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Content archived on 2023-03-20

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NANOFLOC - Project which will develop a technology for removal of engineered nanoparticles from wasteawater

The rapid introduction of nano-based products into the market has created a concern both for the potential health and environmental impact this will represent. One of the industries which use engineered nano particles (ENPs) in their products is the coating industry. During wet application of coatings, some of the ENPs from the coating application will end up in the waste water generated. The Nanofloc project will develop a novel electro agglomeration technology, for the coating industry, for removing nanoparticles entrained in water.

Nanoctechnology is expected to have a great impact on the automotive sector. Some examples of nano coating applications in the automotive sector include: - Corrosion protection coatings - Scratch-proof, transparent coatings - Dirt-repellent coatings - Photochromic and electro chromic window coatings - Water-repellent coatings and paintings - Antistatic transparent coatings - Wear- and thermal-resistant coatings By 2015, Frost & Sullivan expects at least 86% of the automotive paint products to incorporate some form of nanotechnology in their product portfolio. The reason for this penetration can be attributed to the fact that by 2016 vehicle manufacturers will be required by legislation to provide anti-scratch paints and coats in their vehicles to avoid the scratches that are commonly caused by keys and flying debris on roads . Nanofloc will develop and validate an integrated innovative system, based on destabilization of nano suspensions and agglomeration of charged ENPs in solution, using electric fields and flocculation in one step. The project will be undertaken by a collaboration of industrial partners and research & development partners. The project Nanofloc had a start date of January 1st, 2013 and will have a duration of 24 months. NANOFLOC has been funded by the funding scheme 'Research for the benefit of SMEs' within the EU 7th Framework Programme. Results from lab tests run in the project are showing promising result in regards to reduction of ENPs by the use of electro coagulation technology. Partners in the project are Westmatic AB (Sweden), ASIO spol s.r.o. (Czech Republic), Bamo Besures SAS (France), Melotec Kunststoffverabeitungs GmbH (Germany), Teknologisk Institutt (Norway), Franhofer-Gesellschaft Zur Foerderung Der Angewandten Forschung E.V. (Germany). For further information see www.nanofloc.org

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