Turning Candle Soot into Science: Graduate Students Develop Slippery, Water-Repellent Surfaces

Published on Quantum Server Networks

Graduate students invent slippery, water-repellent surface

What if something as ordinary as a burning candle could inspire a breakthrough in advanced materials? That’s exactly what a team of graduate students at Syracuse University achieved by turning simple wax candle soot into a superhydrophobic surface — a coating so slippery that water droplets roll off at an angle of just 2 degrees. Their work not only demonstrates the ingenuity of nanoscale engineering but also opens doors to sustainable, low-cost methods of producing durable water- and stain-resistant coatings.

The Science of Superhydrophobic Surfaces

A superhydrophobic surface is designed to repel water with extreme efficiency, mimicking natural inspirations such as lotus leaves or duck feathers. Beyond water, these coatings can repel viscous materials like honey or chocolate syrup, and they even exhibit self-cleaning properties, shedding dirt and dust without effort.

Traditionally, artificially engineered water-repellent coatings lose their effectiveness under stress — failing under high temperatures, chemical exposure, or prolonged water contact. The Syracuse University team’s innovation, however, survived scorching heat (up to 650°F), saltwater immersion, chemical baths, and high-speed water jets, all without losing performance.

From Candle Flame to Coating

The key lies in combining candle soot with an oil-infused porous silica structure. The silica holds the oil, and the oil anchors the soot particles, creating a coating that is both robust and versatile. According to doctoral student Maheswar Chaudhary, who co-led the project with Ashok Thapa under the guidance of Professor Shalabh C. Maroo, this method can be applied on both flat and curved surfaces, broadening its potential use cases.

In essence, the researchers demonstrated how everyday materials can be transformed into high-tech coatings through clever nanoscale engineering.

Applications Across Industries

Superhydrophobic coatings have a broad range of potential applications:

  • Self-cleaning windows and solar panels that stay clear without frequent maintenance.
  • Medical instruments with improved safety by preventing fluid contamination.
  • Waterproof clothing and textiles that remain breathable yet resistant to moisture.
  • Electronics protection against accidental spills or humidity.
  • Transportation efficiency in ships and planes, where drag reduction can save energy.

The resilience of this candle soot-based coating makes it especially promising for industries where durability is critical.

Innovation Through Simplicity

Professor Maroo emphasizes that groundbreaking innovation doesn’t always start with exotic or expensive ingredients. “Even something as ordinary as a wax candle can inspire groundbreaking ideas,” he notes. By marrying simplicity with nanoscale engineering, the researchers have created a technology that may influence future designs in coatings, sustainability, and beyond.

Source: Original article published by Phys.org: Graduate students invent slippery, water-repellent surface using wax candles . Based on research in Surfaces and Interfaces (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.surfin.2025.107450

*This blog article was prepared with the assistance of AI technologies.*

Sponsored by PWmat (Lonxun Quantum) – a leading developer of GPU-accelerated materials simulation software for cutting-edge quantum, energy, and semiconductor research. Learn more about our solutions at: https://www.pwmat.com/en

📘 Download our latest company brochure to explore our software features, capabilities, and success stories: PWmat PDF Brochure

🎁 Interested in trying our software? Fill out our quick online form to request a free trial and receive additional information tailored to your R&D needs: Request a Free Trial and Info

📞 Phone: +86 400-618-6006
📧 Email: support@pwmat.com

#Superhydrophobic #WaterRepellent #CandleSoot #Nanotechnology #MaterialsScience #SurfaceEngineering #SelfCleaning #SustainableInnovation #QuantumServerNetworks

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

AI Tools for Chemistry: The ‘Death’ of DFT or the Beginning of a New Computational Era?

Image
For decades, Density Functional Theory (DFT) has been the workhorse of quantum chemistry and materials modeling. From predicting electronic structures to optimizing molecular geometries, DFT has powered countless breakthroughs in fields as diverse as catalysis, materials design, and condensed matter physics. But recent announcements in the scientific community have caused ripples: is DFT “dead” — or is this simply the dawn of a new computational era powered by artificial intelligence ? The Shock of Declaring a Field “Dead” The provocative statement came during the EuChemS Inorganic Chemistry Conference , where theoretical chemist Markus Reiher announced the “death of DFT.” His claim wasn’t about obsolescence in a literal sense, but about a paradigm shift: AI models can now deliver DFT-level accuracy at a fraction of the cost , fundamentally changing how chemists approach molecular modeling. This echoes previous moments in scientific history where disruptive technologi...
Read more

Quantum Chemistry Meets AI: A New Era for Molecular Machine Learning

Image
In a powerful leap forward for computational chemistry and materials design, researchers from Carnegie Mellon University have developed a new kind of molecular machine learning model—one that goes beyond simplistic molecular graphs and integrates fundamental principles of quantum chemistry. Their work, published in Nature Machine Intelligence , could radically enhance our ability to predict chemical behavior, optimize catalysts, and discover new drugs, all while using less data and gaining more scientific insight. The Problem: Traditional Molecular Representations Fall Short Molecular machine learning (ML) models underpin key processes in drug discovery, materials science, and catalysis. However, most existing models use simplified representations such as SMILES strings, 2D graphs, or coordinate matrices. These techniques often lack the quantum-chemical information that governs how molecules truly behave—particularly electron interactions that define reactivity, stability, and...
Read more

Revolutionize Your Materials R&D with PWmat

Image
GPU-Accelerated Simulation Software for Cutting-Edge Research Are you working in quantum materials , semiconductors , or energy materials ? Then it’s time to supercharge your research with PWmat by Lonxun Quantum – a leader in GPU-accelerated first-principles simulation software designed to meet the evolving demands of advanced materials science. PWmat offers a powerful suite of high-performance computing tools specifically optimized for modern NVIDIA GPUs , helping researchers: ✅ Simulate complex materials at quantum scale ✅ Accelerate DFT calculations ✅ Reduce time-to-result drastically ✅ Optimize large-scale simulations with intuitive workflows Whether you're in academia, industry, or a national lab , PWmat is trusted by institutions and scientists across the globe pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in computational materials science. 🎁 Clai...
Read more