Ski lift

When Peter Styring was reading chemistry at

he wondered if there was a way to combine his work with his passion for skiing.

Styring — president of the university's ski club — had read about a research group that tested fluorocarbon waxes for skis in the Alps.

'I thought this is just paradise,' he said. 'And I always hoped to do something similar.'

His chance came last year when he came up with the idea for a ski that waxes itself as it travels down the slope, enabling skiers to travel quicker. The ski uses a series of tiny valves and pipework to continuously deliver lubricant to its base. The pumping motion of the skier's legs pushes the fluid through the system.

Styring is now working with manufacturers and aims to incorporate his system into the laminate structure of skis used in top-class international competition as early as next year.

Styring said the device's design is also simple enough to retrofit into existing skis. The lubricant wax, which is an undisclosed polymer, is placed in a sealed unit between the binding and ski where the riser plate usually sits. A small pipe leads the wax from the reservoir to the front of the ski and then to the base. With any change in pressure, such as when the skier turns or goes over a bump, the reservoir bends and pumps the fluid out.