A Pollution-Fighting Skin? Yes, There’s a Product for That
Limpha
A self-cleaning surface is a feature of products ranging from paints to porcelain wall panels such as Limpha (shown) by manufacturer Casalgrande Padana.
Photo © courtesy the manufacturer
3M Smog-Reducing Granules
Minnesota-based 3m offers an enhanced version of its protective roofing granules that has a photocatalytic coating. The granules are incorporated largely in roofing products made by other manufacturers including Owens Corning, Malarkey, Atlas, and CertainTeed, which is said to filter smog.
Photo courtesy the manufacturer
Loxon Self-Cleaning Acrylic
Sherwin Williams has introduced a UV-resistant, dirt-shedding acrylic, formulated to add a protective coating on concrete and masonry. It is also said to be mildew- and mold-resistant and can be tinted in a range of colors.
Photo courtesy the manufacturer
Among ceramics companies at this year’s tile fair, Cersaie, in Bologna, Italy, Casalgrande Padana featured the pollution-fighting technology combined with photo-realist graphics of roses and ivy printed on 4 by 7 foot porcelain slabs for cladding exterior and interior walls. The company’s product description states that this covering “helps improve air quality and reduce pollution for better quality of life” indoors and outside. The panels come in an array of digitally printed patterns including Coral Rose, Helix, and Larix.
Photo courtesy the manufacturer
Neolith Skyline +PureTi
Five sizes of Skyline, a line of sintered stone slabs from Neolith by the Size are available with a titanium-dioxide coating made by PureTi.
Photo courtesy the manufacturer
It is an interesting time to track self-cleaning, pollution-fighting building products, because the innovative technology behind this category keeps evolving and is now being incorporated into everything from paint to roofing granules to porcelain wall panels.
Typically a self-cleaning coating is one that is made with titanium dioxide—an ingredient they all share—and reacts to sunlight, triggering a breakdown of airborne dirt into water-soluble particles that rain can wash away. There is a caveat, however: A 2013 Indiana University study published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society questions what happens if too many buildings shed too much nitrogen oxide, the byproduct of this self-cleaning process, which can lead to ozone pollution. While the verdict is still out, proponents, though, continue to hold up cost-savings on maintenance compared with more frequent power-washing or manual cleaning of large buildings using detergents in some urban settings.
View the slideshow for a quick sampling of recent developments.
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