Coating materials exposed to sunlight absorb the emitted incident energy and convert the sunlight into heat; this absorbed heat can then degrade the protective coating as well as the substrate below the coating. Recent advances in infrared (IR) reflective pigmentation technology now enable protective coatings, such as roof coatings, to reflect incident energy from sunlight, thus lowering the temperature of the coating and extending the lifetime of the coating and substrate.The incident energy of sunlight striking a surface consists of approximately 5% ultraviolet energy, 42% visible energy and 53% near infrared energy (the actual amount will vary depending upon time of day and weather conditions). Infrared reflective pigmentation technology utilizes pigments that absorb color in the visible light energy range while reflecting near-infrared (NIR) energy emitted from the sun. Reflection of the near-infrared incident energy reduces the temperature of the coating and substrate by lowering the energy absorption from the sunlight.