The last drop of shampoo stubbornly stuck to the bottom of a bottle can be really frustrating. Thankfully, scientists are trying to tackle this age-old not-so-serious annoyance of life.

Scientists at Ohio State University have found a way to create the perfect texture inside the plastic containers, allowing soap products, be they shampoo or laundry detergent, to flow freely.

This may sound like useless research, but it is the sort of problem that keeps manufacturers awake at night.

"It's what you'd call a first-world problem, right? 'I can't get all of the shampoo to come out of the bottle,'" Brarat Bhushan, Ohio State University engineering professor, said in a statement.

"But manufacturers are really interested in this because they make billions of bottles that end up in the garbage with product still in them," he continued.

The solution is to line the plastic bottles with microscopic structures that move the soap above tiny air pockets, never actually allowing the soap to touch the inside of the bottle, making the soap slide around effortlessly.

The researchers’ aim was to make a container that’s cheap, effective and environmentally-friendly. They may have succeeded, since the invention could aid recycling.

Before plastic bottles can be recycled, they have to be rinsed completely clean, the statement said. Bhushan suspects he’s not the only person who doesn’t bother to do so.

Video courtesy of Ohio State University.