Nanotechnology

There are several technologies that had their time changing our World. Block printing, steam power, electricity, telephone, radio, television, transistor, microchip, Internet. After each of these inventions it is hard to imagine world without one. So what is / will be the most important technology introduced in the first decade of the third millennium? Probably nanotechnology. But what exactly is nanotechnology? Many think it is another brave new way to manufacture tiny electronic parts. It may be that, but the nanotechnology is something much broader and you may be surprised what end products we get... Nanotechnology is about constructing materials by controlling their shapes at the nanoscale. Basically a process of creating structures by controlling the position of every atom within that structure, to achieve the desired end result.

Take trousers for example. What would you expect from new generation of trousers AD 2006? Would you like them to be wrinkle-free straight from a dryer? Or may be you want them to be stain resistant? Breathable? And the color to last for years? Here they are. Made of Nano-Tex, they are really wrinkle free and resist spills.

Skin care. OK, I'm not and expert in this area, but L'Oreal RevitaLift is a nanotechnology product. It uses a patented 200-nanometre nanotechnology process to incorporate vitamin A inside a polymer “capsule” The capsule acts like a sponge soaking up and holding the cream inside until the outer shell dissolve under your skin. According to L’Oreal women surveyed who used the RevitaLift technology, 80% reported anti-wrinkle effectiveness, and 75% said that the product was effective in firming the skin.

Playing golf? May be you should try the Maruman New Majesty driver? Compared to conventional titanium, the new driver resists bending 12% better, has a hardness of Hv372, a 3.6% increase over titanium’s 359, and has a 20% more resilient head (based on robot testing), and flight distance has increased 15 yards (compared to their old 360cc class driver.) Since it was released, they have been overwhelmed with orders, to the point where the Maruman homepage (http://www.maruman.co.jp/) displayed an apology from the company for the two-week delay for shipments of the driver.

And if you are about to build a new house, you may try the BASF Mincor (TM), a new product that makes surfaces water repellent. By creating nanostructures, Mincor (TM) makes surfaces self-cleaning and allows them to stay cleaner for longer, with application areas in the construction, textile and automotive industries.

Are you surprised? May be a little. But things will get really exciting once nanotechnology makes its way into even more areas of our everyday life. Just think the material you want and what properties it should have. With nanotechnology you'll get it.