DETROIT - Nano Labs Corp. announced the development of a new self-cleaning paint that degrades pollutants through a proprietary nanoparticle compound and natural light.

The eco-friendly coating will help exterior surfaces maintain performance and appearance standards for much longer periods of time.

"Our new product is suitable for application on a wide variety of materials including metal, cement, bricks and wood, and may be used in anything from buildings, car parks and roads, to refineries and pipelines. Our new coating can significantly reduce maintenance requirements for companies and governments and increase the lifespan of these expensive capital infrastructure investments. The fact that the end result is a finish that will make them appear cleaner is a bonus, where the focus for most customers will be the reduction of the destructive effects of pollution, weathering and graffiti, which are expensive burdens over time," said Dr. Victor Castano, Chief Innovations Officer of Nano Labs.

Most self-cleaning coatings rely on either texturization or high surface energy. In the case of texturization, commonly referred to as "the Lotus Effect", pollutant particles are picked up by water droplets due to the nano or micrometric architecture of the surface, which minimizes adhesion. The second case is the use of high surface energy materials, like Teflon, to coat the surface. Generally speaking, both of these applications are expensive and hard to apply for large areas, for example, commercial use in large square-foot applications.

The novel approach captured by the team at Nano Labs is based on a unique nanoparticle compound proprietary to Nano Labs. "In our case, the situation is completely different," Castano explained. "Our material is neither a texturized or high surface energy solution. Instead, we leverage natural light and our proprietary nanoparticle system that allows any surface to literally keep itself clean from contaminants, dirt, dust, waste, fungus, or for that matter, graffiti or bird droppings."

The company has completed initial prototype testing and is preparing for submission of standardization and accreditation tests that are required prior to commercialization.

Established in October of 2012, Nano Labs Corp. is a nanotechnology research and development company with a team of scientists, designers and engineers. The company is focused on creating a portfolio of advanced products for consumer products, energy, materials and healthcare.