Watch out, Mr. Clean. Scientists in the United Kingdom have just created the world's first magnetic soap, and they're saying it could revolutionize the way we take on mega-cleanups.
Chemists have long wanted to achieve magnetic soap that works on an industrial level because it would give environmental remediation experts the ability to precisely control a cleanup using magnetic force. But scientists assumed that mixing metal into detergents wasn't the answer since the metal particles would likely be so isolated within the mixture they wouldn't respond well to a magnet.
Recently, however, several University of Bristol scientists led by chemistry professor Julian Eastoe successfully created working magnetic soap.
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They did it by dissolving iron in a bunch of inert materials similar to those usually found in fabric softener. Adding iron created metallic centers in the soap particles, so that the soap clung to a magnet when it was placed in solution.
Using a magnet, the scientists were able to change characteristics of the soap such as its electrical conductivity and melting point. That responsiveness could be extremely useful for environmental remediation or industrial waste cleanup because the cleaner would only work when needed.
The soap's magnetic properties also make the substance easy to collect and remove once it's been used, according to the scientists. Imagine putting a bunch of this soap on an oil spill and then being able to almost reel it in.
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Eastoe and his colleagues were initially so surprised by the way their soap behaved that they took it to a special research lab in France and put it under a "neutron microscope." Indeed, the iron particles were pulling together. The group published the details of their creation in the chemistry journal Angewandte Chemie (abstract).
Although the magnetic soap is unlikely to be turned into a household cleaner in the near future, Eastoe said in a statement that just proving the soap can be made means potential for commercially available industrial cleaners. For now, the scientists are continuing to work on the soap in the lab. Let's hope they perfect it soon. The list of EPA Superfund sites is still long.
Photo: Unlike normal soaps, the newly created magnetic one on the right sticks to a magnet. Credit: University of Bristol.
