At Momentive, we’re committed to providing Solutions for a Sustainable World™ - and doing business in a way that doesn’t just benefit our financial results, but improves our environmental, social and corporate governance performance.

That commitment goes beyond reducing emissions, waste and water use, and increasing the amount of renewable energy we use. It means offering products that deliver real world sustainability benefits to our customers in construction – like our popular Enduris roof coatings.

In this post, we explore how Enduris roof coatings are helping the global construction industry to cut emissions, reduce waste and improve the energy efficiency of buildings worldwide.

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Why Replace When You Can Restore?

Roof replacement can be a carbon intensive process.

First, you need to remove the old roof – a resource and carbon intensive process that requires heavy machinery and scaffolding, with lots of site transport emissions too. Tearing off an old roof also creates significant waste, with lots of the spent material ending up in landfill.  

Then, you have all the carbon emitted during the manufacture and installation of the new roof…  

Restoring a roof using Enduris roof coatings can extend the life of a roof by decades (with warranties of up to 20 years). Not only is this quicker and more cost effective than replacement, it delivers significant sustainability benefits too.

This is because it delays and reduces the amount of roofing materials that end up in landfills over time. With the construction industry estimated to create a third of the world’s overall waste and 40% of the world’s carbon emissions, taking steps to reduce this is essential if we are going to deliver on our sustainability objectives.

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Improving Energy Efficiency With Enduris Cool Roof Coatings

White-colored, highly reflective silicone coatings, like Enduris 3525 cool roof coating, can be applied to both new and existing flat roofs to create cool roofs.  

A cool roof is any roof that reflects more sunlight and absorbs less heat than a conventional roof. In warmer climates, having a cool roof can deliver significant benefits to the building owner and its occupant in terms of cost, comfort, and sustainability.  

It reduces the internal temperature of the building, which improves comfort, and reduces the need for air conditioning. The effect can be significant, with cool roofs lowering internal building temperatures by 1.2–3.3°C (2.2 to 5.9°F).  

This can reduce air conditioning energy use by between 10% and 50%, helping to cut Scope emissions. It can also reduce maintenance requirements and increase the lifespan of air conditioning units, or allow for the use of lower-output, more energy-efficient systems.

Another benefit of a cool roof is that decreasing roof temperature may extend the life of the roof itself. Over time, UV light can damage roofing substrates, reducing their lifespan and increasing the risk of maintenance issues.  

Enduris 3525 roof coating is made from silicone, which is inherently resistant to breakdown under UV light. This can reduce the effects of sun exposure and extend the life of the building.  

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Improving the Wider Environment

The benefits of using Enduris cool roof coatings can also extend beyond the building, to the wider environment, especially in urban areas with a high number of cool roofs.  

Cool roofs can lower local outside air temperatures and reduce the urban heat island effect, which can have a huge cumulative effect on big cities. According to a new study by UCL researchers published in June 2024, applying cool roof coatings would be more effective at cooling cities like London than ‘green roofs’ made of vegetation, street-level vegetation, or solar panels! The report found that, if used across London, cool roofs could reduce temperatures across the city by up to 2°C (3.6°F).  

Cooling the outside air can also slow the formation of smog from air pollutants, which form more easily at higher temperatures. On the hottest days, reducing A/C use can also cut peak electricity demand, which can help to prevent power outages.

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Enduris 3525 Cool Roof Coating

At Momentive, our latest cool roof solution is Bright White Enduris 3525 roof coating, which has been tested by the Cool Roof Ratings Council (CRRC).

By reflecting the sun and reducing thermal emittance, it is proven to reduce buildings' internal temperatures, cut summer cooling costs and energy use, and reduce the building’s carbon footprint.

According to testing, it offers an initial solar reflectance rating of 0.85 and a 3-year solar reflectance rating of 0.64. Reflecting solar radiation reduces thermal emittance to 0.89 initially, and 0.90 after three years.

You can check the listing for Enduris 3525 roof coating at https://coolroofs.org/.

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Cool Roof Coatings from Momentive

Choose Enduris Roof Coatings for your cool roof project, and you will benefit from a solution that can help reduce your energy consumption and, in turn, your carbon footprint.

Enduris roof coatings offer one-coat application and primerless adhesion to most substrates (including TPO), and protect from dramatic temperature extremes, daily UV exposure, and ponding water.

The 100% silicone formula allows the coating to expand and contract with the roof, remaining stable, flexible, and resilient from day one and for years to come.

Find out more at https://siliconeforbuilding.com/products/enduris-roof-coatings

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References

https://www.energy.gov/energysaver/cool-roofs

https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2024/jul/cool-roofs-are-best-beating-cities-heat

https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2024GL109634

https://environment.ec.europa.eu/topics/waste-and-recycling/construction-and-demolition-waste_en

https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/14/8/2257

https://gispoint.de/fileadmin/user_upload/paper_gis_open/DLA_2023/537740008.pdf

Images provided by Cool Roof Coatings.