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Friday, 7 November 2014 00:01 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
After nearly two years of research and development across industries in Sri Lanka, today, EcoCorp Asia introduced nanopool, a nanotechnology-based solution that promises to effectively change the way we live.
nanopool is a surface protection system that is 500 times thinner than a single strand of human hair. The liquid coatings, based on the principles of the wet-chemical sol-gel process, create functional nano-scale layers. The ultrathin layers created over the surface offer several benefits – protection against corrosion, easy-to-clean surfaces, dirt-repellent surfaces, abrasion resistance (wear protection), scratchproof surfaces, anti-bacterial surfaces, protection against moisture, and acid and alkaline protection to name a few.
“There is little doubt that the world is changing more rapidly today than in the past. Developments, especially those concerning the key industries of the 21st century, including nanotechnology, are proceeding at a breath-taking pace. These new technologies have opened up new vistas that would have been inconceivable a few years ago, and would provide the impetus to create new and innovative processes,” says Shascha Schwindt Managing Director of nanopool GmbH.
The surface protection system can be used on various surfaces including, glass, metal, wood, ceramic, plastic, stone, and textile. Its applicability on these varying materials makes it useful across all industries. From protecting a mould in a manufacturing environment to maintaining hygienic workspaces in a kitchen, nanopool has proven to be a cost-effective solution.
Not only has it helped in increasing production efficiency and reducing down time in a manufacturing environment but it also significantly reduces replacement costs. Local conglomerate, Aitken Spence PLC which has equity in EcoCorp Asia says that investing in this futuristic technology will create new synergies for the company.
Chairman of Aitken Spence PLC commented, “We are always looking to invest in the future and having studied the benefits nanopool has brought to healthcare, manufacturing, textile and other industries, we felt confident that it was a sound investment. The experience and stability Aitken Spence brings to the table combined with the ingenuity of the EcoCorp Asia team would no doubt make nanopool a game changing technology for Sri Lanka.”
Manilal Fernando, Chairman of EcoCorp Asia, the exclusive partners for nanopool in Sri Lanka says, “In the future nanotechnology will be an important part of our daily lives. What we have started today is just the beginning but the important thing is that in this type of business one has to acquire a lot of knowledge to make it workable as a business venture. For the last two years we have been working with many local companies and nanopool is on many surfaces today, and it is already a total success story even prior to its official launch.”
nanopool technology is a form of ‘liquid glass’ invisible to the human eye. It is harmless to living things and the wider environment. It is one of the most important, environmentally-friendly products to emerge from the field of nanotechnology, which deals in objects at the molecular end of the scale.
The secret of liquid glass is that it forms an ultra-thin film between 100 and 300 nanometres – about 500 times thinner than human hair. On this nanoscale – a few millionths of amillimetre thick – liquid glass turns into a highly flexible invisible barrier that repels liquid, dirt and bacteria, yet is resistant to extreme temperatures, acids, abrasion while remaining ‘breathable’.
The liquid glass is composed of almost pure silicon dioxide (SiO2), the chemical constituent of quartz or silica, the most abundant mineral in the Earth’s crust. It is quite inert, has no known harmful impact on the environment; unlike many of the domestic and industrial cleaning products its use could help to reduce.
