A new nanotechnology developed in connection with the SmartCoating project can make the production of modern windows smart, cheap and sustainable.
Although technologies for thermal glass have been developed a lot in recent years, there is still a lot to be gained by creating "intelligent windows". The challenge lies, among other things, in finding methods so that the industry can use materials that are available in sufficient quantities. One of the most important properties of window glass is, of course, that it is transparent - most of the time. But modern windows must not only be transparent, they must also be insulated and both be able to retain heat and emit it at the times you want it. This places special demands on the coating that is applied to the glass itself, and therefore research into this is continuing.
Conserves the world's resources In collaboration with Velux and the company Polyteknik and with support from the Innovation Fund, Eugen Stamate from DTU Nanolab has invented, developed and tested a new method that can make the production of window glass, LCD screens and glass for solar cells much more sustainable.
Today, the light metal indium is used, which is partly expensive and partly difficult to obtain. It is mainly manufactured in China and is used in increasing quantities in TV and computer screens worldwide.
"The materials used today are very expensive and are only found in very limited quantities on the planet. We have therefore been looking for alternatives, but it is not that simple, ”explains Eugen Stamate and continues:“ We have been challenged by physics because oxides of zinc and aluminum, which we want to use to coat the glass with, has some completely different properties than oxides of indium and tin. In short it is about reducing the energy of negative ions during the coating process.
Brand new method
So far, no one has solved this problem with the existing methods, but Eugen Stamate, an expert in plasma nanostructures, has now shown the way.
The project has produced new knowledge, a new method has been found, which Eugen Stamate has applied for a patent for - but it is still not quite finished.
“We have invented a new method to prevent the negative effect of these energetic oxygen ions. But since it's being patented, that’s all I can say for now.
“There have been a lot of bumps along the way, and towards the end we have also been challenged by corona and lack of access to the laboratory, but we are very close. What we need now is to ensure that it can be used industrially - at DTU we testing it in a setup compatible with large area glass coating” explains Eugen Stamate.