LiquiGlide: Reducing waste by removing friction

When it comes to waste in manufacturing and consumer goods, there is an unlikely culprit:friction.Professor of mechanical engineering Kripa Varanasi and the LiquiGlide team are working toward a frictionless future and a significant reduction in waste.

Established in 2012 by Varanasi and alum David Smith SM ’11, LiquiGlide plans custom coatings that empower fluids to “float” on surfaces.Whether toothpaste is squeezed out of a tube or drained from a 500-liter manufacturing plant tank, every last drop of a product can be used.

Product waste can be significantly reduced and the need to clean a container before recycling or reusing it eliminated by making containers frictionless.