Emily Chan
As the United States continues to battle worsening wildfire seasons, a new sprayable gel could help stop homes from burning.
Climate change is raising temperatures and intensifying droughts, resulting in hotter and drier conditions that make wildfires more extreme. Western states are being affected the most.
Just this year, more than five million acres have been destroyed by wildfire across the states. In July, California’s Park Fire tore through over 400,000 acres, engulfing 637 buildings in its path.
To address this growing crisis, researchers from Stanford University have developed a water-enhancing gel that can be sprayed onto buildings to shield them from the flames.
These types of gels contain super-absorbent polymers that are designed to alter the physical characteristics of water so that they can better cling to smooth and vertical surfaces.
According to the study, the new gel product lasts longer and is more effective than existing commercial gels.
“Under typical wildfire conditions, current water-enhancing gels dry out in 45 minutes,” said Eric Appel, the senior author of the study and an associate professor of materials science and engineering in the School of Engineering at the university.
“We’ve developed a gel that would have a broader application window—you can spray it further in advance of the fire and still get the benefit of the protection—and it will work better when the fire comes.”
During wildfires, temperatures can reach nearly 100 degrees with zero percent humidity. There are also high winds that spread the flames. So, even water that is locked in a gel can evaporate in almost no time.
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