: Accelerating Innovation Research program, is developing a low-cost, scalable process to make surfaces repel water. Gupta uses lasers to create micro-textured patterns on the surfaces of materials to make them water repellant, or superhydrophobic. Water-repellent surfaces are much less susceptible to ice and corrosion, and so low-cost, durable superhydrophobic materials are in high demand. Gupta demonstrates on a piece of aluminum and says the same process may be duplicated on other materials, such as low-cost polymers. The technology could potentially mean significant cost savings for industrial manufacturing, such as aircraft, renewable energy generators, and communications. Learn more about the NSF AIR program: http://www.nsf.gov/eng/iip/pfi/air-tt.jsp Learn more about Mool Gupta’s work: http://www.faculty.virginia.edu/laser/