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electrostatic discharge control coatings.
This is required in several cases, including for the coatings used at the facilities
for production of flammable substances.
This is also necessary in places, where
electronic, including computer equipment
is operating. Here, coatings with electrical conductivity properties is required,
because on the surfaces there could be
accumulated static and uncontrolled discharge voltage can reach hundreds and
thousands volts. At tens volts it could
affect equipment with no danger to the
man, but at bigger values, in case if it
discharges for some reason, this could be
dangerous for people,” Ivanov explained.
As a result, in such places coating
should have the property of charge dissipation, or deliver the charge to the
ground, Ivanov indicated, adding that in
different facilities there are different demands for this property of coating, basically of about 108 Ω/sq and the important
point is that use of single wall nanotubes
allow to set any desirable rate.
“There are a bunch of materials,
which are used today to give charge dissipation property for coatings, but we
believe that the use of nanotubes is the
most advanced way, because in this case
charge dissipation could be achieved at
hundredths per cent [of paint weight],
while any other materials require basically tenths of percent, which brings some
difficulties during manufacturing of materials,” Ivanov said.
Another use of nanotubes is associat-
ed with the charge dissipation at monitor
screens, so there would be less dust stick-
ing on the surface. According to Ivanov,
OCSiAl already accounts for several cli-
ents in China, who are introducing single
wall carbon nanotubes into conductive
coatings for monitor screens. There are
other materials materials available in the
market, which are used in a similar way,
but in each case clients have to face some
disadvantages, including price and insta-
bility of effect, Ivanov explained
Single wall nanotubes also might be
used for manufacturing of electrostatic
coating or e-coating, Ivanov said. In
this method paintwork materials are
initially projected towards a conductive
workpiece using electrostatic spraying
methods, and is then it is possible to
achieve efficiency of paintwork materi-
als consumption, thin and uniform lay-
ers of top-coats. This technology is used
in a wide range of industries, including
the automotive industry, where manu-
facturers put coatings on both metal and
plastic parts.
“This technology first of all involves
putting of a layer of electrostatic prim-
ers or pre-coating, so e-coating could be
put above that layer. Today, it is used
various conductive additives, which
have their own disadvantages, as car-
bon black is coloring primers’ work-
piece into black, while conductive mica
are affecting mechanical properties, be-
cause it share of the layer reaches 20-60
percent,” Ivanov said.
“As a result, putting a coating above
carbon black requires the use of higher
hiding power of top-coats, to make the
color right, while using mica is more
complicated and more expensive from a
technological point of view compared to
the use of nanotubes,” – he added.
OCSiAl sees strong potential in the
market of electrostatic coatings, but in
the future the company plans to target
other segments as well, including anti-
fouling coatings.
“This is the type of coatings, which is
used, for example, by vessels so seaweed
and shellfish do not stick. This is a com-
mon problem, especially for ships sailing
in warm waters, since it negatively af-
fects maneuverability and increasing fuel
spends,” Ivanov said, adding that some of
the materials, already in use to struggle
against this problem have been repeat-
edly criticized for being dangerous and
harmful to the environment.
“We saw some publications about potential use of multi-walled carbon nano-tunes as an agent, enhancing antifouling
properties, so now we need to conduct
some scientific work and understand the
potential of this segment. However, this
is also a very promising direction, as the
global market of antifouling coatings is
estimated at € 5-6 billion,” Ivanov said.
Expansion of sales drives
expansion of business
In additional to its core product
– TUBALL single wall carbon nanotubes,
the company has developed concentrates
and suspensions that simplify logistics is-
sues and soon will allow OCSiAl to mar-
ket its products worldwide. “We have a
network of partners worldwide. We are
supplying them with TUBALL single wall
carbon nanotubes. They in turn utilize
nanotubes and OCSiAl’s unique technol-
ogies for their introduction into materials
to manufacture and market nanotubes-
based modifiers,” Ivanov said. According
to him, OCSiAl now has partners in
Europe, Taiwan, South Korea and conti-
nental China.
Unique synthesis technology allows
OCSiAl currently to produce more than
four tons of single wall carbon nanotubes and dominate this market. As disclosed by Yuri Koropachinsky, OCSiAl
president, next year the company is going
to kick off the second reactor for nanotubes production that will synthesize 50
tons of nanotubes per year, bringing the
company’s share of global single wall
carbon nanotubes to 99.9 percent, which
will cover basic demand of manufacturers
for the materials of the next generation –
nanoaugmented materials.
Specifying the needs of the coatings
market, Ivanov estimated its volume at
2,000 tons of final production on niches,
where the company is focusing currently,
and expect it will grow nearly 50 percent
within the coming several years.
Being focused on research and development of single wall carbon nanotubes
applications in various industries, next
year OCSiAl is going to invest $5 million more in its research and production platform for developing industrial
technologies and for the engineering and
prototyping of nanomodified materials –
OCSiAl’s Prototyping Center. This facility should answer the crucial question: in
which others areas single wall nanotubes
could bring benefits to potential clients.
“Despite the breakthroughs already
achieved, I am confident that the real potential of single wall carbon nanotubes is
still ahead. And we will discover the new
applications and new markets of their
use,” predicted Eliyahu Florenthal, the
owner and the president of Florma, one
of OCSiAl’s partners.CW
