Starch nanofibers break the record for the thinnest pasta in the world

The world record for the thinnest pasta has been broken, although the new, narrow noodles are better suited for wound dressings than the dinner table.

From white flour, the researchers made starch-rich nanofibers that are, on average, about 370 nanometers thick—or about two-hundredths of the thickness of a human hair. The nano-noodles could be used in biodegradable bandages, chemist Adam Clancy and colleagues reported Oct. 30. Advances at the nanoscale.

To make the noodle “dough,” scientists mix flour with formic acid, a liquid that helps break down the long starch molecules in flour. “Normally, if you want to cook starch, then you use water and heat to break up the tight packing of the starch,” says Clancy, of University College London. “We do this chemically with formic acid. So we effectively pickled it instead of cooking it.”

The researchers carefully heated the dough to give it the right consistency. Then, through a technique called electrospinning, they used an electrical charge to pull the mixture through a needle and onto a plate a few centimeters away (SN: 4/4/06). Starch molecules tangle with each other as they leave the needle, forming a continuous jet. As the plane flies through the air, the formic acid evaporates, leaving behind a thin thread. After about 30 seconds, the fiber forms a thin layer on the plate.

Mats made from starch nanofibers typically have pores that are large enough to allow water molecules to pass through but too small for bacteria to enter, making them attractive options for bandages and wound dressings. Previous research has made e-spun mattresses from pure starch, but the process of extracting this starch from plant matter requires energy and water. The new study shows that extraction is not strictly necessary.

“If you’re using it for bandages, it doesn’t really matter that there’s cellulose and protein in there,” says Clancy.

Since the fibers are made from dried flour, they can be classified as pasta. This makes them the thinnest pasta on record – about one-thousandth the width of su filindeu, a type of pasta about half the width of angel hair noodles that is made exclusively by hand by just one family in the town of Nuoro, Italy .

But is Clancy’s nanopasta edible? “I certainly hope so,” he says.