HYDROPHOBIC POLYMER-BASED NANO-COATINGS FOR BUILDING APPLICATIONS

Abstract

Although nanotechnology was only first introduced in the 1980s, it is quickly becoming an enabling technology which has the potential to create leaps in the performance of its processes when applied in different areas. Currently, it is widely used in various fields such as aerospace, biomedical, cosmetics, transportation as well as building construction and materials. Incorporating nanotechnology into façade maintenance is now an option due to its self-cleaning mechanism. It is a way to enhance façade maintenance as well as to lower upkeep costs in the long run. By only considering the issue of maintainability at the end of a building’s construction stage, facility management personnel tend to face problems, especially in facade maintenance. Therefore, building professionals are becoming increasingly concerned about facade maintenance to be considered during the early design stage, instead of leaving it as an after-thought. In this study, 12 polymeric materials have been tested to find out their hydrophobic properties by measuring their WCA. Beside ranking and investigating the effectiveness of these hydrophobic polymer-based nano-coatings, the findings have also established that the type of functional group present in the chemical structure of each different material has an impact on the overall hydrophobic property attained. This study therefore seeks to create a database depository of the potential hydrophobic polymer-based nano-coatings, with the intent of providing an impetus for self-cleaning technology in Singapore.