International. A new paint that makes self-cleaning surfaces robust has been developed by a team of researchers from University College London (UCL). The coating can be applied to clothing, paper, glass and steel and when combined with adhesives, it maintains its self-cleaning properties after being cleaned, scratched with a knife and scraped with sandpaper.
Researchers say self-cleaning surfaces work by being extremely water repellent, but often stop working when damaged or exposed to oil. The new paint creates a surface more resistant to daily wear, so it could be used for a wide range of real applications from clothing to trolleys.
Researcher Yao Lu (UCL Chemistry), said: "Our paint worked very well for a variety of surfaces in difficult conditions that were designed to simulate the wear of materials in the real world. For example, the paint on the car frequently scratched and scraped, and we wanted to make sure our paint would survive that. In addition to practical uses, painting could also be used creatively to make art with water, which is something I've been exploring in my own time."
Different coating methods were used to create the water-repellent surfaces, depending on the material. A spray gun was used for glass and steel, an immersion coating for cotton wool, and a syringe to apply the paint on paper.
