Previous materials inspired by biology could only heal microscopic cracks. (newscientist.com)
To protect the mineral, the researchers first apply a thin wash of a chemical called aminoethylaminopropylsilane, more mercifully known as aeaps, that seeps into microscopic cracks in the stone and binds to calcium carbonate. (discovermagazine.com)
Steel's weakness is its tendency to develop microscopic cracks that eventually make the material fracture. (sciencenews.org)