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New Super-Wipe Best On Stains, Mustard Gas
A new super-wipe created by the U.S. Army in concert with Texas Tech University in Lubbock and the Lawrence Livermore lab in California beats every other product you've ever used. Especially if you've ever tried to clean up mustard gas.
The secret? Activated carbon sandwiched between super-absorbent layers, according to Seshadri Ramkumar of Texas Tech. Toxic vapors are captured by the carbon, while the absorbent layers soak up the liquid.
The new wipes were successful in tests in which traces of mustard gas were removed from hard and soft surfaces. I can tell you that any of the Schedule 1 chemicals in the 1993 Chemical Weapons Convention are a bitch to clean off clothing or small electronics, like BlackBerrys or iPhones.
This stuff sounds even better than Dekon Type DCQ from 'Doc Smith's 1965 novel Subspace Explorers:
"That's right. Short for 'Decontaminant, Complete; Compound, Absorbent, and Chelating; Type DCQ.' It takes care of radiation, but speed is of the essence.
I invite readers with graphics expertise to photoshop a picture of this remarkable new product, to encourage some upstanding consumer company to bring super-wipes out as a commercial product.
From New Scientist.
"Oh, Dekon?" she asked. "I've read about it. I rub it in good, all over me?"
(Read more about Smith's Dekon Type DCQ)
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 12/14/2008)
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