Consisting of barium sulphate, the world’s whitest paint was revealed this week by academic researchers. Reflecting up to 98% of sunlight, this new type of paint outperforms current consumer paints by 10-20%. But, how important is that light reflection, and what can it be used for?
White roofs have been used for centuries in order to cool buildings, and can still be seen today. Additionally, Professor Xiulin Ruan from Purdue University says that the paint can help with cooling the earth. By reflecting sunlight back into space, it effectively removes that energy from the earth, cooling it.
For more information about the potentially revolutionary paint, see this article by The Guardian.
