Turns out that apart from being a good snack, popcorn can also be used for other useful purposes such as to power robots. 

Engineers from Cornell University recently published a paper describing how popcorns, apart from being a good snack, can be used as a power source for tiny jumping robots because of its ability to expand and exert force and motion upon heating.

In the paper titled ‘Popcorn-Driven Robotic Actuator’, researchers explained that it works when a flexible silicone beam is filled with 36 unpopped corn kernels and then is laced with a thin nichrome wire. As the wire heats up, the kernels start to pop and expand in size. The expansion applies pressure against the outer walls of the fingers, causing them to curl and thus, grabbing any object placed underneath it, explained IFL Science.

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“The goal of our lab is to try to make very minimalistic robots which, when deployed in high numbers, can still accomplish great things,” lead author Steven Ceron said. “Simple robots are cheap and less prone to failures and wear, so we can have many operating autonomously over a long time. So we are always looking for new and innovative ideas that will permit us to have more functionalities for less, and popcorn is one of those.”

Researchers believe that such popcorn-powered devices can also make their way into medicine, with even being used for edible devices that could be ingested for medical procedures. Also, they can replace fluids in soft robots without the need for expensive and heavy air pumps and compressors, reported Mirror.

However, one disadvantage of this device is that popcorn-powered mechanisms can only be used once, as the kernels can’t shrink back once popped. Yet, multiple uses might be possible considering the fact that these kernels can be dissolved in water, explained Ceron.

Nonetheless, this technique is beneficial since its cheap, biodegradable, easily available, and even edible. With this popcorn-powered robot, the team hopes to embrace that creative, off-the-wall spirit.