Researchers in the US have designed and made millimetre-sized motors in the shape of fish that could be produced on an enormous scale and used to purify water.
Catalytic fish in action
Nano- and micro-sized machines that convert chemical reactions into motion have been on the drawing board for many years. However, they are complicated and expensive to make. Now, researchers led by Joseph Wang at the University of California San Diego have developed a simple way to print 2D millimetre-sized motors. The motors are shaped like fish, swim autonomously while performing specific functions and avoid the costs and complications of more traditional fabrication processes, such as electrodeposition, sputtering and lithography.
To read the full article please visit Chemistry World.
Self-propelled screen-printable catalytic swimmers
Rajan Kumar, Melek Kiristi, Fernando Soto, Jinxing Li, Virendra V. Singh and Joseph Wang �
RSC Adv., 2015,5, 78986-78993
DOI: 10.1039/C5RA16615B, Paper
