Versatile applications

Heat absorption

S-Solar is a leader in advanced coating and thin film technology with over 30 years of experience. S-Solar’s  solar absorber products are present in several medium to large scale solar thermal installations, in the EU, Middle East, Latin America, China, and lately India.

S-Solar’s latest innovation, a Sol-gel based coating for solar absorption, broadens the area of usage from solar thermal application to advanced facades and roofs. By absorbing 97% of the visible and invisible UV light and converting it into heating energy, a sustainable and clean energy can be secured.

Sol-gel consists of three thin film layers, each only 100 nm thick, for absorption, anti reflection and a hardening layer to ensure long life and protection against corrosion and moisture.

The key advantages of the new generation of absorber coatings, Sol-gel:

  • Creates energy source and price independence
  • Attractive LCC
  • Green building standard compliance
  • Attractive to tenants and real estate owners
  • Contributes to an increase of property value
  • Zero emission and clean
  • Sol-gel for solar absorption can be delivered on both aluminum and steel
  • The extended moisture and heat resistance  allows use in multiple climate types
  • A competitive price/value to reduce cost of solar thermal systems
  • Optimized optical performance.Tests shows a 97% absorption of sunlight and only 5% emission.
  • Environmental friendly production process with no emissions. Normal recyclable solvents like methanol, ethanol, and  Isopropanol are used in the Sol-gel coating process.
  • Flexible processing of materials, molding, bending and coloring
  • Architectural flexibility and tailoring options
  • Allows temperatures up to 600 °C and supports high temperatur applications like solar power

 

 

Sol-gel can be applied in applications for hot water or air heating, preferably integrated into roofs or facades. It can also be used as façade panels to create warm facades or roofs to ensure continuously heated buildings or climate shell in cooler areas.

Solar thermal energy is available on each side of a building, on the roof and the facades, throughout the year:

 

Self cleaning surfaces

Self-cleaning surfaces can be used for architectural facades and roofs but also for commercial buildings like malls, sports arenas, logistical and storage or agricultural buildings.  Photo catalytic nano-coatings can also clean the air from pollutants. Self cleaning coatings can also be applied on solar absorption and reflective coatings to create an ideal combination of multipurpose coatings to protect the building.

Photo catalytic self cleaning surfaces use the energy in the sunlight to break down organic dirt and biomaterial to become water and CO2, and thereby avoid mould and binding dirt or dust. They have the ability to preserve surfaces in a condition close to the original and thereby minimizing the cost of maintenance. Self cleaning surfaces can be made to either attract or repel water; dirt absorbed on the surface is removed easily with water from rain. Not all dirt can easily be removed from the surface by water therefore more complex active photo catalytic materials are used to degrade more difficult pollutants.

 

 

Reflective surfaces

The accelerated energy consumption, increasing global temperature and requirements for air cooling and building protection, is driving the need for more energy efficient and durable coatings on buildings. To reduce the need for energy by creating climate shell based buildings. Cooling is as significant use of energy globally. Air-condition accounts for more than 15-20 % of the base energy used by buildings to preserve and maintain an expected temperature, at day and night. EU studies rresults indicate -40% cooling and +10% heating and an overall 30% energy reduction. Thermal comfort is improved in buildings without cooling.

Reflective coatings have optical properties that reflect a very broad spectrum of the visible and invisible sunlight as well as thermal emission. Reflective coatings can be used on both exterior and interior facades and roofs or ceilings. They also have the ability to reduce heat irradiation and thereby hinder fires to spread. The coatings are to minimize absorption and maximize emission of the visible and infrared solar power and thereby lower the temperature through solar and sky cooling.

Reflective coatings can be applied on various qualities of aluminum, steel or zinc plated steel, and can also be combined with self cleaning coatings to optimize functionality and performance. The coatings can be implemented on a large scale in various types of buildings and are massproducable.

  • Inorganic coated facades and roofs can make surfaces cooler and significantly reduce the surface temperature.
  • Heat reflective interior walls and ceilings. New energy efficient coating for interior applications. Cold-storages, ice skating rinks logistical and agricultural buildings. Reduce radiant heat transfer and improve interior comfort.
  • Oxidation barrier coatings.