Mini-underwater rockets have been developed to "disarm" chemical weapons, according to the British Broadcast Channel.
The "micromotors" are fueled by the seawater and can swim in contaminates. The rockets then degrade the chemicals, like anthrax and sarin, before decomposing themselves. This could even mean environmental waste could be eliminated by a micro-rocket powered by seawater. "Coupling of the photocatalytic surface of the micromotors and their autonomous water-driven propulsion thus leads to a reagent-free operation which holds a considerable promise for diverse 'green' defense and environmental applications," according to the study published in ACS Nano.
"It needs no external stimuli, just expose it to seawater, it then generates a bubble and moves around," Joseph Wang from the University of California, San Diego, told the BBC. "In the past, people needed external fuel but here we use seawater as the fuel."
Wang was involved in the development of the rockets.
"Our rockets can protect against these [biological weapons], faster, cheaper and using less reagents," Wang told the BBC.
The rocket is composed of magnesium coated with titanium dioxide, according to the study. The magnesium is exposed by a tiny opening in the rocket. When the seawater hits the magnesium "bubble propulsion" pushes the rocket forward.
The titanium dioxide then gets to do what it does best: break down chemicals, pollutants and biological agents. Titanium dioxide has been used for self-cleaning windows and even self-cleaning clothing, according to the BBC.
The bonus of using titanium dioxide is that is does not produce any toxic waste and it doesn't use toxic chemicals. And, since it self-degrades, the rocket requires no clean up or decontamination.
The next step will be getting these rockets to clean up a larger contamination site. Wang's team is also working on using the rocket technology to target cancer cells or to release drugs inside the human body, according to the BBC.
The Defense Threat Reduction Agency, a U.S. government organization, funded the micromotor study.
