Fabric coated in DNA from fish sperm won't catch on fire. Who knew?
Posted 03.12.2013 at 2:36 pm
9 Comments
Fiery Fashion
designshard via Flickr
DNA, the genetic Lego castle that makes up all living organisms, can store data, nab bad guys and even appreciate poetry. It can also keep your clothes from catching fire, a group of Italian researchers discovered.
Flame retardants are used in everything from military uniforms to furniture upholstery to children's pajamas, though some have been found to contain toxic chemicals. DNA could be a green alternative, according to a study in Journal of Materials Chemistry A.
Scientists dipped cotton fabric in a solution containing DNA taken from herring sperm. Once it dried, they tried to set it on fire. While the untreated cotton burned completely within 80 seconds, the DNA-treated fabric was slow to catch on fire and the flame went out within two seconds.
Wired has a good explanation of how the chemical structure of DNA stops flames:
When heated, its phosphate-containing backbone produces phosphoric acid, which chemically removes water from cotton fibers while leaving behind a flame-resistant, carbon-rich residue. The nitrogen-containing bases release ammonia — which dilutes flammable gases and inhibits combustion reactions — and can act as “blowing agents,” which help turn the carbon-rich deposits into a slow-burning protective layer. Ultimately, these ingredients stop combustion by forming either a carbon-rich foam, or a protective, glassy carbon coating called char.
Watch it in action:
There are a few things standing in the way of DNA-coating as a viable flame retardant. It's expensive, for one. It also can't be washed -- the solution came off immediately when laundered -- which would prove cumbersome for most clothing applications. In the future though, we could all be happily and safely wearing sperm.
[Wired]
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Ive got a few flame retardant socks that I treated myself....
Wanamingo,
EW! Did you really mean that like it sounds? EW!
Interesting article!
I too, have this flame-retardant sock of shame.
I'm pretty sure everything I own at this point is flame-retardant...
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Wanamingo, mike13323, sometimes, thanks for not making me go there, but it needed to be said.
Monica Lewinsky must be flame retardant, lol.
I wonder what sequence of events resulted in this discovery. Whether it was accidental or part of legitimate scientific inquiry, either situation is still funny as hell to imagine.
great point Ebrainer1, I wonder how many world-changing discoveries have never seen the light of day because of the awkwardness of their eureka moments! haha