Read the full article by Bronwyn Thompson (New Atlas)
“Using a new chemistry technique called nanoscale fletching, scientist have created a high-performance nonstick coating that repels water and oil and, importantly, provides a safer and more environmentally friendly surface – ideal for cookware and other everyday uses.
University of Toronto (U of T) engineers have designed a super-thin coating that begins with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), a flexible silicone polymer used widely in everything from contact lenses to medical devices. It’s transparent, inert, nontoxic and has a high temperature resistance. On its own, however, it can’t repel oils like coatings made from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) – forever chemicals. One of the most famous PFAS for this kind of use is, of course, Teflon (the brand name for polytetrafluoroethylene, or PTEE).
Looking much closer at PFAS, the group’s molecules are made of chains of carbon atoms, each one bonded to several fluorine atoms. The inertness of these bonds is what gives PFAS its enviable nonstick properties.” …