Scientists at Laval University in Canada have successfully developed a new type of glass waterproof mist coating material, the coating will not have any effect on the optical properties of the glass. They believe that the material can eventually solve the waterproof fog problem of automotive glass, spectacle lenses, and optical lenses. Related articles were published in the latest online edition of Applied Materials and Interface magazine.

According to the research team leader Professor La Roche, the new coating material is made of polyvinyl alcohol-based water-absorbing material and has the property of preventing the formation of water mist on the surface that obscures the glass and plastic. This ultra-thin coating material can remain on the glass surface for a long time, and can completely remove the water on the glass surface without forming any minute water droplets on the glass surface.

The researchers said that the difficulty of this technology is how to make the coating material and the glass surface can be combined together for a long time. They first applied a layer of special molecular material to the glass surface as a base layer. The base layer showed a strong viscosity. Then, they apply the anti-fog material to it.

Researchers claim that currently available anti-fog coatings are incapable of cleaning, so they need to be reapplied frequently, and the new coating technology only needs to be applied once. Professor La Roche said that they are discussing the patent transfer issue of this new anti-fog coating technology with a large eyewear manufacturer.