Submission + - Nanoparticle Infused Gauze Hits the Market (wired.com)
jackieduvall writes: Cotton gauze has received its first upgrade since World War I. Chemists have infused it with nanoparticles derived from kaolin clay, which somehow give it an amazing ability to stop severe bleeding. It was developed when the Navy approached a team of inorganic chemists at UCSB to solve a problem with QuikClot, a zeolite-based hemostatic agent that got way too hot and caused burns when it came in contact with water or blood. While performing blood clotting tests, they realized that kaolin clay, which has been used as a control for clotting experiments since the 1950's, could also be used as a first aid product.
