FAQs
PURETi is sold as a solution consisting of 99% water and 1% M.O.M. encapsulated in water. When sprayed onto a surface, PURETi dries in seconds and cures in 24-36 hours to form a clear, hard, water-permeable inorganic mineral film that is 40 nm thick. To put this into perspective, 1 nm = 1 billionth of a meter, and 40 nm (working thickness for PURETi to do its job) = 1/25,000 of the thickness of a business card. Translated with DeepL.com (free version)
Chemical and physical bonds—Van der Waals forces and hydrogen hooks—bind PURETi to the material being treated, making it a highly durable, tightly bonded mineral film that can be described as polymeric ceramic.
PURETi's patented 3-day production process results in a solution that can be electrostatically sprayed to form a transparent, durable, 40-nanometer-thick mineral film on virtually any building material: glass, metal, stone, concrete, paint, plastic, etc. When ultraviolet light (from the sun or fluorescent tubes) energizes the MOM crystal in nanothin mineral films applied with PURETi, an energy band gap is created within the crystal that causes it to act like a magnet and extract a hydrogen atom from H2O molecules that are present in everyday humidity, leaving a hydroxyl radical (OH-).
The hydroxyl radical (OH-) is the strongest non-poisonous oxidizing agent in nature and literally acts like Pac-Man, tearing apart the carbon-hydrogen bonds in any organic compound it comes into contact with. All of this occurs in nanoseconds and within angstroms of the surface treated with PURETi. The MOM in PURETi serves as a catalyst to trigger these reactions (safely breaking down organic matter into H2O and CO2) and is not consumed in these reactions. In the presence of light, PURETi becomes a perpetual creator of hydroxyl radicals. Short-chain hydrocarbons are destroyed faster, and long-chain molecules take longer. No heat is generated by the photocatalytic process.
A second set of reactions is equally powerful at combatting urban smog. This happens when the photocatalytic process causes an electron to pop onto an oxygen molecule, creating O2*, a super-oxide anion. This highly reductive species interacts with NOx and SOx, (two indirect green house gases, criteria pollutants and key ingredients in the formation of smog) and instantly reduces these noxious airborne molecules to relatively harmless nitrates and sulfates.
PURETi is also super-hydrophilic, which makes glass super-slippery. As a result, rain sheets off, taking organic dirt particles with it. It also makes glass non-fogging.
PURETi is non-flammable, and will quickly disperse if spilled.
What substances will damage or remove PURETi once it has cured?
Since MOM acts as a catalyst that is not consumed by the photocatalytic process, it will continue to do its job as long as it is not physically scraped off or covered. Although the MOM coating is extremely thin (40 nm), it is inorganic and extremely resistant, making it very difficult to remove.
Warranty
PURETi warrants our professonlly applied products for 5 years (exterior) and 3 years (interior). Actual life span will probably be longer.
The reason the warranty is shorter with interior spaces is that siloxanes – an inert chemical present in interior environments in increasing numbers - may invisibly cover up the PURETi layer and block receptor sites critical to the photocatalytic process.
Is PURETi non-toxic and safe for humans and animals?
Yes. MOM is GRAS (Generally considered safe) in accordance with the FDA and the European Scientific Committee, PURETi has been determined to be safe in all forms: active and inactive, nano and micro. The National Sanitation Foundation has registered PURETi as safe for surface contact with materials. NIOSH has found PURETi application methods to be safe. There are no respirable dusts with PURETi and almost no risk of human contact. Independent university testing has found that PURETi requires significant force to erode and wears down into flakes larger than 100nm and above the threshold of concern.
What materials does PURETi not get along with?
a) Teflon, silicone, wax and polypropylene all reject PURETi’s water based carrier and are the only four materials to which PURETi will not bond.
b) Wax applied over PURETi will block the moisture needed to activate photocatalysis.
c) PURETi may degrade certain organic substrates, such as latex paint or soft plastic, then fall off the material being treated. In these cases, a first coat of non-photoactive PURETi primer (called Base) can applied that will not damage the organic material, followed by a second coat of photoactive PURETi that will do the job. In a production process where the cure process is being accelerated from 24 hours down to only seconds, the first coat can be followed immediately by the second.
How quickly does PURETi work?
Activation occurs immediately after turning on the UV light source; however, it takes some time for all hydrocarbons, VOCs, NOx, and SOx in a room or in the air outside a building or solar panel to come into contact with the MOM crystals.
The effective residence time can be accelerated by pulling more contaminated air per unit of time, very close to PURETi, where it can be destroyed. Deactivation occurs minutes after the UV light source is removed.
Will PURETi work with reflected light and how much light is needed?
UV light bounces around just like visible light, so reflected or ambient light works fine to activate PURETi.
There is a range of functionality that PURETi delivers that depends on the amount of light it receives.
Outdoors: PURETi claims a full set of self-cleaning and air purifying benefits. These functionalities only require 0.1mW/cm2 of UV-A light. Direct sunlight delivers over 1mW/cm2 and the north side of buildings – even in the shade – receive more than 0.001mW/cm2 of UV-A light.
Indoors: PURETi claims a more limited, but still powerful and highly marketable, set of odor eliminating and IAQ, respiratory health improving benefits. These functionalities only require 0.001mW/cm2 of UV-A light – one hundredth the amount of light required for full self-cleaning. This level of light is found at window surfaces and light fixture surfaces.
Will PURETi work under water?
The light intensity needed to activate PURETi falls off sharply under water. 5-6 inches is about the limit of effectiveness in salt water, up to 1 foot in non-salt water, depending on its clarity.
Operating limits
a) PURETi will work down to 0 degrees C (32 degrees F), at which point the water PURETi is suspended in will freeze.
b) Since PURETi in solution form is 99%+ water, it is best applied at a temperature that is not too hot to touch, otherwise it will evaporate too quickly.
c) Once cured, the upper temperature limit of PURETi is 600 degrees C. Above that, it melts into the rutile form of MOM.
In between freezing and 600 degrees C, PURETi is not particularly sensitive to temperature, nor is its performance impacted by pressure.
Will PURETi eat dust?
Since most indoor dust consists of skin and hair particles, which are organic, PURETi will consume these forms of dust as they come in contact with a PURETi-treated surface.
Inorganic dust (ie sand) will still be attracted to PURETi-cleaned windows, but without the “sticky” organic grime to stick to, inorganic dust will fall off.
Outdoors, inorganic fine sand on a PURETi-treated solar panel can be easily blown off by a strong wind gust or leaf-blower, whereas it will continue to stick to untreated panels.
PURETi can be overwhelmed if the amount of dust, grime, algae or mold buildup occurs too quickly and blocks light.
Will PURETi work better on rough or smooth surfaces?
PURETi will work equally well on both surfaces.
Can PURETi be sprayed on fluorescent bulbs without impacting the bulb’s performance or life?
It will destroy VOC’s, and shouldn’t impact the bulb’s life. However, the limited surface area makes bulbs a far less significant target for application than the reflectors or lamp shades that surround these bulbs.
How do the sprayers know if they’ve missed a spot?
Since PURETi is 99% water, it leaves a visible sheen as it is being applied, so any missed spot is immediately visible. To make sure PURETi is applied uniformly, sprayers are taught to do a series of sprays across a surface, then a series of up-and-down motions.
What does the sprayer have to do differently under windy conditions?
Get closer. Above four stories, extra measures are typically required to block the wind.
Surfaces to avoid
Teflon, wax and silicone.