Soon, Smart Paint to reduce air pollution across Dubai

Supplied photo

Soon, the Dubai Municipality will apply 'Smart Paint' across its public parks to reduce air pollution, an official has said. It has already painted 3,000 square metres in Al Mamzar Park's theatre area with the Smart Paint.
The Smart Paint is made of materials that absorb carbon dioxide from the air. It has contributed towards reducing air pollution by 20 per cent in some other countries.
Khawla Al Ali, principal landscape architect at the municipality's Public Parks and Horticulture Department, said in the first phase, the municipality has painted 3,000 square metres in Al Mamzar Park's theatre area. One square metre of the smart paint is equivalent to one tree in absorbing carbon dioxide.
"This means we just planted 3,000 trees when we coloured 3,000 square metres of Al Mamzar Park with the smart paint," said Al Ali.
The municipality later aims to invite international artists to colour Dubai's public parks, bridges and tunnels with different colours of smart paint. The initiative will beautify the city, while contributing towards enhancing air quality and preserving public health.
"The smart paint will be introduced in crowded areas across Dubai to help reduce the carbon emissions of vehicles."
Al Ali added: "As Dubai is becoming an international city, its population will grow, and therefore, more vehicles will be on the streets, which will contribute to air pollution."
Al Ali had presented the idea of the smart paint to Mohammed Bin Rashid Smart Majlis, before the Dubai Municipality adopts the innovative idea to be implemented in several areas across the city.
She said that one of the challenges that she faced was finding local suppliers of the paint, which led to importing it from the manufacturing company in the Philippines.
The paint works with CristalACTiV photocatalytic technology where its titanium dioxide (TiO2) transforms water vapour into hydroxyl and peroxyl free radicals at the surface.
These free radicals break down nitrogen oxides (NOx) coming from emission of vehicles once it comes into contact with the paint's surface.
The harmful NOx is then converted to nitric acid that is rapidly neutralised by alkaline calcium carbonate particle in the paint.
Al Ali said the paint's efficiency is infinite, with maintenance often required to renew its color.
The paint is currently used in the busiest streets in the Philippines where air pollution decreased by 20 per cent. Mexico, Japan and France also used smart paint to decorate some of the busy areas.

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