This Concrete Is Genuinely "Scared" Of Liquids, Bouncing Them Off Immediately

Chinese scientists have created a self-cleaning concrete, as they call it. They claim that this material is truly hydrophobic, which means liquids just bounce off it, and dust particles are taken away with them too.

According to the research team from the University of Science and Technology of China, which is led by Xin Xu, the material is also strong, soundproof to boot, and insulates against heat. Their paper was published in the ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces journal.

While hydrophobic cement and concrete are already common, researchers continue to work to improve their capabilities and reduce their prices.

Xu and his team argue that the problem is most people are using surface coating, which can wear off or be scratched over. In other cases, they may add materials to the concrete before it dries, weakening the final product.

The research team says that they managed to get better results with:

Simply speaking, the researchers added an emulsifier, an oil, as well as polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) - a hydrophobic silicone polymer, to wet concrete. The oil, helped by the emulsifier, formed many small droplets containing PDMS.

Then, they dried, heated the material, which evaporated the oil leaving the PDMS-coated pores behind. They say that the resulting porous concrete is light but strong.

The material also repels liquids like dyed water, coffee, soy sauce, beer, and milk, as well as dust particles. You can also immerse this material in the liquids then remove it and not leave any stains behind.

The concrete is still superhydrophobic even with chemical exposure, heat treatment, and mechanical grinding. The authors write: