Surface tension biomimetics need to have a transplant or repair performed. Microvelia exploit surface tension by creating a surface tension gradient that propels them forward by releasing a surfactant behind them through a tongue-like protrusion. Biomimetic engineering was used in a creative and fun way to make and edible cocktail boat that mimicked the ability of microvelia to propel themselves on the surface of water by means of a phenomenon called the marangoni effect. Burton and her colleagues used 3D printing to make small plastic boats that released different types of alcohol behind the boat to lower the surface tension and create a
Surface tension area, a certain amount of energy must be added. Gibbs free energy is defined by the equation , where is enthalpy and is entropy. Based upon this and the fact that surface tension is Gibbs free energy per unit area, it is possible to obtain the following expression for entropy per unit area: Kelvin's equation for surfaces arises by rearranging the previous equations. It states that surface enthalpy or surface energy (different from surface free energy) depends both on surface tension and its derivative with temperature at constant pressure by the relationship. Fifteen years after Gibbs, J.D. van der Waals