- Swarming Robots Autonomously Absorb Hard-to-Reach Oil
- A team of scientists has developed autonomous robots that swarm to collect oil together. Armed with solar cells, GPS and nanowire filters, the robots could quickly clean oil spills.
Recently at Smarter Technology, we've brought you stories on several solutions about cleaning up the oil leftover from the Gulf of Mexico spill—everything from a military decontamination system to biotech solutions like natural fibers. A team of researchers at MIT is working on another promising oil-cleaning technology: an autonomous robot. Called the Seaswarm, the robot combines several promising technologies—including solar cells, GPS, WiFi and a nanowire filter—to become one of the most capable oil-fighting tools out there.
The Seaswarm robot combines several technologies to efficiently collect oil (source: MIT).
The basic technology behind the Seaswarm is a nanotech membrane developed by MIT engineers in 2008. Made of nano-sized wires, the material has the touch and feel of paper, but can absorb up to 20 times its weight of oil and other organic pollutants.

Although it looks like paper, the material can absorb 20 times its weight of oil (source: MIT).
The nanowires are made from potassium manganese oxide, a heat-stable material. This property allows the material to be brought to high temperatures at which oil will boil away and condense elsewhere. Both the membrane and the oil can then be reused.

Porous nanowires absorb oil but repel water (source: MIT).
The Water Tank
The scientists fashioned the nanowire material into conveyor belts, which are threaded into the Seaswarm robot. The belt, like that of a military tank, constantly rotates to propel the robot over the surface of the water. It soaks up oil as it moves. Because the material is hydrophobic, water is pushed away from the machine, allowing it to stay afloat.

The Seaswarm was successfully tested in Boston's Charles River (source: MIT).
A major advantage to the Seaswarm's design is its size. Current methods of oil collection—like fishing boats with skimmers attached—are large and unwieldy. The robot, however, is a svelte 7 by 16 feet. This small size allows it to clean hard-to-reach places where oil can collect, such as coastlines, marshes and estuaries.An Oil-Soaking Swarm
The Seaswarm, aptly named, is intended to work as a fleet, or "swarm," of robots. Machines are outfitted with GPS and WiFi, tools that allow them to communicate with one another for cleanup organization. Unlike other cleaning methods, the robots are autonomous and do not require human involvement.

The robots are equipped with communication tools like GPS and WiFi so they can coordinate for cleanup (source: MIT).
Because its nanomaterial is highly absorbent and its power source is unlimited, the robot does not need to make repeated trips to the shore. Time, money and the environment are all saved by the highly efficient machine.In August 2010, the first Seaswarm prototype completed a test run on the Charles River in Boston. The project's Website reports successful outcomes from the conveyor belt and solar cells.
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