Photo by Jakub Dziubak on Unsplash

By Madison Fung

Scientists from the University College London have created noodles out of starch-rich nanofibres, breaking the world record for the thinnest pasta. The nano-pasta is on average 372 nanometres (nm) thick, approximately a thousand times thinner than the original record. To put this into context, the width of a human hair is around 80,000 nm. One strand of the nano-pasta is so small that it is almost impossible to see it with the naked eye. This makes us wonder: how did the scientists make the pasta out of extremely small nanofibres?

The scientists used the electrospinning method to spin pasta out of starch nanofibres. In their experiment, a starch solution was made by combining white flour and formic acid. Formic acid is a solvent that uncoils and breaks down chains of starch molecules. The resulting mixture was a translucent gel with visible starch grains under the microscope. The solution was ejected through a needle and deposited onto a plate. An electrical charge was applied to the starch solution to pull the mixture into thinner strands of nanofibres, thus creating a plate of pasta from nanofibres.

Research suggests that this technology may have further implications as biodegradable nanofibres. This new type of nanofibres does not require the process of extracting starch from plant matter, making it less expensive and more environmentally friendly as compared to starch. They may serve as bandages or be used in supercapacitors, energy storage devices similar to batteries, but can charge and discharge energy at a higher rate. In addition, they may be utilized for biological purposes, such as drug delivery and tissue engineering, due to their hydrophilic nature.

The nanofibres are classified as pasta lunga because their production process involves the extrusion and drying of white flour. When asked whether or not the nano-pasta is edible, chemist Adam Clancy replies that “[he] certainly hope[s] so”. Would you be interested in trying this special kind of pasta made out of flour nanofibres?

Works Cited

Britton, Beatrice, et al. “Nanopasta: electrospinning nanofibers of white flour.” Nanoscale Advances, 30 October 2024, https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2024/na/d4na00601a. Accessed 18 December 2024.

Nanoscience Instruments. “7 Recent Advancements in Nanofiber Applications.” Nanoscience Instruments, https://www.nanoscience.com/blogs/unlocking-the-potential-of-nanofibers-from-production-to-applications/. Accessed 11 December 2024.

Peters, Eric. “BU-209: How does a Supercapacitor Work?” Battery University, https://batteryuniversity.com/article/bu-209-how-does-a-supercapacitor-work#google_vignette. Accessed 11 December 2024.

Ware, Skylar. “Starchy nanofibers shatter the record for world’s thinnest pasta.” ScienceNews, 3 December 2024, https://www.sciencenews.org/article/thinnest-pasta-nanofibers. Accessed 5 December 2024.