Inspired by whales’ self-cleaning skin (Image: Wayne Levin/Getty)

DESIGNING ships to exude slime from their hulls could cut their fuel consumption by up to 20 per cent. The slime would form a gelatinous skin that continually sloughs off, taking with it the barnacles and other marine life forms that cause energy-sapping drag as they accumulate on the ships’ underside.

The idea, which is being tested by Rahul Ganguli of Teledyne Scientific in Thousand Oaks, California, and colleagues is being financed by the US Department of Defense (Smart Materials and Structures, DOI: 10.1088/0964-1726/18/10/104027).

Fouling by marine life is a problem …