Microsubmarines could clean oil spills, researchers say

LONDON. May 4. KAZINFORM Tiny submarines that are 10 times smaller than the width of a human hair could be used to clean up oil spills, researchers have suggested.

The self-propelled microsubmarines are able to gather oil droplets and take them to collection facilities.

The team from the University of California San Diego's nano-engineering department said their tests showed "great promise," BBC reported.

Similar technology is able to deliver drugs through a person's bloodstream.

The research, which appeared in journal ACS Nano , suggested that the microsubmarines were capable of "a facile, rapid and highly efficient collection" of motor and olive oil droplets.

The tiny motors are propelled by bubbles created from internal oxidation of hydrogen peroxide.

This means they require small amounts of fuel and can move very quickly.

 

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