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Ultra-thin glass coating for buildings on the way to UK

2/2/2010

German company says new product is green and suitable for almost any surface.

An ultra-thin coating is being promoted as the next big thing for protecting the surfaces of everything from hospital equipment to buildings. Called Liquid Glass, the flexible and breathable glass coating is being marketed by its German maker Nanopool as a coating for wood, stone, fibre, plastic and glass and ceramics.

The coating is approximately 100 nanometres thick (500 times thinner than a human hair), and according to the manufacturer it is food safe, environmentally friendly and can be applied to almost any surface. The coating leaves surfaces easy to clean and anti-microbially protected.

Neil McClelland, UK project manager for Nanopool explained some of the principles behind the product, saying, "In essence, we extract molecules of SiO2 [silicon dioxide] (the primary constituent of glass) from quartz sand, and then we add the molecules to water or ethanol."

Liquid Glass is on the market in Germany and will soon be available in the UK. It has already been trialled for the protection of monuments in Turkey, including the Ataturk Mausoleum in Ankara.

Sources and links

www.independent.co.uk The Independent newspaper featured the product on 1 February 2010.

www.nanopool.eu for the manufacturer's website.