Alcoa Develops Building Panel that Removes Smog from the Air

Published by: The Claw on 11th May 2011 | View all blogs by The Claw

Alcoa Develops Building Panel that Removes Smog from the Air

Alcoa Inc., the largest producer of aluminum in the U.S. says it has developed a panel for buildings that not only cleans itself, but can actually remove smog from the air around it. Using a proprietary process it developed in collaboration with Japan-based Toto, Alcoa says it turns fine grounds of titanium dioxide particles into a clear paste which it applies to the surface of aluminum. The titanium dioxide, Alcoa says, interacts with sunlight and breaks pollution down into carbon dioxide particles that are harmlessly washed away by rain.

The panel is currently undergoing final testing, and should be available for purchase by June, Alcoa said. The product could potentially dominate the aluminum construction market in Europe and North America, which amounts to about 2.5 billion square feet per year.

Titanium dioxide is a white pigment that is commonly used as the building block for most of the paint produced around the world. It helps bond paint to surfaces and is found in most paint used on automobiles. DuPont, Huntsman, and Tronox are among the world's largest producers of the chemical. Pittsburgh-based Alcoa, which declined to identify the source of its titanium oxide, is looking into how this technology could be applied to cars to help fight smog.

The Claw

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