Specialty chemicals company Nouryon (Amsterdam, The Netherlands) and nanotech start-up Forge Nano (Louisville, Colorado, USA) have teamed up on a project to develop an ultra-thin coatings technology known as atomic layer deposition (ALD). According to the two companies, ALD has potential, high-growth applications in batteries and catalysts, among other markets.
A key factor behind the partnership is their complimentary activities in the ultra-thin coatings industry: Forge Nano specializes in precision nano-coating technology, while Nouryon supplies metalorganic building blocks such as trimethylaluminum and diethylzinc.
“These building blocks enable ultra-thin coatings to be engineered and assembled one atomic layer at a time onto the surface of materials, enhancing their physical properties without affecting overall functionality, which opens up entirely new frontiers on material performance,” says Dr. Paul Lichty, founder and CEO of Forge Nano. “It is now possible to control coating surfaces at the sub-nanoscale level and produce them at a commercial scale.”
According to Steve Hunt, vice president of Nouryon’s business development department, the partnership will enable greater innovation in the development of products and technologies. “We are targeting multiple applications in catalysts, batteries and other markets through this agreement,” says Hunt. “By working closely with partners like Forge Nano, we can use our combined expertise to introduce new solutions to customers across a range of markets.”
Source: Nouryon, www.nouryon.com