Scientists create whitest paint. Could eliminate need for A/C, combat warming

I read the abstract of their paper and I can tell that the paint they created will be completely useless in the real world. No paint company would be interested in this.<p>They used a 60% volume concentration of barium sulfate. This is very high for an exterior paint and pretty much guarantees that it will have a very poor mechanical durability. The high amount of pigment with make the paint matt and attract dirt easily. Barium sulfate doesn&#x27;t absorb UV so the paint will be degraded by UV easily.

<i>Because the paint absorbs less heat from the sun than it emits, a surface coated with this paint is cooled below the surrounding temperature without consuming power.<p>Using this new paint to cover a roof area of about 1,000 square feet could result in a cooling power of 10 kilowatts. “That’s more powerful than the air conditioners used by most houses,”</i>

I wonder how often it’d need to be cleaned to maintain the cooling effect.

Ambiently cools by emitting more heat than it absorbs -- pretty nifty!