the near future, the world's top chefs may be using knives made wood. This may seem somewhat counter-intuitive, but materials scientists have created a wooden knife that is three times sharper than the stainless steel knives we use for dinner. The scientists are the University Maryland in the USA. Researcher Teng Li said wooden knives would complement the assortment wooden utensils currently found kitchens across the world. He said: " our kitchen, we have many wooden things that we use a very long time, a cutting board, chopsticks, or a rolling pin. These new knives can also be used many times if you resurface them, sharpen them and perform the same regular upkeep."
Traditionally, knives have been made steel or ceramics. The scientists improved the strength the wood in their knives enhancing the cellulose it contains. Cellulose is the main constituent wood. It has a higher ratio of strength to density than most engineered materials, steel and ceramics. Teng Li said the new cutting material is hardened to the extent that it can effortlessly slice through the toughest steak. There is an added advantage wooden knives – they are environmentally friendly. They could end our dependence plastic cutlery. The scientists have also developed wooden nails, which could be a boon to the building industry as they will not rust and weaken conventional nails.
