First new shade of blue discovered for 200 years to be turned into Crayola crayon - 'YInMn Blue' - Children will be able to color the sky a different shade for first time in 200 years, after scientists created a vivid ‘new blue’ and Crayola announced it is turning it into a crayon. In 2009 Oregon State University made the serendipitous discovery of an entirely new color while heating chemicals in a laboratory oven. <br /><br />The bright blue shade was the first new blue pigment to be created since the French chemist Louis Jacques Thenard discovered cobalt blue in 1802.<br /><br />Now children will be able to get their hands on the new shade by the end of the year, after Crayola announced it is turning the pigment into a new crayon, to replace ‘dandelion’ - a yellow shade which is being retired.<br /><br />The new colour was discovered by accident by Mas Subramanian , a professor of materials science at Oregon State, who was working with students to manufacture new materials which could be used in electronics.<br /><br />But when he heated Yttrium oxide, Indium oxide and a bit of Manganese oxide and pulled the mixture out of the furnace he discovered it had turned a vibrant blue, which he catchily dubbed 'YInMn blue' in reference to its chemical composition.<br /><br />Prof Subramanium said it was ‘truly an honour’ that his pigment was being turned into a new crayon.<br /><br />“This was a serendipitous discovery, a happy accident,” said Prof Subramanian .<br /><br />“But in fact many breakthrough discoveries in science happen when one is not looking for it. Most pigments are discovered by chance.<br /><br />“Blue is associated with open spaces, freedom, intuition, imagination, expressiveness, inspiration and sensitivity.<br /><br />“We could not imagine a better partner than Crayola, a brand synonymous with colour and creativity to help us share this discovery with the world.”<br /><br />The new colour is so vibrant because the chemicals bind in a unique structure which completely absorbs red and green wave-lenghs of light, so only blue is reflected. The compounds are also very stable, so the shade will not fade and it is non-toxic.<br /><br />And companies are interested in using if for energy efficiency as it can bounce away the ultraviolet waves of the Sun, and potentially help keep buildings cooler.<br /><br />Crayola is inviting children to help name the new colour, a competition which will close on June 2 and the new shade will be announced in September.<br /><br />“We are a company all about kids, creativity and colour, so we strive to keep our colour palette innovative and on trend, which is why we’re excited to introduce a new blue crayon colour inspired by the YInMn pigment, “ said Smith Holland CEO and president of Crayola.<br /><br />“The new blue crayon will help Crayola to continue to inspire kids and kids at heart to create everything imaginable.”<br /><br />Music: Twilight Streets by Dhruva Aliman<br />https://dhruvaaliman.bandcamp.com/album/road-of-fortunes<br />http://www.dhruvaaliman.com/<br />Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/artist/5XiFCr9iBKE6Cupltgnlet<br /><br />
