Toronto, Ontario – Scientists from Purdue University have a gift to the world of automotive painters–a paint so white that objects coated in it appear as a solid shape, and thin enough to coat anything from Fords to spacecraft.
This paint was first developed in 2021 by Purdue University scientists as a counterpart to VantaBlack, Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s paint that absorbs almost all colour waves.
Simply put, VantaBlack is a paint that turns an object into a completely black mass, hiding edges and highlights so well that a VantaBlack painted towel would appear to unsuspecting viewers as a crumpled black heap.
While this white paint does not have a cool name yet, scientists say that it has practical uses beyond the gimmick of colour.
Given that the paint reflects an impressive 98.1 percent of all incoming light waves, it can be used almost as a form of natural air conditioning by reflecting the majority of sunlight if used as an automotive paint.
“This not only saves money, but it reduces energy usage, which in turn reduces greenhouse gas emissions,” said Xiulin Ruan, professor of mechanical engineering at Purdue University.
“Unlike other cooling methods, this paint radiates all the heat into deep space, which also directly cools down our planet. It’s pretty amazing that a paint can do all that.”
