Martin Banks | November 5, 2021 November 5, 2021 Tech

Paints and other coatings are things that you don't often think about but will significantly affect your daily life. These finishes not only add color to everyday objects, but also provide protection, cooling, grip, or other characteristics. New technologies are taking these functions to a new level.

Here are the seven most exciting innovations in paint and coating technology.

Today, smart technology surrounds us, from TVs to garage door openers. Now, you can even turn walls into smart devices with the help of conductive paint. Researchers have recently developed a paint that can turn any wall into a touch screen, bringing a whole new meaning to the term "smart home".

This paint contains a conductive nickel grid that can form electrodes on the wall. The wall can then act as a touch screen and electromagnetic sensor, tracking your location, detecting objects, and responding to gesture commands. When this technology is available, you can control all smart devices from the wall.

Nanotechnology that handles materials smaller than 100 nanometers has important implications for paint and coating technology. One of the most interesting examples is self-cleaning paint. By adding nano-scale titanium dioxide to the paint, the company can produce finishes that rarely require cleaning.

These tiny particles give the paint new properties and can react to light to repel or hold water droplets. In this way, they reduce the friction on the surface, allowing dirt to slide off easily or repel anything that will stain it. Imagine a car that never gets dirty or a wall that can retain its original color for many years.

Paint is not the only paint that has seen some impressive technological improvements recently. Some car owners have begun to choose vinyl wrap instead of paint. Wraps are easier to apply and repair, and some can even repair themselves, so repairing is not a problem.

How does this self-repair process work? When these wrappers encounter scratches or the like, they will rearrange instead of being damaged. Heating makes them malleable again, allowing them to return to their original, scratch-free form. Although these coatings cannot prevent serious damage, they can protect your car from bites and scratches.

Some nanotechnologies make paints resistant to stains, while others make them resistant to potentially dangerous microorganisms. Researchers have found that adding silver nanoparticles to paint can kill microorganisms that come into contact with them, keep the surface sterile, and eliminate the need for frequent disinfection. Naturally, the medical industry has captured this advancement, but it can also help elsewhere.

For example, restaurants can use these antibacterial coatings on their kitchen equipment and dining surfaces. This can help stop disease outbreaks and protect their employees and customers. After seeing how fast COVID-19 is spreading in such an environment, this potential is hard to ignore.

When you think of car paint, you might think of the outside. However, due to the latest advances in pain technology, you can also coat the interior of the car, which helps repair and protect the interior. Using interior paint, you can change the appearance of the seat without expensive redecorating or leather repairs.

This concept has been around for some time, but new technologies have greatly improved it. For example, polyurethane-based solvents make these coatings flexible without cracking or peeling, while drying quickly and lasting for several years. In the past, you had to choose between quick-drying or possibly cracked finishes, but now you can have both.

Some new coating technologies can even help you become more environmentally friendly. Solar paint contains tiny photosensitive particles that can absorb sunlight and convert it into energy. It requires some wiring to capture this energy, but most installations are as simple as painting a wall.

Using solar paint, you can turn a roof or wall into a huge solar panel. Although this technology is not as efficient as traditional solar panels, it can support them to generate as much clean energy as possible. In this way, the world can more easily transition to a greener future.

Although it sounds like something of the future, spray antennas are now a reality thanks to new paint technology. Researchers have developed a spray paint that can transmit radio waves as efficiently as a wireless router or mobile device. This innovation can help extend the Internet of Things (IoT) to new heights.

The spray antenna can easily establish a wireless network almost anywhere at the lowest cost. Smart cities, which can later realize true self-driving cars, may eventually become a reality. This technology is still in its early stages, but its potential is huge.

When you think of exciting new technologies, you may not think of paint. No matter how ordinary it seems, this field has been the birthplace of many revolutionary technological advancements in the past few years. As researchers hone these technologies, the potential of high-tech coatings will grow further.

Technological innovation is all around us, and even the most mundane things can be changed. Even something as simple as paint can be a tool for scientific progress. In the future, watching paint dry may not mean what it is today.

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