Ever dreamt of having superhuman abilities like breathing underwater? If so, your dream might come true sooner than you would have expected!


 

People suffering from respiratory conditions are yet to rejoice, as a team of Danish researchers discovered a revolutionary way to deal with such problems. Their plan involves a novel absorption crystal capable of extracting oxygen from both air and water. However, such a breakthrough discovery will not only benefit the medical field, but will also change the way we perceive diving. Just imagine going underwater without the need to carry oxygen tanks.

The novel material can trap and store high concentrations of oxygen from watery surroundings in order to be used at a later time, whenever the person using them feels the need. The system will allow for measured dosages of oxygen to be administered whenever the body runs out of air. This will bring a new era in underwater exploration, a domain that's facing a few challenges when it comes to venturing inside underwater grottos with tight gaps. There are numerous places that can only be reached by professional divers who go inside without an oxygen tank. With the revolutionary crystals will also benefit space exploration.

Scientists at the University of Southern Denmark teamed up with their fellow colleagues from the University of Sydney, Australia, to determine a way in which higher concentrations of oxygen can be administered to the human body. They started from the premise that the standard human body can function with just 21% of oxygen from the air around us.

The study was conducted by Professor Christine McKenzie, together with Jonas Sandberg of the Department of Physics, Chemistry and Pharmacy at the University of Southern Denmark. They filled a 10 liters container with microscopic grains from the absorbing material, and put it inside an enclosed space to see what happens. The material was enough to retain the entire oxygen found inside the room.

"In the lab, we saw how this material took up oxygen from the air around us," Professor McKenzie concluded.

Although similar oxygen-absorbing technologies are being developed, the material researched by the Danish researchers is by far the lightest and most efficient.