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Nanotechnology in Superyachts
As the super yacht industry moves in a more ecologically focused direction – as demonstrated by the revolutionary Callender Designs super green superyacht concept ‘Soliloquy’ - nanotechnology has a vital role to play in achieving these goals.
Nanotechnology has been described as the next major global growth engine by Merrill Lynch and it is a technology that is rapidly moving from laboratory to production – and into the ship yards.
Dermott Reilly, CEO of NanoLandGlobal sees the superyacht industry as a hot market.
NanoLandGlobal offers a range of nanotechnology products tailored to the superyacht industry, including surface treatments products that make yacht painted surfaces self-cleaning, windows resistant to sea salt deposits and easier to clean, and all surfaces dirt resistant. This means there will be few if any chemical cleaning agents spilt into marinas harming the ecology as such aggressive cleaning products are no longer needed. Importantly
NanoLandGlobal’s products also make surfaces more scratch resistant.
These products last between 1 and 3 years after application depending on environmental factors. Hulls stay brighter and windows easier to see out of. For the motor yacht sector, rain repellent treatments on the wheelhouse windows means improved navigation visibility in stormy weather.
Hull performance is also improved using surface coatings that reduce drag as well as barnacle and algae adhesion, driving up fuel economy.
NanoLandGlobal also have engine and gearbox treatments that reduce fuel consumption, noise and vibration. “These amazing products are not oil or fuel additives” explains Reilly “but the oil or fuel acts as a carrier for these flexible silicone treatments that adhere to metal surfaces inside the engine or gearbox under heat – thereby subsequently reducing abrasion. This in turn reduces fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by around 11%, and carbon particle emissions in diesel engines by over 60%.” 11% fuel saving is significant for even the wealthiest of owners.
The world’s merchant fleets are starting to use NanoLandGlobal technology in their gearboxes to reduce maintenance downtime and high repair costs – also highly beneficial to superyachts.
Nanotechnology used in flexible photovoltaic solar panel power systems are also evolving rapidly and are now available enabling better on-board power generation from the sun.
These new systems are sheets rather than panels – much more flexible to the curvature of the yacht superstructure and more efficient in energy capture. Nanotechnology anti-reflective treatments on solar panels drive up energy capture by an average of 4%.