Heat-resistant paints | Business | Nippon Paint Industrial Coatings

Business

Solar heat reflective paints

Demand for solar heat reflective paints has recently grown as environmentally friendly paints. As part of measures used to counter the urban heat island problem, our solar heat reflective pavement helps create comfortable urban environments.

Business overview

What is solar heat reflective pavement?

Infrared rays account for approximately 50% of solar energy. Solar heat reflective paints applied to a road surface reflect infrared rays, reducing the heat absorbed by, and the temperature of, the surface.
Generally, an asphalt pavement absorbs solar thermal energy during daytime hours and releases it as radiant heat at night. This mechanism causes the heat island problem. Solar heat reflective pavement is used as a method to reduce the amount of absorbed thermal energy. Tokyo is the city adopted this method the most, which in 2016, reached approximately 170,000 m2, of which Nippon Paint Industrial Coatings was involved in approximately 150,000 m2. Single-component water base paints are usable for parks and pools. Almost odorless urea paints are abrasion-resistant and usable even on heavy traffic roads such as those managed by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. Our solar heat reflective paints can be applied widely from public facilities to streets in general residential areas.

Our strengths

・Potential road surface temperature reduction effects* of 11℃ to 14℃ during daytime hours in summer
(* Dependent on road surface environment)
・Additional functions such as skid resistance, abrasion resistance, and odorlessness
・Environmentally conscious paints that use no solvents and release no VOCs

Additional functions are also provided with stable quality as well as the solar heat reflective function, as proved by our track records.
Two paint types are available for different surface conditions and road uses to ensure optimal pavement construction.

Project story

Opportunity gained by foresight: The path to use for official marathon courses

When the market for solar heat reflective paints for roads began booming, MMA paints advertising their quick-drying property were the mainstream. However, believing the odor and safety of MMA paints to be questionable, Nippon Paint Industrial Coatings selected to develop and promote urea paints, a completely different paint type. In 2008, with the Tokyo Metropolitan Government successively adopting solar heat reflective paving for roads that it managed, MMA paints’ odor issue surfaced. Consequently, our low-odor urea paints quickly became widely adopted. Moreover, in 2012, the problem of flaking of heat-resistant pavements occurred.

The results of inspections conducted by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government revealed that urea paints provided by Nippon Paint Industrial Coatings experienced little flaking, while MMA paints flaked heavily. Subsequently, the Company’s ATTSU-9 ROAD (U) got an overwhelming market share. In addition to this momentum, in 2015, to use solar heat reflective pavement for official marathon courses was decided, we began sales promotion activities confidently armed with its market share and high quality.
On August 31 the next year, ATTSU-9 ROAD pavement was tested on Aoyama Street and was well received by the participating athletes and others involved.
Nippon Paint Industrial Coatings pursued quality simply for the purpose of fulfilling a need of society. Its choice here allowed us itself to gain an opportunity to show our technology to the world.