Winter has come; But definitely blue is the hottest color. Or at least it's the color of the season: if the light of that color that came out of the Santos Sea wasn't enough, now it's a chemist's turn to say he's discovered a new shade of blue! The pigment was called “blue YInMn”, and scientists swear it didn't exist before. Check out this curious story!

It all started in 2009, when Oregon State University chemist Mas Subramanian discovered color while experimenting with electronics. He mixed manganese oxide with some chemicals and heated them to 2, 000 degrees Celsius, resulting by chance in the new color - his name comes from the union of the symbols of the elements used in the mixture, ie Yttrium (Y), Indian (In). and manganese (Mn).

Shades of blue have been around since ancient Egypt, but many have safety issues, such as a high degree of toxicity. Today we have, for example, navy blue, made from lapis lazuli stone, or cobalt blue and prussian blue, which are more toxic. Subramanian guarantees that this is not a problem of its discovery.

Mixture of manganese, indium and yttrium has given rise to the new pigment, which promises to be more durable and without toxicity.

Practical Applications

"YInMn blue is more durable, safer and relatively easy to produce, and seems to be a new candidate for energy efficiency as it reflects a lot of infrared light, " explained chemist Subramanian. Many of today's blue shades fade easily, something he promises doesn't happen with the new pigment.

In practice, for example, a building could have its roof painted in new blue, which would ensure better cooling of the building. "This new blue is a sign that there are new pigments to be discovered in the inorganic pigment family, " said Geoffrey Peake, a research manager who licensed the new color patent that already has samples for sale. The idea is to test it before making it widely commercial.

So far, only visual artists are using the new pigment. Painter Madelaine Corbin was one of them and used blue to paint the facade of a building on one of her canvases. For the restorers, the new pigment promises to be a revolution as it does not lose its color for a long time. YInMn Blue has already been included in the Harvard Art Museum color listing and Pantone can choose the color of the year.

Artist painted picture with the new blue

Do you know who likes this?

"Everything blue, everyone blue"