Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin have developed a new way of life to detect deadly nerve gases , and it involves LEGO .
The new detection machine , described in a subject published in the journalACS Central Science , apply chemical sensors , a box made out of LEGO brick , and a cellular phone phone to identify the presence of odorless , tasteless boldness agents like VX and sarin .
chemic weapons likesarinare passing dangerous — even at low immersion , a verbatim whiff of sarin can kill you in just instant . So being able to identify them in the field is vital , and it has to be done tight .
The chemical substance - identifying detector , develop by UT Austin pill pusher Xiaolong Sun and his confrere , fluoresce in different colors and brightnesses to betoken which nerve agent are present in the strain , and in what concentrations . Unfortunately , calculate on where these tests are taking post , it ’s not always easy to see how lustrous the fluorescent glow is . Expensive equipment design to detect these change in the research laboratory just is n’t workable on the battlefield or in a war - torn region .
The 320 - brick LEGO social organization , meanwhile , is portable and quick to assemble . It acts as a black loge that blocks out light around the sensors . The top of the box has a hole in it , over which the user places a smartphone ’s photographic camera lense . Using a standard laboratory test plate and a UV light inside the boxful , the fluorescent changes can be photographed with the telephone set and take apart with UT Austin ’s gratuitous package to determine what case and concentration of mettle agents are present in the sample .
While 3D printing could produce a cheap equivalent of the LEGO boxwood , the plaything brick may be more approachable . Not everyone has access to a 3D printer or the same printing process materials as research worker might habituate in the lab — but LEGOs are available across the macrocosm for a comparatively down price . The computer software necessary to analyze the sample is usable for spare onGitHub , and the research worker include the LEGO assembly charge within their study .
