Flushing toilets can consume a lot of water.

So Tak-Sing Wong, a biomedical engineer at Penn State University, is trying to minimize how much is needed. Wong developed a slippery coating for the inside of a toilet bowl. In this encore episode, he tells us it can potentially move human waste more efficiently, leaving a cleaner bowl with less water.

Related Link:
Viscoelastic solid-repellent coatings for extreme water saving and global sanitation in Nature Sustainability (behind paywall)

Jing Wang, Lin Wang, Nan Sun, Ross Tierney, Hui Li, Margo Corsetti, Leon Williams, Pak Kin Wong & Tak-Sing Wong

This episode was produced by Brit Hanson and edited by Viet Le.

Short Wave Podcast

It’s science for everyone, using a lot of creativity and a little humor. Join host Maddie Sofia for science on a different wavelength.