Oleophobic Nano-Coating Technology

Our patented oleophobic nano-coating treatments improve performance of virtually any product via easy-to-apply nanoscale oleophobic coatings & treatments that can bond with a wide array of surfaces. Together we create winning oleophobic products!

Oleophobic Nanocoating & Treatments - Surface Modification Coating

Oil repellent. Solvent Repellent. Long Lasting Performance.

Aculon® has a variety of surface coating technologies capable of functionalizing numerous substrate types to be oleophobic (oil repelling). Aculon’s® oleophobic nano-coatings and treatments are highly repellent to oil, solvent, grease, & adhesives/resins offering numerous performance benefits. All Aculon oleophobic nano-coatings & treatments have the added benefit of also being hydrophobic! In addition these nano-coatings are ultra thin (nanoscale), optically clear and quite durable. There are numerous performance advantages to having an oleophobic surface on countless applications. Want to learn more? Reach out to us at +1-858-350-9499 or contact us here to see how we can help!

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Does your product need an oleophobic nano-coating?

Oleophobic surface coating technologies can be used to address a wide variety of problems. Some examples below where an oleophobic coating will help improve the performance of your surface. Reach out to us at +1-858-350-9499 or contact us here to see how we can help!

  • You're experiencing problems due to liquid behavior on the surface of your product.
  • Cleaning your surface is time consuming, expensive, or impossible.
  • Physical barrier to prevent oil or solvent liquid flow is not possible
  • Adhesive materials stick to surface
  • Oil or other liquid droplets/contamination impede optical performance.
  • Surface contamination (fingerprints) degrades a products aesthetic behavior
  • Wettability of a surface or powder is not ideal
  • Surface is not lubricious enough

Real World Applications

Countless electronics applications benefit from having a oleophobic functionalized surfaces. A broad range of technologies at our disposal means we can tackle most any electronics repellency challenge.
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Oil Equipment with repellent surface modification coatings

Numerous oil & gas applications benefit from oleophobic functional nano-coatings & treatments. Applications include down well treatments for enhanced oil recovery and treatment of industrial equipment for anti fouling and reduced cleaning.
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There are countless applications in numerous industries that can benefit from an oleophobic surface. Chances are if you have an application which can benefit from a oleophobic nano-coating, we have looked at it before and can help.
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Medical device catheter utilizing hydrophilic surface modification nanotechnology

Aculon® oleophobic surface coating technologies can be utilized for numerous medical applications, enabling unique performance, process simplification and excellent value across a broad range of medical surfaces and applications.
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How it Works

Surfaces

Aculon® has a wide variety of coating technologies at our disposal meaning that we can treat nearly any surface or substrate. This includes, but is not limited to metals, polymers, semiconductors, ceramics, and glass. The type of substrate will impact the coating technology options which can be utilized in addition to cleaning or other processing steps that may be required. In general due to the presence of a surface oxide layer we find the highest likelihood of success with metals, ceramics, glass, and semiconductors.

Substrates suitable for surface modification - plastic, metal, glass, and circuit boards
Hydrophobic technology performance - water repellency example

Oleophobic Performance

Our oleophobic coating technologies will yield a robust a long lasting oleophobic surface. Typical oil contact angles (measurement of surface energy) are in the 75°-85° range. In addition all of our oleophobic surface treatments have the added benefit of also being hydrophobic. These treatments are nanoscale, as thin as 2-4 nm thin leaving your part visually unchanged and optically clear. A self assembling process ensures a uniform and even treatment every time!

Technology - Oleophobic Coating Platforms

Aculon’s® core coating technology is based around the SAMP or "Self Assembled Monolayer of Phosphonates" which is comprised of a phosphonic acid and a repellent carbon based molecule which can impart a durable oleophobic surface on oxide containing substrates. Other oleophobic coating options in our suite of coating technologies for modifying surfaces to be oleophobic are organometallic, transition metal complex, & surface growth polymer coatings.

Hydrophobic technology demonstration - 2-4 nanometer coating
Surface treatment and coating strength represented by chain.

Oleophobic Surface Durability

Aculon’s® oleophobic surface nano-coatings are chemically robust with options that can withstand most any environment or exposure condition. These nano-coatings are thermally stable (200°-300°C+) in ambient air. Due to strong covalent bonding they are also resistant to abrasion. We have a saying that the treatment is “as strong as the underlying substrate”. If your substrate will survive the environment undamaged, our oleophobic coatings will too.

Application Process - Oleophobic Nano-Coatings

Aculon oleophobic nano-coatings are robust and scalable for high volume commercial applications. These coatings and treatments are all applied via wet chemical processes, meaning no deposition equipment, chambers, or batch processing, ever! Application options include spray, wipe, dip, jet, or dispense.

Aculon hydrophobic coating application process - spray application onto smartphone

Why Oleophobic Coatings from Aculon?

We are surface modification experts who have developed and produced oleophobic surface coating technologies to modify a broad variety of surfaces, such as metal, glass, and polymers for nearly 20 years.

These nano-coatings & treatments are all thin, easy to apply, safe, and non-toxic, with green options available. We have worked on thousands of oleophobic repellency applications, invested hundreds of thousands of hours solving oleophobic surface related challenges. You are very likely reading this as you too have a challenge that can be solved by modifying your surface to be oleophobic with a specialized nano-coating. We will work directly with you on a customized oleophobic solution tailored to the unique needs of your product. Let us help you make your product better. Want to learn more? Reach out to us at +1-858-350-9499 or contact us here to see how we can help!

oil industry electronic reading device

Proven Real-World Performance

An oil & gas company specializing in flow, pressure, & temperature sensors for real time oil flow monitoring came to us with a unique problem perfect for Aculon's oleophobic technology. Their synthetic sapphire viewports were getting fouled while in use resulting in poor long term monitoring stability, requiring frequent extraction for cleaning, a costly endeavor.

By functionalizing their synthetic sapphire viewports with Aculon's oleophobic technology the viewports remain free of fouling oils and contaminants allowing for long term reliability and drastically reduced cleaning frequency leading to a significant increase in production up time.

Aculon Webinar Series

May 14, 2020

Oleophobic Surface Modification

How Modifying Your Surface to Be Oleophobic Can Have Significant Impacts on Improving Your Product or Process

Hosted by C.E.O Edward Hughes and Senior Business Development and Product Manager Mario Gattuso

Tell us about your oleophobic application!

Do you have a question for us, or a product that can benefit from an oleophobic coating? Get in touch and let’s talk!

Oleophobic Coating Frequently Asked Questions

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