ZINC & TITANIUM DIOXIDE

Zinc Oxide Crystal Micrograph
Credit: Lynn Boatner, Oak Ridge National Lab

OxiTitan’s advanced multifunctional coating is composed of safe nanocrystalline minerals in a proprietary formulation. No toxins, heavy metals or pesticides are used. The ingredients of OxiTitan are zinc metal, titanium dioxide and (in some formulations) silicon dioxide in a colloid of water acting synergistically.

Zinc (Zn) is an essential trace mineral required as part of a healthy human diet and a well-recognized antiviral as zinc ions. Incorporated in almost all daily vitamins, its safety and efficacy is well documented. Zinc is the second most abundant transition metal in organisms after iron and it is the only metal which appears in all enzyme classes, beneficial in immunity maintenance and as a natural cellular defense mechanism. Nano scale zinc, widely used in the safest recommended UV sunscreens along with titanium dioxide has been widely tested for human and animal safety and is benign to the environment. Along with other exceptionally safe active ingredients (e.g., peppermint, garlic or even common salt) zinc metal is recognized by the US Environmental Protection Agency as a ‘minimum risk’ antimicrobial, exempt from registration requirements.

Titanium is the 9th most common element on earth. Its naturally occurring oxide (TiO2) is found in the minerals rutile, anatase and brookite. Titanium dioxide is commercially produced in the millions of tons worldwide, with 1.43 million tons produced yearly in the US alone. TiO2 is used in many everyday products, such as the whitener and UV inhibitor in plastics and paper. It is the pigment that makes white paint ‘white’. US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved as a food colorant (E171), titanium dioxide is used in skim milk, most toothpastes, cosmetics, almost every safe sunscreen, tattoo inks, styptic pencils, and in the pills and tablets of many medicines. FDA lists TiO2 as an approved colorant for food, drugs, medical devices, and is exempt from certification.

Photo: Anatase crystal in nature

At the nanoparticle level, OxiTitan’s ingredients of zinc metal, titanium dioxide and silicon dioxide are transparent because the particles are smaller than the wavelength of visible light (ranging from 400nm in the violet to 700nm in the red). Remarkably, both nanoparticle zinc and TiO2 still effectively block Ultraviolet Light (UV), which is why they are the ingredients in the safest transparent sunscreens and why OxiTitan is an effective protective UV barrier on surfaces.

Zinc is included in almost all daily vitamin supplements at daily dose levels exceeding the amount contained in 3 liters of OxiTitan. Titanium dioxide is classified as inert, non-toxic, and is deemed so low in potential as an occupational carcinogen that it is used as a negative control in studies investigating particle toxicity. Silica, silicon dioxide, is ubiquitous in our world, better known as sand or quartz. It is safe in all regards and included in many of our everyday foods.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) have extensively studied zinc and TiO² in commercial powder form and the nanoparticle size for environmental safety. The FDA finds micronized zinc and TiO2 to have no deleterious effects in studies of acute animal toxicity, irritation, sensitization, photo-irritation, photo-sensitization, human repeat-insult patch and skin penetration. OxiTitan is available only in dilute water-based colloids to avoid inhalation risk during application. Eco-friendly OxiTitan products do not break down or have any adverse effects on natural water systems. In fact, titanium dioxide is widely used in wastewater treatment plants for detoxification and remediation and bulk zinc is utilized in the galvanizing of water pipes and storage tanks. There are no toxic intermediary products and no hazard to plant or animal life. Even in nanoparticle size, neither zinc nor TiO2 penetrate the skin barrier.

Our Patent Pending coordinated nano coatings incorporate zinc metal on an anatase TiO² crystal lattice with silica as a binder and stabilizer. Traditional photocatalysts react only to Ultraviolet (UV) light, only 3-5% of our available solar energy. However, OxiTitan is also a strongly active photocatalytic oxidizer under ordinary interior visible light (up to 500 nm) and is many times more effective than older photocatalysts by gathering vastly more total light energy. The oxidizing effect under light is minor in bulk particle sized zinc and TiO2, but is highly effective as a coordinated nanocrystsal. Applied on a surface, OxiTitan functional coatings can kill bacteria, mold and mildew, deactivate viruses, and reduce concentrations of fungi and airborne pollutants.

Applied to metals, OxiTitan forms a thin hard barrier that reduces corrosion through passivation and increases hardness and abrasion resistance. On exterior surfaces OxiTitan becomes hydrophilic, sheeting water instead of beading, and is used in self-cleaning and anti-fogging coatings.

Zinc , silica and titanium dioxide, safe common minerals, now refined with advanced materials science to provide benefits beyond our imagination just a few years ago.