Scientists have found a way to encase oil drops with a nanoparticle that behaves very interestingly. In water, these particles, which look like batons, orient themselves to surround oil. The reason they do this is because the carbon nanotube portion of the baton points inwards towards the oil and encases the oil. The other side of the baton is a gold particle. These nano-gold particles point the other way in a water solution as they are not as hydrophobic. This makes the oil droplets in water gold colored. In oil, the baton flips itself, so that the gold portion points inwards to the water. This makes water droplets in oil black colored. What is quite interesting, is that when hit by UV light or magnetic fields, the particles instantly flip and release whats inside.
This creates two interesting uses. It could be used to isolate oil spills by isolating oil, which requires some studies both on the environmental side, and on the practical side regarding actually implementing this. The second use that pops into mind is using these to deliver medication, site specifically. This of course depends on if the particles are harmful, if the encasement is strong enough, and if the amount of magnetic field is low enough to be used on humans. Interesting thoughts…

Check out the whole article on physorg