By Anantha Krishnan M
Express News Service
Bangalore: A facility to aid advance research in nano-materials will be opened in Bangalore on June 1, scripting a new chapter in surface modification technologies in the areas of aerospace, energy, societal and engineering sectors. Samir K Brahmachari, Director General, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) will inaugurate the facility at the National Aerospace Limited (NAL) premises. The new facility would integrate under one roof all the ongoing nanotechnology-related activities of NAL.
Sources tell Express that the Surface Engineering Division (SED) of NAL has been developing economically-viable technologies over the years. “Nano technology has made huge inroads in aerospace sector and NAL has been exploring the possibilities over the years. We have already developed and demonstrated some technologies in the area of solar selective coatings for domestic water heating and steam generation. Some of the highly polishable nanocrystalline coatings for passive radiative coolers have already been used on various satellite missions by ISRO,” sources said.
An efficient coating technology called NALSUN, meant for solar thermal applications, has been already transferred to 28 entrepreneurs. “The nanostructured materials and coatings have become a broad and multidisciplinary field of research with emerging applications. Some of the frontier areas of research at CSIR-NAL so far has been self-cleaning coatings, super-hard and super-tough coatings, nanocrystalline metal and composite thin films, nano-dimensional magnetic thin films, corrosion protection coatings, coatings for bio-medical applications, solar selective coatings, sol-gel hybrid coatings, cloud seeding materials and nanopowders for engineering applications,” NAL sources said.
CSIR-NAL has also demonstrated a new wear-resistant composite coating for trochoid of a Wankel engine. “We have successfully flight-tested the coating on an indigenous 55 HP rotary engine of the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) Nishant. The results were encouraging and we now foresee the use of this nano-coating on the engines of light-weight aircraft, micro-UAV and automobiles,” sources said.
CSIR-NAL has set its eye on developing nanowires and nanodots using anodic alumina template (AAO). “This is a very cost-effective way to grow nano-dimensional materials, which can be used for sensing gas, optical switching, biomedical sensor and storage devices,” sources said.
Copyright@The New Indian Express
