Scientists have developed a polyurethane coating that heals its own scratches when exposed to sunlight, offering the promise of scratch-free cars and other products, researchers said on Thursday. The self-healing coating uses chitosan, a substance found in the shells of crabs and shrimp. This is incorporated into traditional polymer materials, such as those used in coatings on cars to protect paint.<\/p>\n
\n“We developed a polymeric material that is able to repair itself by exposure to the sun,” said Marek Urban of the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, whose study appears in the journal Science. “In essence, you create a scratch and that scratch will disappear upon exposure to the sun,” Urban said in an interview on the Science website.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Scientists have developed a polyurethane coating that heals its own scratches when exposed to sunlight, offering the promise of scratch-free cars and other products, researchers said on Thursday. The self-healing coating uses chitosan, a substance found in the shells of crabs and shrimp. This is incorporated into traditional polymer materials, such as those used in coatings on cars to protect paint.<\/p>\n
\n“We developed a polymeric material that is able to repair itself by exposure to the sun,” said Marek Urban of the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, whose study appears in the journal Science. “In essence, you create a scratch and that scratch will disappear upon exposure to the sun,” Urban said in an interview on the Science website.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n