Recent advances in nanotechnology-based functional coatings for the built environment

Abstract

Coating materials serve the purposes to protect, enhance and/or confer additional functionalities and properties to the underlying object surface or bulk materials. In recent years, nanotechnologies have been extensively incorporated into the functional coatings as manipulation of materials at the nanoscale can impart some unique chemical, mechanical, thermal, surface and photophysical properties that can be exploited to enhance functions required in urban built environments. In this review paper, recent research progresses of several categories of functional coatings were summarized with emphasis on their applications for green and smart buildings. These included hydrophobic coatings, hydrophilic and photocatalytic coatings, coatings for reduction in surface solar radiation as well as phase change materials (PCM) coatings. This review aims to provide a general introduction and research progress on these selected functional coating technologies, starting from the material's fabrication to its application when used in different building components.