This is a problem that the Droguet group sought to address by using cellulose from the tree species found on the market. First, they need to know how to make the crystals more stable. They will just make a plan, but amen This structure absorbs the water inside it. To change the shape, “just add salt,” says Vignolini. The salts change the way the molecules interact with each other, and specify the shape they form and then the type of glitter they form. Just adding 5 milligrams will change the color of the whole kilogram of cellulose, making crystals appear to shorten the waves, such as green and blue. With less salt, it removes longer waves, like red ones.
The team also considered how to better manage the production process so that they could now produce high-resolution duplicate meters using mills, which are used in factories. The machine rolls polymer skeins, or “web,” while the output emits even more of the nanocrystal solution. The mixture should be light enough to be easy to put on the roll, but viscous enough to leave a deep, even color.
At this point, the mixing sounds great, so the team can’t tell if they’ve made a good batch until they run the internet through the hot air dryer. When water melts, only a film of nanocrystals remains. The color comes out suddenly and deepens. “At the end of the day, it is very fast,” says Droguet, who has developed green, blue, red, and gold. The video can be downloaded from the internet and put in a shiny or mixed paint. This process requires less energy than making glossy plastic, and the latter makes it shiny even when mixed with soapy water, ethanol, and oil which means it can be used in cosmetics and even food. “I think we have now shown that the principles work on a large scale,” says Droguet.
But it has not yet tried to generate a large number of factories. Using Cambridge equipment, it currently takes Droguet about two months to produce a shiny kilogram. In order to increase production, they will need money and the opportunity to find a market that has large converter machines. So far it has been difficult to find companies; Vignolini says the producers have been happy but skeptical because the story is so different from the one they are currently using. “It’s very new,” he says, and companies want to make sure it runs smoothly.
Vignolini and Droguet also want to take a test to understand how these substances affect his life and how the damage can affect the environment. They have teamed up with Dannielle Green, a naturalist at Anglia Ruskin University in the United Kingdom, who has studied radiation from cellulose to see how it affects algae growth.