A team of Swiss scientists has stolen a page from the bombardier beetle to fend off ATM vandals. The beetle fends off attackers by spewing a combination of chemicals that create a caustic acid. Well, the scientists have figured out how to design an ATM that spews caustic acidic foam in a vandal’s face when he or she strikes the ATM. Here’s how it works. When a vandal strikes an ATM, he or she ruptures several layers of plastic, thus releasing the chemical concoction in the vandal’s face.
The scientists, who published the study in Journal of Materials Chemistry A, point out that the system is cost effective and hard to beat because it doesn’t use electricity. They also used this approach to develop a similar self-defending film for cash boxes that would render its contents blue and marked with DNA.
This technology has still other uses. In fact, it can “be used anywhere you find things that shouldn't be touched," according to Wendelin Jan Stark the EHT Chemistry and Applied Bioscience professor who headed the research team. For example, Stark’s technology can be used to prevent animals from gnawing at trees and corps, according to the press release describing Stark’s work.
