Michael Steiner, CEO Germany-headquartered nanoSaar AG is a leading provider of tailored sustainable nanotechnology solutions that give a competitive edge to a wide range of partners in the chemical industry. Apart from catering to the paints & coatings industry, nanoSaar offers nanoparticles to accelerate concrete casting, simplify decorative metallic coating processes, encapsulate biocides for many slow-release applications, and develop non-conductive but coloristic coating (for the electronics industry). It achieves this feat through a highly competent team that brings together a wealth of expertise in formulation from the fields of chemistry, chemical engineering, and nanotechnology.
From a technology standpoint, the key to nanoSaar’s ground-breaking nanotech solutions is its MicroJet Reactor (MJR). The simple, powerful, and patented reactor gives precise and superior quality nanoparticles by enabling chemical and physical syntheses to continuously produce nanoparticles, emulsions, and encapsulations.
NanoSaar’s MJR technology was developed with a vision to transform the manufacturing approach within the chemical industry from batch production to a sustainable, continuous process. Usually, a batch process involves mixing two or more reactants in a reactor vat, which is allowed to stabilise for a few hours before the whole procedure is repeated for the next batch. The downside of this approach is its reliance on expensive equipment to produce a fixed quantity in a highly time-intensive manner.
A continuous manufacturing process eliminates these drawbacks by having a high-volume production at lower costs, and nanoSaar employs the MJR to accomplish the same. MJR achieves cost-effective continuous flow production by injecting two high-speed jet streams of fluid into the reactor, leading to a highly turbulent method in which reactants are completely mixed in less than one millisecond. The process takes place in a small reactor with a volume of 8mm3 , which enables users to seamlessly implement MJR into their existing production line. MJR also accounts for the exothermic reactions caused during the high-speed mixing, allowing users to have complete control of their polymerization processes.
“MJR has the revolutionary capability to control particle size by changing pressure, temperature, or the amount of reactant from both inlets, making it much easier for manufacturers to leverage its capabilities at scale,” says Dr. Michael Steiner, CEO of nanoSaar.
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MJR has the revolutionary capability to control particle size by changing pressure, temperature, or the amount of reactant from both inlets, making it much easier for manufacturers to leverage its capabilities at scale
A classic example of nanoSaar’s client collaborations is a recent project it undertook with a paints and coatings company. Initially, the client struggled to choose the right additives from the industry’s 3000+ complex dispersion and wetting agents. nanoSaar helped simplify their formulation process by leveraging its “Barisol” solution that seamlessly overcame the hurdles and minimised usage of organic carbon based additives. With the development of this new dispersion additive, the client simplified their production and markedly reduced the use of volatile organic compounds (VOC), boosting sustainability. The overall raw material and production costs were also reduced by 50 percent depending on the application and pigment type. It even minimized the customer’s reliance on expensive binding agents.
With the introduction of the MJR technology, nanoSaar is solving many hurdles in the chemical industry. In the future, nanoSaar aims to expand the applicability of its MJR-driven formulations, delivering highly homogenous, scalable, and sustainable quality products at a low cost to markets beyond the chemical industry. In addition to the significant cost savings in electricity and material consumption, the carbon footprint is improved.
