Project Paper

Our project, Cling-On, encompasses the qualities of the Northern Cling Fish's suction to create a
quick fix for broken underwater pipes. The tiny hair-like structures on the bottom of the Cling Fish's
body allow its suction cup to strongly adhere to uneven and wet surfaces. Using the idea of hair-like
structures to improve the versatility of suction cups, we decided to create a suction cup patch with this
modification to prevent harmful substances, such as oil, from seeping into marine environments. As our
idea came into a physical product, we worked on building a prototype, testing the concepts behind the
product, and choosing the ideal material and design.
The Northern Cling Fish use their special suction to remain anchored on rocks despite the pounding of
waves and comings and goings of the tide. What sets apart the suction cups of these fish are the
structures known as microvilli. These microvilli are microscopic "hairs" around the outside of the
suction cup that increase the friction, allowing for adhesion to the rocky surfaces they encounter in their
habitats. The common, man-made, suction cups fall off surfaces when the edges slip inward as a result
of the force pulling it away from the surface. With the Cling Fish, the microvilli prevent this slipping so
that the seal is both stronger and water tight. We saw the potential uses of these enhanced suction
cups and then looked for a place to apply them.
The problem we decided to apply the Cling-On idea to was underwater pipe leaks. Underwater pipe
lines exist all over the world, whether they span lakes, rivers, or oceans. For example, underwater oil
lines were being installed under the ocean between various European countries. Keeping in mind the
catastrophe of the British Petroleum oil spill, we realized how important it would be to fix any damaged
oil lines to prevent pollution. We decided that Cling-On would be a patch to allow quick and easy repair
to underwater pipes that was minimally intrusive to the ecosystem surrounding the pipe. Cling-On
would allow people to stop the leak in the pipe immediately upon noticing it so no excess pollution need
occur while efforts to weld or replace the pipe are made.
The design for Cling-On came from a group brainstorm. We settled on a system of rectangular
patches. While we did not have the resources to create microvilli, the materials in our prototype are
representative of what the parts of the finished product would be. Cling-On is a slightly concave
rectangular patch, which for our prototype, is made of an elastic band normally used for physical
therapy. This material allows for the flexibility Cling-On would need to fit to surfaces of various textures
and shapes. On the underside of the rectangle is a boarder of a commercial suction cup tape that gives
the prototype the suction it needs, which we tested on the cinder block walls of our school classrooms.
Finally the inside of the suction cup tape boarder is another, smaller boarder, of Velcro. The Velcro
represents the microvilli that we were not able to produce ourselves. While our prototype is not
functional, it demonstrates the features that would make Cling-On work.
Due to the lack of ability to produce our ideal Cling-On patch, we tested the concept stopping leaks
with products similar to what we were trying to create. Our experiment consisted of drilling a hole in a
PVC pipe, measuring the amount of water that leaked out, then testing different materials' effectiveness
in stopping or slowing the leak. No modifications at all allowed 300 mL of water to leak out of the pipe
in 30 seconds. When we added the Velcro, the 300 mL was cut in half to 150 mL. The Velcro acted as
microvilli, but on a much larger scale. Because the spines on the Velcro are much bigger in comparison,
and much more spaced apart, water was able to leak through the gaps. The Cling-On prototype that we
used had Velcro around the edges, but also utilized the power of suction through the suction tape also
around the edges. Combining the two was much more effective than any one alone. We had attempted
to just use suction, but we could not get suction cups to stick to the wet surface above the hole. The hot
glue was the most effective mechanism because the glue filled every crack in the hole. The glue is similar
to realistic microvilli because microvilli are also able to fit into microscopic surfaces. Using the hot glue,
no water escaped the hole at all. During the experiment, we controlled the amount of water put into the
pipe, the size of the hole, and the duration of time that the water leaked out of the pipe. In order to
improve this experiment, we would perform multiple trials and possibly test even more materials.
If we were to put Cling-On into production, it would be made of smart hydrogel. The finished product
would be a slightly concave rectangle patch with microvilli around the outside edge of the concave side,
all molded out of smart hydrogel. Smart hydrogel is a relatively new, biodegradable material composed
of three dimensional networks of cross-linked hydrophilic polymers. We chose this material because of
its high elasticity, along with heavy resistance to cutting, pressure, and twisting. One other characteristic
is that it can quickly change its volume in response to stimuli. This could include temperature, pH, and
certain chemicals it comes in contact with. How responsive it is to its environment depends on how
structured it is. The more structured it is, the more responsive it is to stimuli. Another characteristic is
that it is self-healing. This gel would be ideal because it is resistant to damage and can heal itself when
damage. Additionally, since the material is biodegradable, if it were to come off the pipe, it would not
cause further damage to environment by littering.