Self-Cleaning Glass

Chris writes "Consumers across Europe can now purchase self-cleaning glass that promises to keep windows free from dirt. The key to Activ glass is an ultra-thin coating only 40nm thick applied to the glass surface during the manufacturing process. The coating, which is based on titanium dioxide, works by combining the two beneficial effects. First, the ultraviolet wavelengths in sunlight react with a photocatalyst to break down organic debris on the glass. The second feature is that the coating is hydrophilic, meaning that when rain hits the glass, it doesn't form droplets. Rain water flows down the glass in a sheet and washes the dirt away."

Look out Turtle Wax!

[BadElf]

If this stuff works like they say, it would be a great finish coat for cars. Instead of b*tching about it raining right after you give your ride a bath, the rain would *be* the bath! And with much of the country under drought conditions, think of all the water that could be conserved by eliminating the need to wash cars.

self cleaning...Solar cells!

[charlie763]

Sounds like this would be good for Mars rovers and the like. One of the problems that we have with rovers is that the glass on the photo cells get dirty and degrades the power output of the cells. I know that it doesnt rain on Mars, but this glass and some wind might prevent the degredation from reaching beyond some critical value.

Re:self cleaning...Solar cells!

[Ford Fulkerson]

Yeah, if the mars rover would be covered with organic debris. I think that would be bigger news than self cleaning glass though.

Re:self cleaning...Solar cells!

[Dr. Spork]

Actually, this makes more sense for solar cells here on earth. People think that power generation with solar cells is free after you set them up, because they have no moving parts, etc. Actually though, it turns out that the most important reason why solar power is expensive in the long run is because somebody needs to periodically clean the damn solar cells. You might not think this is a big deal but when you consider the surface area of solar cells you would need to generate enough electricity to power a city, it really does become daunting.

With this coating, maybe we could just plug 'em in and leave 'em alone. Well, that would be awesome--though I still think it wouldn't solve all the problems, and that the best way to go solar is to build collectors in space.

Implications for Windshields and Radar Detectors

[j-turkey]

Is this slated for use in car windshields? If so, I wonder how this will affect the detection range of radar detectors.

A few years ago, there was a study of cars with windshields that use certain tinting and weatherproofing that (incadently) reduces the efficency of radar detectors, cutting detection range from 60-80%. There's some info on it here [valentine1.com], and a bit more info here [valentine1.com].

--Turkey