Blu-ray has a good resistance against scratches and fingerprints but “Sabic Innovative Plastics” is claiming they can make it better! They are developing a new coating made with Noryl. This new compound will be a potential replacement for the currently used polycarbonate. Noryl is an alloy of polyphenylene oxide (PPO) and polystyrene. According to Greg Harley, an engineer at Sabic’s Polymer Processing and Development Center in Massachusetts “Noryl has some advantages because it doesn’t absorb moisture like polycarbonate, and it’s more dimensionally stable.”Since Blu-ray data is recorded much closer to the surface, it is more vulnerable; therefore the current resistance coating was developed. The proximity of the data from the surface also allows for a bigger variety of coating materials and colors, differently from DVDs and CDs which require a transparent substance. Harley adds: “With DVDs, the laser is reading through a substrate, so the material has to be transparent. You can use an opaque material, or any color you want, with a Blu-ray disc.” That transparent material is an expensive solvent-casted polycarbonate film that is approximately 100 microns thick and is bonded with an adhesive to the substrate.

With Noryl, Sabic claims to be able to reduce the discs’ producing costs because it will not need a moisture-barrier layer and lacquer coating as required for polycarbonate. Because of its superior dimensional stability, a less complicated molding process results in a higher yield rate. The new Sabic material is also said to combine functionality in one coating, eliminating extra processing steps.

If this new material is as good as it sounds, it will be huge since not only will it make the discs better but also cheaper. This will only help in the blu-ray’s conquest against DVDs plus we love better and cheaper!!!

Via: Designnews.com

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