WASHINGTON — The U.S. Army is developing a super absorbent wound dressing that could potentially save the lives of soldiers on the battlefield.

According to the Army, around 80 to 90 percent of potentially survivable deaths by American troops in battle occur as the result of uncontrolled bleeding.

Researchers published their results in the journal ACS Publications.

According to Digital Trends, the new polystyrene and rubber wound dressing can absorb up to 800 percent of the material's weight in liquid.
The new material is 5.7 times more absorbent than the current state-of-the-art wound dressing.
The plasticity of the dressing makes it stronger and more flexible, while acrylic acid gives it the super absorbent properties which allow it to pull water out of the blood, so that it can clot faster.
As the material swells, the bandage forms a tough hydrogel shell three times stronger than gauze.

The project currently is still in the research phase with animal tests set to be the next step in the testing process.