It is the perfect invention for the house proud - a substance that means clothes will never stain , glass will not mist and kitchen surfaces automatically shed their germs . Scientists in London have developed a ‘ self-cleaning ’ coating that can be sprayed or painted onto almost any material . The substance , made out of coated titanium dioxide nanoparticles , works because it is very , very water resistant . Scientists in London have developed a ‘ self-cleaning ’ coating that can be sprayed or painted onto almost any material . The substance is made out of coated titanium dioxide nanoparticles and any drop of moisture which touches it turns into a ball and rolls away , cleaning up any dust or germs in its path . Any drop of moisture which touches it turns into a ball and rolls away , cleaning up any dust or germs in its path . The breakthrough , by chemists at University College London , comes after years of research into highly water-resistant - or ‘ superhydrophobic ’ - substances . The idea was inspired by copying elements from nature . Waxy feathers , for example , repel water , keeping a bird afloat and its plumage clean . The petals of a lotus flower , in a similar way , shed moisture , meaning they are not weighed down and damaged by rain . Within weeks of after Samsung releasing its waterproof Galaxy S5 last year , Apple filed a patent that took its rival ’ s technology a step further . Called ‘ Methods for shielding electronic components from moisture ’ , the filing awarded today describes a way of making the inside of a phone waterproof rather than the outside . Individual components would be covered in a thin film designed to stop liquids damaging the phone , even if it manages to penetrate the outer casing . Professor Ivan Parkin , head of chemistry at UCL , said : ‘ If we can do this as well as nature does it , we will have a series of breakthrough products. ’ Applications for the spray might include self-cleaning paint , which is resistant to coffee spills , damp or mould . The substance may also be used in hospital theatres to stop bacteria accumulating . Or it might be used on the hulls of boats , reducing friction with the water , allowing more speed and requiring less fuel . Professor Parkin , whose work is published in the journal Science , added : ‘ If it goes well you might see products on shop shelves in the order of two to four years. ’ PhD student Yao Lu , whose lab work at UCL contributed to the breakthrough , has shown in a series of tests that the substance can be applied to the threads of textiles which could allow it to be used to create waterproof and stainproof clothes . Mr Lu demonstrated that cotton-wool coated with the substance could be dipped into blue coloured dye and yet emerge pristine white . Crucially , the student and his colleagues managed to develop a material that is far more robust than previous ‘ self-cleaning ’ substances . The experts demonstrated that cotton-wool coated with the substance could be dipped into blue coloured dye and yet emerge pristine white ( pictured ) . In addition , the coated titanium dioxide nanoparticles are so tough that they survived being rubbed 40 times with sandpaper . The idea was inspired by copying elements from nature . Waxy feathers , for example , repel water , keeping a bird afloat and its plumage clean . The petals of a lotus flower , in a similar way , shed moisture meaning they are not weighed down and damaged by rain ( pictured ) Previous attempts have failed because the coating could be wiped off with a napkin . But coated titanium dioxide nanoparticles are so tough that they survived being rubbed 40 times with sandpaper . Mr Lu said : ‘ Being waterproof allows materials to self-clean as water forms marble-shaped droplets that roll over the surface , acting like miniature vacuum cleaners picking up dirt , viruses and bacteria along the way . ‘ For this to happen , the surface must be rough and waxy , so we set out to create these conditions on hard and soft surfaces by designing our own paint and combining it with different adhesives to help the surfaces withstand damage. ’ Professor Claire Carmalt , co-author of the work , said : ‘ The biggest challenge for the widespread application of self-cleaning surfaces is finding a way to make them tough enough to withstand everyday damage . ‘ The surfaces tend to be mechanically weak and so rub off easily , but by pairing our paint with different adhesives , we ’ ve shown it is possible to make a robust self-cleaning surface . ‘ We used materials that are readily available so our methods can be scaled-up for industrial applications. ’ Brigham Young University researchers in Utah recently created a technique to make any surface super-waterproof by adding tiny structures to the surface instead . This causes droplets to bounce ( pictured ) , rather than roll , off . Researchers claim it could be used to make solar panels , ships and planes waterproof .
The substance is made out of coated titanium dioxide nanoparticles . Any drop of moisture that touches it turns into a ball and rolls away . As it rolls off the surface it carries dust , dirt and germs with it . The breakthrough was made by researchers at University College London . It was inspired by the way birds keep birds afloat and plumage clean .