A researcher at the Royal College of Art has designed a special garment that allows people to breath underwater.
Researcher Jun Kamei has actually managed to build a working prototype of this garment.
He said that by the year 2100, a temperature rise of 3.2℃ is predicted to happen, causing a sea level rise affecting more that 30 percent of the global population and submerging many coastal megacities, reported the German news agency.
According to the Phys.org website, Kamei created the garment after studying the bodies of diving insects.
He found that their skin is super hydrophobic, repelling water so greatly that it creates a tiny oxygen barrier between them and the water.
This barrier keeps the insects’ bodies dry and also acts as a gas exchange, allowing oxygen dissolved in the water to be filtered out, into their bodies.
The garment created by Kamei is composed of two parts: a mask, covering the nose and the mouth, and a second piece to cover the body, made of water-resistant rubber and features pores that allow air to pass and prevent the infiltration of water.
Researchers said that although the new garment cannot produce enough oxygen to allow human respiration, its ability to extract oxygen from water and release carbon dioxide instead means that using clothing as an option for breathing underwater is possible, but needs further development.
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