An object of the present invention is to provide a printing sheet having a coated layer for ink receiving on at least one surface of a substrate, in which the printing sheet has excellent printability and excellent antistatic performance, being less likely to cause paper jams or other troubles during printing, and has excellent properties such as water resistance and weather resistance, and a method for producing the same. The printing sheet includes a coated layer made by blending clay in a ratio of 35% by mass to 65% by mass and heavy calcium carbonate in a ratio of 5% by mass to 30% by mass in a continuous phase made of an acrylic polymer on one surface or both surfaces of a substrate, in which a volume average particle diameter of the heavy calcium carbonate is 0.05 m to 2.00 m.

A composition and method for a microtexture hydrophobic or superhydrophobic coating. The microtexture coating includes a coating layer disposed on a substrate with hydrophobic or superhydrophobic particles dispersed on top of or partially embedded in the coating layer to form an outer layer. The outer layer exhibits water repellant properties. Use of the microtexture coating permits large scale, durable hydrophobic or superhydrophobic coating applications. The microtexture coating is a useful for application on wind turbines, airplanes, solar panels, windows, or cooling systems.

A hard coating film comprising a base layer including: a polymer binder resin; first inorganic particles dispersed in the polymer binder resin and having an average particle size of 5 nm or more and less than 70 nm; and second inorganic particles which are dispersed in the polymer binder resin and have an average particle size of 70 nm to 150 nm is provided.

A water-based surface treatment agent includes an organic-inorganic silicon compound (A) and inorganic particle (B), wherein the organic-inorganic silicon compound (A) is adapted to be a compound that is obtained by mixing a colloidal silica (C) and an organoalkoxysilane (D). In this regard, the ratio (M.sub.B/M.sub.A) between the solid content mass M.sub.A of the organic-inorganic silicon compound (A) and the solid content mass M.sub.B of the inorganic particle (B) preferably falls within the range from 0.2 or more and 2.0 or less, the average particle size of the organic-inorganic silicon compound (A) preferably falls within the range of 3 nm or more and 500 nm or less. In addition, the average particle size of the inorganic particle (B) preferably falls within the range of 10 nm or more and 600 nm or less.

The invention provides articles and methods for making such articles including a substrate coated on at least one region thereof with a layer of nanocomposites nano-cellulose materials and nanoparticles.

The present invention relates to a flexible plastic film, and more specifically to a flexible plastic film having excellent flexibility while exhibiting high hardness. According to the present invention, the flexible plastic film exhibits flexibility, bending property, high hardness, scratch resistance and high transparency, and hardly has a risk of damaging the film even in a state of being warped for a long period of time, and thereby can be usefully applied to flexible mobile devices, display devices, front face and display unit of various instrument panels, and the like.

Methods and compositions related to subsurface modified silica materials are described. The silica materials include silicon- and carbon-containing groups covalently bonded to the silicon-oxygen matrix. The silica materials have tunable permeability, modulus, hardness, flexibility, and elongation. The silica materials are suitable for use as polymer fillers and as functional coatings.

Material for surface treatment, mainly with thermo-reflexive and/or thermoinsulative characteristics, and with high water resistance level, contains first hollow glass bodies (1) with size fraction ranging from 65 to 110 ?m, second, filler hollow glass bodies (2) intended to fill the spaces within main fraction of the bodies (1) and these second, filler hollowed glass bodies (2) have size fraction ranging from 30 to 105 ?m, it also contains silicon dioxide processed to form of the nanoparticles and a binder (3). Hollow glass bodies (1, 2) will be mainly shaped as hollow, vacuumed microballs. A mixture forming the material can contain hollow glass bodies (1) making up 3 to 30% of its mass, filler hollow glass bodies making up 3 to 15% of its mass and silicon dioxide making up 1 to 17% of its mass. The material for surface treatment is health friendly, it can be used especially on the house fa?ades and in industry, where it is applied on the surface (4), the heath transfer and incandescence of which is to be diminished.

Paint configured to provide a hydrophilic paint surface comprising a paint base and a texture imprinting additive (TIA) that provides sacrificial particles upon drying of the paint. Loss of the sacrificial particles increases roughness and reduces the contact angle with water, providing a hydrophilic surface that is wettable and hence self-cleaning. Also described are specific types of TIA, methods of making the paint, methods of making a hydrophilic surface, and kits.

Composite material comprising nano-objects made of at least one first electron conducting material and nano-objects or submicron objects made of at least one second material differing from the first material; said composite material comprising nanostructures each consisting of the nano-objects made of at least one first electron conducting material marked with a first molecule, the nano-objects or submicron objects made of at least one second material differing from the first material being marked with a second molecule and being self-assembled and attached onto the nano-objects made of at least one first material by specific recognition between the first molecule and the second molecule, said nanostructures being homogeneously distributed in the material, the nano-objects made of at least one first electron conducting material being selected from among carbon nanotubes and carbon fibres, and the nano-objects or submicron objects made of at least one second material differing from the first material being selected from among silicon nanoparticles and submicron silicon particles.

Process to prepare said nanocomposite material.

Ink comprising said composite material.

Electrode comprising said composite material as electrochemically active material.

Electrochemical system in particular a lithium ion storage battery comprising said electrode.