Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology
Advantages of Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology over conventional antimicrobial products
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Gentle on the skin: a microscopic dose of the active substance guarantees effectiveness
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Long-lasting effect, the active substance does not evaporate off the skin
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Alcohol-free, does not dry your hands even with frequent use
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Extremely effective, provides a disinfecting effect at minimal doses
Why silver?
The effectiveness of our product is based on silver because when applied in our patented Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology, it is particularly sensitive to the skin while killing microbes effectively.
Silver is a broad-spectrum biocide that is effective against various pathogenic organisms, such as bacteria and viruses.
Silver also has various operating mechanisms that prevent and slow these pathogens down from developing a resistance against it. That is why silver is the active substance of the future and an integral part of Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology.
Silver has been used in its various forms for thousands of years. Currently, it is used to purify water in water treatment plants and in various medical applications. It is important to remember that active substances are always controlled by professionals: determining the correct state and dose of silver according to the application is vitally important.
Nolla™ products are for external use only.
How does Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology work?
Using silver in products applied on the skin has not always been without its problems: it is difficult to transmit and release the effect on specific areas in a safe form.
Nolla has researched and developed silver extensively in order to harness its potential.
Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology uses a polymer body to transmit and disperse silver.
The unique, self-organizing polymer structure of Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology creates an optimal surface of antimicrobial silver ions, makes them extremely stable and provides them with excellent binding capability on various surfaces.
Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology is the only silver polymer without nanoparticles available in the market. It is a water and alcohol-soluble liquid with features and capabilities never before seen in antimicrobial products.
The active component behind Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology’s biocidal effect is silver chloride (AgCl).
Thanks to the patented dispersion technology of Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology, its antimicrobial effect requires an extremely minimal amount of silver, only some ten-thousandths of the amounts used in previous biocidal products.
Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology can kill up to 99.99999% of microbes even with very low doses, which makes our product extremely gentle.
For what purposes can Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology be applied?
In the future, our range of products will include many high-quality, gentle antimicrobial products in different product categories.
We will launch cosmetic products, clothes refreshers, odor eaters and disinfectants for home cleaning purposes and many other products.
Stay tuned!
Research and development
Nolla Antimicrobial performs dual use research and development and carries out both classified and unclassified studies.
Our unclassified studies serve the purpose of publishing academic texts created in cooperation with universities and various research organizations. Classified studies strengthen our patents.
Gentle Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology
Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology is gentle on the skin.
This has been proved with the ex vivo Bovine Udder System (BUS) model, for instance. In the test, Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology was dissolved into purified water and applied on the skin.
According to the test, Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology’s values indicating its harmful effects were lower than the values of traditional, alcohol-based disinfectants.
How does Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology improve the antimicrobial effect of silver?
Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology uses a new molecule and a new antimicrobial type of silver. It improves the antimicrobial effect of silver. Our technology is based on using an ionic polymer as the carrier and dispersing agent of silver. This branch of science is called supramolecular polymer chemistry.
In the research and development phase, we eliminated the adverse effects of previously known silver technologies.
The polymeric form of Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology allows for novel applications, such as in pharmaceutical products, fiber coating applications and cosmetics.
Comparison of silver technologies
In the comparison of various silver technologies and their effectiveness, one of the most important aspects, in terms of antimicrobial effect, is to look at the size, shape and dispersion of silver.
Over the past decade, a countless number of nanosilver technologies that aim to improve the effect of silver have been developed. Several of these nanosilver technologies are used in various applications, but at the same time, concerns over their safety have increased.
Silver ion is the smallest—and safest—unit of silver that has an antimicrobial effect.
The difference in the sizes of a silver ion and a silver particle is enormous. The diameter of a nanosilver particle varies between 10 nm and 60 nm, whereas the diameter of a silver ion is approximately 0.2 nm. The silver used in Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology is always ionic.
As Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology functions in both the scales of ions and molecules, it is more effective, durable and rapid than conventional silver nanoparticles. The ions on the surface of the nanoparticles are antimicrobial and removable from the particles. Conversely, the ions located inside the particles are not antimicrobial, as their energy level is much higher.
Chemical reactions occur between functional groups, ions and molecules. The surface area of ionic silver is expanded to its theoretical maximum in Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology.
Structural advantages of Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology
Exceptionally large surface area of active silver ions. The ionomer structure spreads active silver ions to as large area as possible inside the self-organizing polymer matrix. Theoretically speaking, the active surface of Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology is more than 3,000 times larger than the surface of nanosilver particles that are more than 20 nm larger in size.
The ionomer structure of Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology stabilizes the sensitive silver ions and protects them from exposure to heat, UV radiation and various chemicals.
Conventional, dissolvable silver salts turn black when they come in contact with live tissue and may cause stains in bed sheets, for example. Using Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology does not include this risk. Unstable nanosilver particle solutions can easily generate nanoparticles when they are exposed to heat, light or chemicals. This reduces their active surface area and the sedimentation of particles at the bottom of the container considerably, weakening the solution’s antimicrobial effect.
The ionomer structure removes the silver ion’s keratolytic and escharotic abilities in water and alcoholic solutions.
This effect is caused by the ionic bond between the silver ions and the polymer body. The Nolla polymer is not caustic in solutions and it does not cause chemical cauterization or cell death, unlike soluble silver salts.
The ionomer structure supports antimicrobial activity by keeping the silver ions active.
In solutions and other matrices that only include silver particles, the relatively slow release of silver ions from the particles kills microbes.
The ionomer structure is flexible. It can re-shape itself and access even the smallest cavities.
Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology is a very viscous liquid that does not include any particles. Water and alcohol-based Nolla solutions have a low viscosity and they can access even the smallest cavities. This makes their antimicrobial effect more powerful than the effect of rigid silver particle technologies.
The ionomer structure can bind itself to many types of surfaces, such as skin, paper and various fibers.
The ionomer structure creates invisible, long-lasting molecular silver polymer layers on the skin with the hand disinfectant.
The ionomer structure of Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology stabilizes the silver ions. Unbound ionic silver is extremely unstable. Ionic silver has a strong tendency to react with itself, other ionic constituents and various functional molecule groups.
In Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology, the silver ions have already bound themselves to the technology’s polymer body. This ionomer structure inhibits the reactions of silver ions effectively and forces the silver ions in a position with optimal antimicrobial effect.
Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology uses various mechanisms to kill microbes with its silver ions and polymer structure.
Silver ions can bind itself to proteins and enzymes, which causes them to become denatured. Silver ions can oxidize the molecules of cell membranes and make the membrane more permeable. The column of the Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology polymer is cationic, which is why it can bind itself to the cell membranes of bacteria effectively, disrupt cellular metabolism and improve the antimicrobial effect of silver ions.
Advantages of Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology
The composition of Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology has unique advantages.
Thanks to the special features of Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology, it can be used in innovative antimicrobial products that are more effective and, most importantly, more gentle and pleasant to its users than any previous antimicrobial product.
Key advantages
Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology is stable. It improves dispersion and ultraviolet stability.
Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology contains active, stabilized, ionic silver chloride (AgCl), and it does not contain any colloidal particles or nanoparticles.
Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology is effective
Thanks to its polymeric structure, Nolla Silver Polymer Technology has the ability to create ultra-thin antimicrobial layers on surfaces. These layers are significantly thinner than the layers created by products that contain silver particles.
The efficiency of the product is very high as only a very small amount of the active substance is required to cover any surfaces to be cleaned.
How does Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology differ from other silver-based biocides?
Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology is not visible to the eye–it is microscopically small.
Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology can create breathing, thin and flexible layers on various surfaces. It kills the microbes that need to be eliminated and provides longer protection than products with evaporating active substances.
Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology is positively charged, which is why it is attracted to negatively charged surfaces. Because of this feature, our patented technology is ideal for disinfecting surfaces, for example.
Safety of Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology
Thanks to long-term research and development efforts, the dose of Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology required to achieve the full antimicrobial effect is extremely small. For example, Nolla Hand Sanitizer Foam contains only some thousandths of the active substance of the conventional amounts.
This is why Nolla’s products are particularly safe and gentle to the skin,
even if they are used wrongly by children, for example, and they enter the body.
Non-toxic silver
Silver kills microbes, but it is completely safe when applied correctly.
The most important thing is to dose them correctly and to use them for the purposes and according to the instructions defined by professionals.
Did you know that silver can be used to decorate food and drinks? In the EU, silver is used in food items with the E number E174.
Nolla™ products are for external use only.
Silver exposure limits
It is nigh impossible to exceed WHO or EPA silver exposure limits by using Nolla products.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has defined 10 grams of silver as a lifetime silver exposure that does not have adverse effects (NOAEL) (source).
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) states that safe daily lifetime consumption of silver is 5 micrograms per kilogram in bodyweight per day. For an adult weighing 80 kilograms this would be approximately 0.4 milligrams of silver per day or 0.15 grams per year (source).
To be exposed to this much silver a person would need to drink 20 – 40 litres of Nolla silver polymer containing products like hand sanitizer annually.
Exposure limits of silver
The World Health Organization (WHO) and different national authorities have issued recommendations concerning the safe use of and exposure to various active substances. According to the WHO, the No Observable Adverse Effect Level (NOAEL) of silver is 10 g over a lifetime (source).
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says that the safe level of consumption on a daily basis throughout a lifetime is 5 micrograms per kilogram of body weight. For example, an adult who weighs 80 kg can consume approximately 0.4 milligrams of silver a day or 0.15 grams a year (source).
In order to become exposed to this amount of silver, they would have to drink 20–40 liters of Nolla Hand Sanitizer Foam in a year.
Nolla™ products are designed for external use only as specified in the instructions of each product.
If our products are used according to the instructions, it is impossible to exceed the specified safety levels of exposure.
Argyria
Our products cannot cause argyria (gray skin complexion).
Silver accumulates in human and animal bodies over time. However, this has not been shown to have any adverse medical effects. The body of an adult contains approximately 2 milligrams of silver, and the food and drink we consume every day also contains small amounts of new silver.
Consuming large amounts of silver can cause argyria, a condition in which silver begins to accumulate in the skin, turning the skin’s complexion to blue-gray when it reacts to UV radiation in sunlight. Argyria is classified as a cosmetic condition, and in order to cause the onset of the condition, a person must consume several grams of silver internally.
External exposure to silver is considerably less harmful than inhaling or ingesting silver.
Nolla products cannot be used incorrectly in a way that causes argyria. In order to cause the onset of argyria by using Nolla products, it would have to be used internally in quantities of dozens of liters for several weeks.
Nolla products are designed for external use only.
Less skin irritation
The Nolla Hand Sanitizer Foam is based on Nolla Silver Polymer Technology and it does not cause skin irritation.
Nolla Silver Polymer Technology is less harmful to the body than other antimicrobial technologies. It has also been proved to cause less skin irritation.
Professor M. Kietzmann from Hanover, Germany has analyzed Nolla Hand Sanitizer Foam with the BUS model, the results of which are comparable with analyses using live skin. The cell activation value of the active substance is evaluated by measuring the quantity of prostaglandin, which mediates the inflammatory response.
Nolla Silver Polymer Technology and Nolla Hand Sanitizer Foam were shown to be ideal for the skin.
After an hour of exposure, the cell activation value caused by Nolla Hand Sanitizer Foam was 50% lower than the corresponding value of an alcohol-based hand sanitizer gel.
All of our products that include the Nolla Silver Polymer Technology have a similarly low skin irritation potential, which is why using them regularly is completely safe.
Incorrect use and issues with hand sanitizers
Water-based Nolla Hand Sanitizer Foam is ideal for circumstances and in locations in which the composition of the product must be safe and the incorrect use of alcohol-based products must be prevented.
It is common for some to consume disinfectants internally on purpose as they contain alcohol.
Water-based Nolla Hand Sanitizer Foam does not contain alcohol at all, so it is highly unlikely that it can be used incorrectly.
Nolla products do not cause serious adverse health effects if ingested accidentally.
Another disadvantage of conventional disinfectants is that they are extremely flammable. Hand sanitizers, in particular, have been reported to cause accidental as well as intentional fires. Water-based Nolla Hand Sanitizer Foam is not flammable.
Our unique combination of safety and effectiveness is an excellent choice for you and your close ones as well as day care centers, schools, hospitals and public institutes in which safety is a top priority.
Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology vs common antimicrobial technologies
Lowest bacterial growth limiting concentration of various antimicrobial technologies and Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology against an S. aureus strain in different exposure times.
- The Nolla technology’s effectiveness against an S. aureus strain presented below is comparable with the results of Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology against MRSA bacteria.
- Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology kills S. aureus bacteria considerably faster than silver nitrate and it requires smaller amounts of silver in doing so.
- The performance data presented below indicates the considerable differences between alcohol-free hand sanitizers based on Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology and triclosan. Whereas the silver content of Nolla based hand sanitizers is only 90 mg/l, the content of triclosan in hand sanitizers is typically between 10,000 and 20,000 mg/l.
| Substance | Concentration (mg/L) | Reduction of S. aureus bacterium in a specific period of exposure |
|---|---|---|
| Nolla¹ | 9 | 90.0% in 5 minutes |
| Nolla¹ | 90 | 98.7% in 5 minutes |
| Nolla¹ | 150 | >99.99% in 60 seconds |
| Nolla¹ | 150 | >99.99999% in 5 minutes |
| Triclosan (2,4,4'-Trichloro-2'-hydroxydiphenyl ether) | 0.5 1.0 | 99.9% in 24 hours |
| Triclosan (2,4,4'-Trichloro-2'-hydroxydiphenyl ether) | 0.25 | 90.0% in 24 hours |
| Quaternary ammonium compounds (QACs)² | 59 | 99.99% in 24 hours |
| Chlorhexidine digluconate² | 71 | 99.99% in 24 hours |
| Glutaraldehyde² | 1875 | 99.99% in 24 hours |
| Formaldehyde² | 156 | 99.99% in 24 hours |
| Ethanol² | 87500 | 99.99% in 24 hours |
| Chlorine-releasing-agents² | 945 | 99.99% in 24 hours |
| (CRAs) pH>9 | ||
| H2O2² | 938 | 99.99% in 24 hours |
| Nano silver particles¹ | 125 | 99.99% in 24 hours |
| Silver nitrate¹ | 10 | 90.0% in 24 hours |
| Silver dihydrogen citrate¹ | 2270 | 99.9% in 24 hours |
B2B
We are available for commercial development partnerships.
Please contact our sales team: sales@nollaantimicrobial.com
Ionic silver and nanosilver
The difference between the ionic silver in Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology and commonly used nanosilver particles is considerable.
The diameter of nanosilver particles is typically between 10 and 60 nanometers. The silver used in our polymer is an ionic form with a diameter of approximately 0.2 nm. On a logarithmic scale, the surface area of ionic silver is decades larger than the area of nanosilver particles.
Ionic silver has an antimicrobial effect and the nanosilver particles release ionic silver as the active component.
The polymer we use is liquid and is very soluble in water and alcohol, which is why the active component can access the microbes hidden in the small cavities of contaminated surfaces more effectively. This is a considerable advantage for the production of our licensed partners.
Solving the issues of ionic silver
Unfortunately, ionic silver is prone to react with counterions and functional groups. The ions of Nolla’s silver polymer are bound to the polymer body. This ionomer structure prevents the reactions of silver ions and forces them to adapt a structure with an optimal antimicrobial effect.
The ionomer structure of Nolla’s polymer also stabilizes silver ions against the effects of UV radiation and heat. Because of this, Nolla™ Silver Polymer Technology can be applied in conditions where guaranteed performance is required in a wide variety of temperatures.
Another especially important product-specific advantage is that the skin cell toxicity of our silver ions is considerably lower than the cytotoxicity of conventional products. This allows us to produce antimicrobial products that are gentle on the skin.