Another shark-inspired innovation is making waves in the sky.
Experts from Australia's MicroTau have invented a thin, durable plastic film that covers the outside of planes, reducing drag. Inspired by sharkskin, barely perceptible riblets on the surface help the aircraft to cut through the atmosphere like sharks slice through oceans with predatory speed. It's thanks to the aerodynamic nature of sharkskin, all per the company and a report from Bloomberg.
MicroTau isn't the only company combining sharks and planes. Germany's Lufthansa Technik worked with BASF to create a similar product. Its AeroSHARK is already being placed on airplanes, reducing jet fuel use.
For its part, MicroTau touts an up-to-4% reduction of heat-trapping carbon dioxide pollution, as well as millions of dollars in fuel savings over the aircraft's lifetime, all per the company website.
It's a fascinating application of biomimicry — applying natural solutions to everyday human challenges. As another example, an invention from the University of Bonn is developing filters, inspired by fish gills, to catch microplastics that are collected in washing machines during cycles.
"We're replicating the patterns that we find in nature," MicroTau founder Henry Bilinsky told Bloomberg about his product.
According to the report, the film is made with a 3D printer. The riblets, about half the width of a human hair, are microscopic. The production process includes curing the film with ultraviolet light. The end product is transparent and resistant to fuel exposure and extreme temperatures. It's also impact-resistant. The ridges are more noticeable by sound and touch than visually.
"If you run your finger across, you're gonna hear that buzzing," Bilinsky said during the Bloomberg interview, describing the sound made as a finger passes over the film's texture.
Bloomberg reports that the aviation sector produces about 2% of the world's planet-warming pollution. However, the impact may actually be greater. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's data suggests that plane travel accounts for around 3.5% of human-driven changing global temperatures.
🗣️ Which of the following sustainable changes would make you most likely to choose a particular airline?
🔘 Using cleaner fuel ⛽
🔘 Reducing in-flight waste 🗑️
🔘 Making it easy to choose low-emissions itineraries 📋
🔘 I don't pay attention to sustainability when I fly ✈️
🗳️ Click your choice to see results and speak your mind
MicroTau was founded in 2016 as an answer, perfecting concepts from NASA and other agencies, Bilinsky said. The company raised 5.6 million Australian dollars (about $3.78 million U.S.), with millions more added by the Australian government to help fund product trials, all per Bloomberg.
What's more, reducing fuel costs would be a big win for the sector. Data collector Statista reports that 2023 fuel costs devoured a 32% share of airline spending.
Reducing the expenditure should help to lower flight expenses, too. Bilinsky told Bloomberg that for a wide-body plane, the sharkskin-related fuel savings could reach around a million bucks annually. Perhaps more importantly, 3,000 tons of air pollution could be cut.
Those fumes are linked by NASA to increased risks for powerful storms, floods, and droughts, among other weather woes.
MicroTau's spirit of efficiency can be applied elsewhere in our lives, even for folks who don't fly very often. Simply using our most natural transportation means — our legs — can reduce stress and improve health, as noted by Mayo Clinic. Replacing a two-mile drive a day with a walk can also cut 600 pounds of exhaust from being spewed annually.
At MicroTau, the team intends to make an impact in multiple industries. Bilinsky told Bloomberg that the film could help cargo ships cut through the water more efficiently.
It's a solution that got its start in the murky deep, thanks to one of nature's stealthiest creatures.
"I can't claim to know the inner workings of sharks, but they definitely are the ones that came up with it," Bilinsky said to Bloomberg.
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