Open AccessNeat and clean
Author(s) -
Hiwa Aydin,
Reinhard Nestelbacher,
Isabella Anna Joubert,
Mark Geppert,
Martin Himly
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
open schools journal for open science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2623-3606
DOI - 10.12681/osj.22587
Subject(s) - lotus effect , wax , dirt , surface tension , clean water , clean up , environmental science , chemistry , raw material , pulp and paper industry , materials science , waste management , engineering , chromatography , organic chemistry , extraction (chemistry) , physics , mechanical engineering , quantum mechanics
Surfactants are a common component of many cleaning products and detergents. However, the production of these surfactants often requires the use of petroleum. In nature we can find plants, such as the lotus flower, whise leaves have developer a self-cleaning mechanism. Due to nano-sized hyedrophobic wax nubs on the surface of the leaf, water droplets have only a very samll contact area. The water's surface tension subsequently leads to the droplet rolling off the leaf, taking dirt partcles with it.