The past couple of years has witnessed significant news about developments in "Nano fillers" - the new fascinating microscopic reinforcements. Nano fillers are very small and have a much larger surface/volume ratio as compared to conventional fillers, making it possible to attain mechanical property enhancements at much lower addition levels. However, it takes a lot of know-how and expertise to disperse and distribute nanofillers in the compound.
This partly explains why various players in the development chain are working together more closely than they have in the past. Typical examples are PolyOne's strategic alliance with Nanocor, which has yielded Nanoblend concentrates, and more recently, Maxxam LST compounds. Also contributing to the development is collaborative work from polymer supplier Basell, additive supplier Southern Clay, and end-user General Motors, that has led to the world's largest application for nanocomposites.
In all cases, the host polymers are polyolefins. Polyolefin based nanocomposites in the automotive industry have the advantage that they could help in replacing the more expensive ETPs. The advantage of using a nanocomposite for automotive applications is that less filler material is required to provide the same or better performance characteristics when compared to conventional materials. Some researchers believe that hybrid system of nanofiller along with the reduced levels of the conventional fillers have better chances for success.

According to a report by Frost & Sullivan, a market of about 5000 MT for nanofillers was developed in 2003, taking into consideration an average dosage of only 0.3%. Interestingly, the maximum usage of such nanocomposites has been in the field of packaging. Lower permeability to moisture, gases and hydrocarbons is one of the primary reasons for their wide usage in the packaging field. Various end user industries are now seriously looking at this new exciting technology. It is expected that market for nanofillers would grow at more than 25-30% in the next two decades. The high cost (in the range of US$500-US$750/kg) of these micro fillers is a primary reason for slower acceptance. Usage of nanofillers at even mere dosage levels of just 1%, leads to a cost increase of over US$5/kg. In the future when prices lower, dosage levels are expected to go up from levels 0.3% to about 3-5%.

These nano particles could cause some environmental problems, particularly to animal organs. However, notwithstanding some environmental doubts, these nano particles would provide tremendous opportunity not only in the packaging field but more so in the automotive, consumer electronic and construction industries.