ANTIMICROBIAL POLYUREA
Polyurea Coatings for Protection Against Disease-Causing Pathogens
POLYUREA PATHOGEN
PROTECTION
In general, there are two main ways we’re infected by pathogens: inhalation and direct contact; but after a global pandemic, we’re sure this isn’t news to anyone. News or not, they represent two distinct types of disease transmission, and in fact, two markedly different categories of illnesses. However, in either case, they’re caused by effectively invisible microorganisms that need only a way to enter the body in order to keep kids home from school and parents out of work, or worse, to send you or your family to the hospital with more serious, even life-threatening conditions. The point is, as we’ve learned the hard way, pathogens are no joke, and it’s critical to do everything we can to prevent and prepare for the next pandemic, and stay safe from the many other pathogens that persist in the world today.
To this end, the cleanliness of different surfaces is now front of mind for billions of people worldwide, more aware than ever before of the potential risks that may loom on any given surface. To this end, innovative technologies can be used to help create and maintain safer surfaces, namely including antimicrobial coatings. Made from advanced materials technology like ArmorThane’s polyurea with antimicrobial additives, antimicrobial coatings imbue antimicrobial properties to almost any surface, killing bacteria, fungi, and even many viruses before they’re able to infect a host. But how do they do this? Where can they be used? And what are the best antimicrobial coatings for your needs? We’ll answer each of these questions and more, so you can make an informed decision about integrating antimicrobial polyurea into your home, workplace, or public space.
WHAT EXACTLY ARE ANTIMICROBIAL COATINGS?
The term “antimicrobial” can prepare you for confusion when trying to understand what antimicrobial coatings are and how they’re used; but we promise, it’s not just scientific jargon, and it’s easier to understand than you think! As their name suggests, microbes are microscopic (typically millionths
of a meter or less!) organisms that exist everywhere all around us. Some of these microbes are called pathogens, which are disease-causing microorganisms responsible for everything from malaria to Covid-19. It’s this type of microbe that antimicrobial coatings aim to protect from, as direct contact transmission often takes the form of an individual touching a pathogen-contaminated object in their environment, whether it’s their bathroom sink, office chair, ATM, or any other of the million and one surfaces we each interact with on a daily basis.
The way they do this, however, varies from technology to technology; but irrespective of the specific technology and underlying mechanism of operation, each functions to prevent the growth of bacteria, mold, and mildew on treated surfaces, keeping them safe from becoming a node in the transmission process. Applied in sensitive environments like hospitals or nursing homes where pathogens have to be carefully mitigated, antimicrobial coatings can be a lifesaver. Moreover, applied at scale, antimicrobial coatings can play a key part of managing the threat of pathogens, which is more important than ever before in a post-pandemic world, and one where antimicrobial resistance remains a looming threat.
The way they do this, however, varies from technology to technology; but irrespective of the specific technology and underlying mechanism of operation, each functions to prevent the growth of bacteria, mold, and mildew on treated surfaces, keeping them safe from becoming a node in the transmission process. Applied in sensitive environments like hospitals or nursing homes where pathogens have to be carefully mitigated, antimicrobial coatings can be a lifesaver. Moreover, applied at scale, antimicrobial coatings can play a key part of managing the threat of pathogens, which is more important than ever before in a post-pandemic world, and one where antimicrobial resistance remains a looming threat.
ARMORTHANE’S POLYUREA ANTIMICROBIAL COATINGS
ArmorThane’s antimicrobial coatings are made of the same powerful materials technology that make up some of our most innovative coatings products: polyurea. Polyurea is a type of spray elastomer technology, meaning that precursor materials are precisely ejected from high-pressure spray equipment, reacting together on the surface of a substrate to produce a high-quality polymer coating. However, for our suite of antimicrobial solutions, we’ve enhanced our polyurea formulations with antimicrobial additives like silver ions (Ag+), combining everything our customers know and love about our polyurea protective coatings, with high-efficacy antimicrobial properties. In fact, our testing has shown that our antimicrobial polyurea reduces the growth of acutely hazardous bacteria like Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Escherichia coli (E. coli) by up to 99.99% for two hours. And no, we know what you’re thinking, there’s no need to recoat – ever! Decades of operation, countless wash cycles, and our coatings will remain ready to defend against biological, chemical, and mechanical stress just the same!
APPLICATIONS OF ANTIMICROBIAL POLYUREA
There are few, if any, environments where antimicrobial properties aren’t a considerable value-add, and can be used just about anywhere to create safer spaces. Additionally, made of strong and flexible polyurea, there’s no need to worry about whether or not these antimicrobial coatings can withstand their operating environment; polyurea is engineered for practically any context, and is versatile enough for application on almost any substrate. Here are just a few of the exciting applications of antimicrobial polyurea:
VEHICLES
Motor vehicles may not be what first comes to mind when you think about pathogens, but let’s not forget, for many vehicles hygiene is nothing short of essential. Ambulances, mobile cleaning units, delivery vehicles and more all must remain spick-and-span in order to safely fulfill their roles.
GYMS
Unless you’re willing to spend the time and money to construct your own at-home gym, a workout at your local gym means unavoidable exposure to whatever’s been left on the bars, handles, grips, faucets, benches, and so on. Gym equipment and facility infrastructure can be protected with antimicrobial polyurea to keep gyms a place for heath, not transmission!
STADIUMS AND ARENAS
Stadiums and arenas can typify the concept of The Tragedy of the Commons. There’s a lot of people, with a lot going on, driving many of us to behave with reckless abandon. Spills, drops, breaks, and much worse, are more common than almost anywhere else, and sparsely get reported or even noticed until the cleaning crews come in later on. Antimicrobial polyurea can keep these hectic and enormous public spaces safer for everyone, even those back home.
RESTAURANTS
Hopefully the utility of applying antimicrobial coatings in restaurants is clear; nothing’s worse than worrying about the cleanliness of your meal, except for finding out later that it was indeed unclean. Antimicrobial coatings like ArmorThane’s antimicrobial polyurea can help keep restaurants up to snuff and with an A+ health and safety rating.
PARKS AND PLAYGROUNDS
Let’s call a spade a spade: kids are ground zero when it comes to germs and bacteria. Parks, playgrounds, and countless other private and public spaces beloved by our children can easily become sites for superspreader events, but can be protected with antimicrobial polyurea. Slides, water fountains, benches, and almost any other surface common to our parks and playgrounds can be swiftly coated for a safer ever after.
OFFICES
From the perspective of infection, offices are nothing more than the adult playground. Hours and hours spent in the same space, with people interacting with countless others outside those present on-site; it’s all but guaranteed to be the perfect breeding ground for a winter cold. Offices can be coated inside and out with antimicrobial bacteria to remove work from the list of places you have to be worried about catching something new.
HOME
That’s right, you can even use antimicrobial coatings in the home! Whether you or someone in your family is immunocompromised and needs to take every precaution they can, or simply hate the idea of unhygienic surfaces, antimicrobial polyurea can be applied to a range of structures, often with additional benefits like structural reinforcement, soundproofing, or corrosion resistance.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
With many different ways to prevent microbial growth, there are similarly many types of antimicrobial coatings. One powerful and multifunctional example is polyurea, a protective coating used extensively across various private, commercial, and industrial applications. By incorporating additives like silver ions, robust surface protection becomes paired with antimicrobial properties.
Normally, polyurea has only moderate antimicrobial properties without further formulation modifications. However, by incorporating silver ions into polyurea coatings, they become highly-effective antimicrobial surfaces, while still retaining all the strength, flexibility, and resistance that see their extensive use outside the scope of biohazard mitigation.
Polyurea is far more environmentally friendly than many alternatives like epoxy. Polyurea is made of 100% solids, with no solvents or volatile organic chemicals (VOCs), whereas many other coatings can include highly carcinogenic materials with serious environmental externalities. In fact, polyurea is often chosen for its improved health and safety profile, both to humans and the environment.
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STRONGER, SAFER, CLEANER SURFACES.
As we’ve seen, antimicrobial coatings can be widely employed for countless different applications and in myriad environments. So whether you own a gym or restaurant, manage an office building or stadium, or teach the next generation, antimicrobial coatings are a powerful way to create safer environments, with no better partner than ArmorThane to help you make the most of them. We’ve been in the business for over 35 years, and welcome any challenge, anywhere, anytime – there’s no stumping the industry’s one-stop shop for everything polyurea and polyurethane. Discover why antimicrobial coatings are right for your project, and learn more about how ArmorThane can be your partner for high-quality installations, cost-effective solutions, and a lifetime partnership.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
TYLER GLECKLER
I am a chemist with a specialization in nanotechnology and applied materials chemistry. My work has focused on the characterization of optoelectronic materials, namely including semiconductor nanocrystals.
