Nissan Showcases New Glow in the Dark Car Paint

Nissan has just announced its latest innovation; which is biologically engineered paint that holds a charge from UV rays allowing it to glow in the dark for 8-10 hours after sunset.

Seeing themselves as somewhat of a pioneering firm Nissan teamed up with inventor Hamish Scott the creator of STARPATH (the active ingredient in this new paint). This has allowed Nissan to produce the first organic glow in the dark paint on the market. Other companies have used inorganic paints or plastic wraps to achieve a glow in the dark effect in the past. However as Nissan is becoming a flagship brand for environmentally friendly driving it wanted to keep things as natural as possible with this development.

The key ingredient according to Nissan is ‘Strontium Aluminate‘ an organically forming compound which is solid, odourless and chemically/biologically inert (meaning it is stable and is unreactive under normal conditions).

The good thing about this new paint application is that it glows at a level which increases the car’s visibility, but isn’t distracting to other drivers. Something which is a clear concern to drivers when considering such a choice of paintwork as a glaring level of light would put both them and other motorists at risk.

Part of the reason for the announcement of this development is to show how easy it can be to drive in an environmentally friendly manner. With 89% of Nissan Leaf owners charging their car at home overnight, the power of solar energy could make an even bigger saving to transport costs than using grid electricity alone. Nissan quotes LEAF owner Ian Finch who already combines solar energy with home charging to have the lowest energy costs possible, he says “Overall, we are probably using 25% less electricity thanks to our solar panels and it’s a fantastic experience to be able to drive the LEAF using electricity that’s been produced completely for free.”

The glow in the dark paint is not currently commercially available, so customers can’t just yet order it from a dealer or lease broker. However if enough interest is generated it’s fair to say that Nissan would be quite likely to launch it to the public. This isn’t just a short-term gimmick product either, when applied the paint would hold a solar charge in the form of light for up to 25 years after application!

For more information see the official Nissan press release.