Whether soldiers want to avoid infection during the theoretical zombie apocalypse or just keep clean on modern battlefields, the U.S. Army has their backs. Military researchers have begun sniffing around the idea of specially treated clothing that could not only repel dirt, rain and snow, but also invisible threats from chemicals, bacteria and viruses.
The Army wants to take a closer look at "omniphobic" coatings that have proved capable of repelling all sorts of liquids and dirt in lab tests, according to its solicitation notice issued on Wednesday. Such technology could protect soldiers from almost every imaginable biological or environmental contaminant — but only if the Army can figure out how to make the coatings more resistant to daily wear and tear.
"It is envisioned that omniphobic treated protective clothing will help to protect the skin from contact with solid and liquid toxic industrial chemicals, petroleum, oil, and lubricants, chemical warfare agents, and bacteria and viruses, thus effectively providing enhanced chemical/biological (CB) protection," according to the Army solicitation notice.
