A chance observation by Mattaparthi Srinath, an M.Tech student of the Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad (IITH), led him to pursue an innovative project.
Passionate about photography, Mr. Srinath, while trying to capture the natural beauty of the IITH campus, came across the Canna Indica plant.
A characteristic feature of this plant is that it does not allow water droplets to remain on its surface. It literally throws the droplets, also known as the ‘lotus effect’ (superhydrophobicity). The structure of the leaves and petals is such that it replicates the eye structure of the moth, which does not allow reflection of light.
Mr. Srinath shared his observation with Prof. Chandra Shekhar Sharma and they decided to explore the structural and behavioural aspects of the plant. Their combined effort resulted in the development of water-repellent as well as light-trapping material.
Adhering to the system of bio-mimicking (replicating nature’s behaviour), Mr. Srinath has developed a similar polymer structure by using the soft lithography process in the laboratory. The polymer structure has similar properties – it is water-repellent and absorbs light. The light reflection properties were tested from 30 degrees to 70 degrees variation with different wavelengths -- 400 to 800 nanometres -- the wavelength of the sun’s rays. As polymer structures were built in multiple length scale from a few tens of microns to sub-micron size features, as against the 200 nanometre size with other materials, it was observed that there was near zero reflection of light. This process is inexpensive compared to the anti-reflective structures made by sophisticated nano-fabrication tools.
Useful innovation“We are mimicking nature, which allows us to learn. This innovation will be useful in various fields, including bringing down road accidents during the night through near zero reflection of light, and also improving the efficiency and life of solar panels,” says Prof. Chandra Shekhar Sharma. “I hope my innovation will have a long-term, positive impact on society, Mr. Srinath told The Hindu . An application has been submitted to the office concerned for patenting the innovation. Initial results were also published in the international journal Bioinspired, Biomimetic and Nanobiomaterials .
