Nanotechnology Implementation in the Automotive Sector: Big Opportunities in the Small
There's Plenty of Room at the Bottom."
This statement by the late physicist Richard Feynman 42 years ago started a revolution that has taken the industrial world by storm. Nanotechnology has given flight to visions both probable and hyped.
The potential of nanotechnology in the automotive industry remains largely untapped - only recently has this sector become receptive to nanotechnology concepts. The automotive industry is an avid user of technology, meaning that it has great potential for the implementation of nanotechnology solutions and products, but these are still mostly in the research and development stage.
What is Nanotechnology?
Nanotechnology is the engineering of materials on the scale of 1 nanometer (nm) to 100 nm, a nanometer being 1 billionth of a meter. At this level, the basic physical laws governing macro objects undergo a drastic change. A macro particle is a cluster of atoms arranged together in random order. The formation of the structure is left to nature, and control over the properties of the material is difficult. Nanotechnology, on the other hand, is a bottom-up approach where materials are created by placing individual atoms together. This decreases the randomness in the structural formation, enabling significant control over the properties of the material. Mechanical properties such as strength, ductility, and resilience can all be incorporated into one material.
Currently, nanotechnology is functioning as an enabling technology. It is being used to enhance the properties of existing materials. This is largely attributed to the fact that the technology has clearly not been understood and there is still much more to nanotechnology than meets the microscopic eye.
Nanotechnology Revenue
Nanotechnology has high revenue potential, with some estimates projecting revenues across all industries to reach $1 trillion by 2015. The automotive industry currently accounts for just over $1 billion, about 5 percent of the revenues generated from nanotechnology across all sectors. The tire sector currently account for over 95% of nanomaterials in the automotive industry, in the form or carbon black.
Nanotechnology is clearly in the infancy stage of its product life cycle, with positive returns on investments expected in the medium and long term. Frost & Sullivan projects nanotechnology revenues in the automotive industry to reach $6.5 billion in 2015. Upcoming applications are paints and coatings, and lightweight structures. These are expected to account for 43 percent and 26 percent of revenues in 2015, respectively.
Chart 1 presents Frost & Sullivan's projection for nanotechnology revenues generated in the automotive sector.
Potential Applications in the Automotive Sector
The nanotechnology concept was a part of the automotive industry even before the word "nanotechnology" was coined. Carbon black, a kind of nanomaterial, has been used by the tire industry since the early 1980s as an essential material in tire treads. The recent launch of nanotechnology-based paint in Mercedes vehicles has made the industry aware of the benefits of the technology, and what automakers stand to gain from its implementation. Nanotechnology-based paints are scratch proof and have better aesthetic appeal than conventional paints. Nanotechnology has potential applications in coatings and functional surfaces. Surfaces can be made to have characteristics such as the easy-cleaning property of the Lotus Effect. The Lotus Effect stems from the lotus itself, which has a surface that is naturally hydrophobic. Water droplets roll off the leaf's surface, leaving it practically dry. Moreover, water droplets carry dirt from the surface with them, making the surface self-cleaning. This effect arises because lotus leaves have a very fine surface structure and are coated with hydrophobic wax crystals of around 1 nm in diameter.
Nanotechnology has also made a foray into the area of fuel additives. Nanomaterials in fuel additives enable complete combustion, improving fuel economy and reducing harmful emissions such as carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons. Nanomaterials remain suspended in the fuel, enhancing their effectiveness. Conventional additives tend to sink to the bottom of the tank.
Nanomaterials can also be used as catalysts in catalytic converters. Used in conjunction with rare metals such as platinum, palladium and zirconium, nanomaterials reduce the quantity of rare metals needed. Excellent catalysts though these metals are, they are very expensive. Conventional catalysts have a working temperature of about 125 degrees centigrade (C), with virtually no effect before attaining this temperature. This especially is a concern in cold climates, where catalytic converters take longer to warm up. Nanomaterials, on the other hand, can operate at temperatures ranging from -4 degrees C to 500 degrees C, making them effective in all climates and weather conditions. A nanomaterial costs 679 times less than platinum, so the implementation of nanomaterials is a win-win situation for manufacturers and consumers both.
Nanomaterials also can be used for the catalysts and electrodes in fuel cells, making these devices more cost effective. Automotive fuel cells themselves are still in a very nascent stage, and nanotechnology in the automotive fuel cell sector is virtually non-existent. Major use of nanotechnology in fuel cells is expected only from 2008 on - currently, the focus primarily is on research and development.
At present, micro-electromechanical structures (MEMS) are used in a number of automotive sensors. The potential of nanotechnology in this sector remains virtually untapped because nanotechnology structures are expensive compared to conventional structures. The needs of the sensor market are fulfilled by conventional products, which are more cost effective. However, a change is foreseen in this predicament, with tire pressure monitoring legislation demanding better sensors than the ones used at present.
Light emitting diodes (LEDs) also can expect a revolution due to nanotechnology. Quantum dots are playing a vital role in this area, with their potential for a wider spectrum of light at relatively low cost. Quantum dots can help bring down the price of LEDs, and are likely to drive the LED light market for the automotive industry long term.
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