HBTU innovation: Ecofriendly wall paint from cow dung

KANPUR: A senior professor of the Harcourt Butler Technological University (HBTU) here has developed an eco-friendly wall paint from cow dung that not only helps in regulating room temperature but is also 40% cheaper than the chemical-based paints.

The innovator, professor PK Kamani of Paint Technology department, said efforts were afoot to get patent rights after trial and recording of the whole process.

Speaking about his pathbreaking research, Kamani said: “It took ten years’ rigorous research to develop the technology. The reasons for selecting cow dung were based on two points. First, it has been treated as auspicious for centuries and secondly because it is insect repellant. We have not used excreta of any other animal for the purpose.”

He said the paint when used on walls, stones and tin objects was found to be very effective.

“So far we are using a synthetic as binder but we want to replace it with some natural binders like aloe vera to make it more ecofriendly,” he said adding that “The paint could be made in all colours except white. It remains fresh for about three years and the walls painted with this could be washed with water. It does not produce any foul smell either.”

Kamani said the paint was termite and damp-proof and also helps in maintaining the natural temperature of room.

He said the machines for producing this paint have also been developed to suit the purpose and to minimize the production cost.