What Materials Can Flat Irons Be Made Up Of?

There are not as many noticeable differences between ceramic and tourmaline as there are between ceramic and metal plated. The ceramic and tourmaline plates perform almost equally, but tourmaline does it slightly better.  Both use negative ions to straighten your hair safely and with results that cause far less damage to the hair cuticle than competing flat irons that use metal plates.  Most high end professional brands that manufacture flat irons have models with both ceramic and tourmaline plates, but the selection is usually limited.

Ceramic/Ionic – generates ions to smooth the hair cuticles, but keep in mind not all flat iron plates are 100% ceramic.  All plates are infused with ceramic (and/or other materials) to smooth the hair.  Pure Ceramic plates would be to soft to get the job done, so…this means these Ceramic Irons are made ALONG with a much stronger, heat conducting material such as Titanium, Aluminum, and so forth.  Although ceramic flat irons cause less damage to the hair than flat irons made with other materials, prolonged use may still cause damage.

Aluminum – most older lesser quality flat irons are pure aluminum (most your drug store variety), and do not contain or if so carry very little ceramic.  That is where you notice the difference in prices.

Tourmaline – is a semi precious gemstone for its negative ion generating and smoothing properties.  Tourmaline plates produce a greater number of negative ions than ceramic plates.  Tourmaline flat irons work great at preventing heat damage, because the material is designed to produce more negative ions. The negative ions protect your hair cuticle from damage by locking in the hairs own natural moisture, while reducing frizz.  The negative ions diffuse all of the excess water in the hair into tiny particles, enhancing the moisture balance of the hair, while reducing frizz and static electricity, making hair smooth and healthy looking.  Most tourmaline flat irons take only 25 seconds to straighten a section of your hair, while the ceramic flat irons take a slightly longer time.

Nano – the technology in manipulating matter on an atomic and molecular scale.  This is a process where the material, say Tourmaline, is micronized into superfine particles and infused into the plate surface.  Whenever you see Nano, think teeny, tiny pieces of a smoothing material infused into the plates.  Nano-Ceramic, Nano-Silver, you get the idea:

• • Nano-Tourmaline – infused with tourmaline, this is a older release then the Nano-Titanium and Nano-Silver.
  • Nano-Titanium – straightens hair up to 40% faster, but only necessary if your hair is hard to straighten.  It is a newer technology but very comparable to Tourmaline.  Great for smoothing out hair just be cautious of the type of climate you are using it in as it can cause a great deal of static.  So if you are from in the interior and hate static, I advise you to look into a different type of an iron if you have normal/medium to finer hair.
  • Nano-Silver – great technology for the stylist or germ-a-phone, the smoothing technology not only straightens well but it eliminates bacteria on the tool.
  • Nano-Ceramic – infused to produce negative ions.