Today in TechNew paint could help soldiers clean up after chemical attacks
The possible use of chemical weapons in war is something no one in the military wants to think about, but if the worst does happens they need effective ways to deal with the fallout. Troops can remove their uniforms and be scrubbed down with hydrogen peroxide fairly easily, but what about their vehicles and other gear? That's where a unique new type of paint comes in.
Developed jointly by the U.K.'s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL) and AzkoNobel, the paint contains silica gel that absorbs chemicals and traps them. It's sprayed onto vehicles on top of a sticky coating described as being like the adhesive on a Post-It Note. This allows the paint to be easily scrubbed off after it's done its job.
The paint is expected to be used on the British Army's Warrior tanks initially, but could theoretically be used on other vehicles and equipment. Now that it's been perfected, the next step in the development of this unique paint is to create one that can change colors to alert soldiers in the event of a chemical attack. That way, they can take shelter and will be able to quickly tell which vehicles or areas are unsafe to approach.
[Image credit: devric]
[via Gizmodo]
This article was written by Randy Nelson and originally appeared on Tecca
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