Interfacial has developed a unique technology to coat the outside of hollow glass microspheres with polymeric materials.  These unique polymer additives have a low cost, lightweight filler template with a functional polymeric coating.  When melt processed with a polymeric material these additives offer the following advantages and benefits:

1. A simple strategy to reduce the weight of an extruded or injection molded article. The sacrificial microspheres have very high survival rates (>95%)
2. Markedly improved conductivity when conductive sacrificial microspheres are used (as much as 20X)
3. Ideal materials for use with conventional melt processing techniques that are easy to handle, blend and feed using conventional equipment.

This patent pending technology involves chemical methods to coat hollow microspheres with polymeric coatings.  These coatings, when properly designed improve the resilience of the microsphere and make it easier for them to survive melt processing with other polymeric materials.  For example, when expanded volcanic ash (crush strength of <1000psi) is coated with a crosslinked polyamide resin, more than 95% of the coated spheres survive processing in a twin screw extruder with Nylon resin.  In another example, the sacrificial microspheres are coated with a crosslinked polyamide resin containing carbon nanotubes.   The resulting coated spheres are safer to handle, easy to feed and increase the conductivity efficiency (by wt% of nanotubes) by more than 10X vs using carbon nanotubes alone in the composite.

We believe that these materials have broad application across many markets requiring lightweighting, conductivity, microbial resistance, oxidative resistance, coloration and many other functions.  This technology is not yet commercial, however we are working to find partners that can help us scale it at present.