Nanocoatings transforming automotive, solar cell and wireless industries

Filed in archive Materials on February 23, 2006

It won't be long until the expression "nanotechnology is all around us" becomes the literal truth. Nanocoatings are being painted on walls, cars, and just about everything else. The result is stronger, less expensive surfaces less harmful to the environment.

The new Mercedes-Benz SL series (pictured) sports a protective coating of nanoparticles that provides a three-fold improvement in the scratch resistance of the paintwork.

DuPont is also working on nanoparticle paint for autos. The paint, licensed from Ecology Coatings, is cured using ultraviolet (UV) light at room temperature, rather than in the 400 degree Fahrenheit ovens required for conventional auto paint.

"After the UV hits it, it becomes a thin sheet of plastic," explained Ecology Coatings co-founder and chief chemist Sally Ramsey in a recent Wired article. "Abrasion-resistance and scratch-resistance is very much enhanced."

"We are in the early stages of a profound industry change," added Bob Matheson, technical manager for strategic technology production at DuPont. He estimates the technology will reduce the amount of energy used in the coating-application process by 25 percent and reduce materials costs by 75 percent.

The solar cell industry, meanwhile, is being transformed by a new generation of spray-on polymer-based solar collecting paint like that in development at Wake Forest University. "You just paint it on," said Professor David Carroll of the new nano-phase material with an efficiency of six percent, double that of similar cells, but still well shy of silicon cells' 12 per cent efficiency. "I strongly believe we can get there [12 per cent] within the next year," said Carroll.

And while you're waiting for your building's solar-collecting paint to dry you can slap on a coat of spray-on nanotubes that block radio frequency and wireless signals.

NaturalNano has developed a spray coating embedded with copper-filled halloysite nanotubes which can be applied to the walls of a room, providing a passive blocking agent for radio frequency (RF) energy.

"Many existing structures including concert and convention halls, movie theaters, and other buildings could benefit from enhanced control over outside radio frequency radiation with a passive, cost-effective solution," said Michael Riedlinger, President of NaturalNano.

They've combined the shielding coating with a technology that enables authorized users to log onto a private network in an area that is otherwise RF shielded. "This technology," said Riedlinger, "also allows the facility operator to potentially charge fees for wireless access within an otherwise RF shielded environment."

Which I guess proves that nanotechnology won't be used to overcome the drawbacks of an economy in which you're charged for ubiquitous wireless network access, charged for the paint that blocks it, and charged again for access within the blocked area.