Scientists Experimenting with Gallium as Reversible Adhesive
Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart, Germany are experimenting with the use of Gallium as a reversible adhesive. Because Gallium changes from solid to liquid state at a mere 30 ° Celsius, it can be initially heated then cooled between two objects to adhere them together, then heated again in order to remove the adhesion. Gallium works much like hot glue, but benefits from being more easily and cleanly removed, highly repeatable, and electrically conductive. The team of researchers also tested the Gallium in damp and rough conditions, reporting that the Gallium was less effective when wet, but was still created a strong enough bond for many applications. Currently the research team is investigating near-future practical applications.
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